Hidden Brooklyn Gems Part II - Arts & Culture

Description:

This restaurant brings one of Manhattan's hottest culinary trends-market fresh food-to Brooklyn's upscale Park Slope neighborhood. The small space features a décor that is bright and sophisticated, with wooden chairs and red tables. The crowd consists of well-heeled locals, who have turned this eclectic restaurant into one of the neighborhood's hottest eating spots. Everything is made with fresh ingredients, so the menu varies according to what is in season, but the focus is on New American cooking with Middle Eastern influences. The restaurant opens daily at 5: 00 p.m. for dinner. Please visit the website for further details.

Description:

One of New York City's true gems, the Brooklyn Academy of Music is a world class performing arts center. Located at the edge of the recently gentrified Fort Greene neighborhood of Brooklyn, it offers some of the city's finest concerts and theatrical events. From opera and classical music to African dance and modern theater, the packed schedule offers something for everyone's taste. The complex is also home to Bam Rose Cinemas.

Description:

The walls are lined floor to ceiling with stuffed bookshelves, and a fireplace will warm your toes if you sit in one particularly intimate corner. Wait your turn at one of two bocce ball courts, or head downstairs for live music performances.

Description:

This association of Williamsburg galleries showcases the best work of emerging and established artists in the neighborhood. Check their website for a listing of the various venues and what's on display there.

Description:

Rustic Italian food in a charming brick- and wood-lined trattoria that sits a bit outside the center of hipster Williamsburg. The relatively inexpensive menu features a diverse offering of antipasti, delicious homemade pastas, and main dishes such as Barolo-braised beef, slow-roasted Berkshire pork belly, or seared diver scallops with bacon and tomato ragu. In addition to a cozy indoor space, Aurora boasts a large garden for dining al fresco.

Our Local Expert Says:

The collection of Egyptian art is one of the best of its kind in the world, while the American section contains pieces from masters like Thomas Eakins, John Singer Sargent, Winslow Homer and Georgia O'Keeffe.

Description:

In a city bursting with culture, the Brooklyn Museum, opened in 1897, is one of the highlights. Located just past beautiful Prospect Park, and adjacent to the Brooklyn Botanic Garden, the museum is housed in a majestic building designed by the architect Stanford White. In addition to various special exhibitions--a particularly notorious one, featuring works from the collection of Charles Saatchi, was criticized by then-mayor Rudolph Giuliani and led to a court battle over public funding for controversial art--the museum's permanent collection contains a wide range of Pacific, African and New World art, Asian art, Egyptian and ancient Middle Eastern art, decorative art, European, American and contemporary painting and sculpture.

Description:

This small but beautiful botanic garden features a Japanese hill and pond garden, as well as the Cranford Rose Garden, herb garden, the Children's Garden and the Steinhard Conservatory of indoor flowers and plants. In all, there are 52 acres and 12,000 varieties of botanicals, ranging from the tiny bonsai to the towering oak. Self-guided tours, individual classes and certificate programs are all available. Students come with your valid id cards, if you want to avail of a concession.

Description:

The same architects who designed Central Park in Manhattan, Frederick Law Olmsted and Calvert Vaux, were responsible for creating this beautiful Brooklyn park. Unlike its more famous cousin in Manhattan, Prospect Park is not surrounded by skyscrapers. Many Olmsted fans dub this 526-acre park his crowning achievement. It features horseback riding, ice skating, tennis, paddle boats and a carousel, as well as the Prospect Park Wildlife Center. There is a band shell for concerts, and Prospect Lake is full of ducks, geese and swans.