Travelers and tourists usually like to explore Manhattan because of the bustling energy, plenty of fun, amusement, and exciting nightlife in NYC. However, the other boroughs have more interesting activities and entertainment with diverse cultures and significance. Brooklyn is next to Manhattan. There is no more hustle and bustle, but you will find various exciting activities, stunning places, historical heritage, a culinary scene, and the coolest things to do in Brooklyn.
You can find fun adventures, green spaces, diverse food flavors, exclusive cafes, famous clubs, and shopping from reasonable and low-cost options. If you are a new visitor in New York and looking for budget-friendly options, this borough has various things to do for first-timers, like affordable living, food, shopping, entertainment, and everything for you.
Top 15 Cool Things to Do in Brooklyn
Let’s explore the top 15 cool things to do in Brooklyn. There are the most popular art galleries, parks, cafes, and the best coffee shops, where you can spend your evenings with friends and buddies. In this guide, you will explore the best things for standard status and reasonable options.
1. Floating Cafe Pilot at Pier Six
Are you a food lover? You will find lots of dynamic cuisines and food scenes in Brooklyn. Here is the best restaurant in Brooklyn, a floating restaurant on the water waves at Pier Six Brooklyn Bridge Public Park. This floating restaurant is on a retired ship formerly used for soldiers in past wars. Now, it’s serving the public as a floating cafe offering a delightful ambiance and delicious seafood dishes like crabs, lobsters, and fish. The fabulous cafes scene serves exclusive food and drinks. This historical ship also offers a museum displaying old war artifacts and art pieces. The pilot also hosts free events for public fun and entertainment on board.
2. Taste the Sicilian Square Pizza at L & B Spumoni Garden
Pizza is the favorite food for New Yorkers, whether kids, teens, or adults; everyone loves to have wood-fired, brick oven pizza, New York-style pizza, or Neapolitan-style pizza. However, this Sicilian square pizza has various flavors of spices, hot chili, cheesy, and delicious sauce with different toppings. Their thick crust is filled with cheese and yummy toppings, fabulous interiors, and a stunning ambiance with comfy seating. Their specific delicious sauces are the main ingredient that delivers the best taste for the cheesy slices. You will find several pizzerias, but it’s the best pizza in Brooklyn.
3. Have Food and Fun at the Brooklyn Bowl
Have you ever heard of a bowling alley having a dance floor? Brooklyn Bowl is the best entertainment spot and offers a bowling alley with sixteen lanes for players, a dance floor for late-night clubs, live music performances, DJ rocks, and various music genres to listen to. That’s not enough for fun, oh yes! The food scene is great here. You will enjoy the upscale culinary taste. French-style bread pizza, salads, fries, nachos with smoked pork chili, beef ribs, smoked chicken wings, sandwiches, burgers, shakes, beers, and margaritas. They held spacious events and musical concerts for guests. You need to reserve your spot for entry. It’s a great venue for hangouts and the best thing to do in Brooklyn at night.
4. Romantic Dinner at the Waterfront River Cafe
Valentine's Day, a date night, or a newlywed couple going out for dinner can enjoy the spacious romantic setting, sophisticated ambiance with classy interiors, fresh flower fragrance, live piano music for soft and relaxing vibes, stunning views of the river and city skyline will make it the most memorable moments of your life. The delicious American culinary experience within the finest dining hall offers the menu: River Cafe Oysters, Shrimps, Shellfish, Lobster, Rabbit, Gnocchi, Steak Tartare, Lamb, Beef, Duck, Lemon Souffle, Dessert Flight, and much more.
5. Try Spicy Steaks and Juicy Burgers at Red Hook Tavern
You will find various eateries that serve the best burgers, but here, we have a spacious dine-in spot that serves sizzling steaks and juicy burgers, the Red Hook Tavern. It’s the best thing to do in Brooklyn this weekend. It’s full on the weekends, so you need to make a reservation to avoid long waiting times. The restaurant has a charming ambiance, and locals love to taste the burgers, although their menu has more flavorful dishes like oysters, shrimp, steak tartare, ham croquettes, French onion soup, Red Hook Tavern burger, pork chopped, kale salad, fish and chips, and much more.
6. Enjoy the Diverse Culinary Experience at the Time Out Food Market
Time Out Food Market is a waterfront food hall where several famous restaurant vendors serve diverse food flavors, and you will experience the best culinary experience with lots of meal variations at the same place. Time Out food hall was priorly a warehouse which was transformed into a massive food spot that offers different cuisines. If you are a foodie, you may love to visit this place as it’s the best thing to do with kids and family. It's not only the food they serve well, but they also hold various fun events and activities, like live music, game shows, workshops to learn.
7. Visit the Small Museum City Reliquary
You have heard of various giant historical museums and art galleries in NYC. But this small community museum displays the tiny treasure of great art pieces and community art collections. The museum is in a famous neighborhood, Williamsburg. Their vision and mission are to present the community's history and artwork to the public. They host cultural events for music, dance performances, and comedy shows. You will enjoy the visit and the events at this spacious spot, and it’s one of the best things to do in Brooklyn.
8. Visit the Broadway Fashion Thrift Store in Bushwick
Brooklyn is famous for its vintage and thrift stores. People brought in vintage fashion outfits, jackets, coats, boots, shoes, handbags, jewelry, antique decoration pieces, and furniture items. The famous thrift stores are in Williamsburg and Bushwick. Broadway Fashion is one of the most popular and the best thrift stores in Brooklyn. Broadway Fashion has the best fashion outfits, casual clothes, and shoes for men and women. There are no exclusive things or expensive outfits. Everything is reasonable and has a regular status, but the store has a massive collection of fashion wear and footwear for the lowest price.
9. Visit the Rooftop Farm Brooklyn Grange
New York City holds the world’s largest rooftop farms, and the Brooklyn Grange is one of them. These rooftop farms are located in Navy Yard, Flushing Ave. They produce a massive amount of fresh produce while hosting several workshops and events to teach rooftop farming and growing fresh produce. Their famous workshops and events are mushroom cultivation, rooftop farming, floral decorations, and more. You will enjoy the visit as it’s one of the most unique things to do in Brooklyn.
10. Visit the Stunning Art Exhibitions at Pioneer Works
NYC has various art galleries and museums, but the Pioneer Works community cultural center brings the most unique and versatile art and craft, music, science, and technology exhibitions in Red Hook, Brooklyn. They organized various workshops, educational programs, and events for live performances at the venue. The popular exhibitions are Cartoon and Compliant, House to House, Jersey Fresh, The Women of Marwencol, No-mad Nomad, Two Apollo, Workflow, and Medusa.
11. Enjoy Urban Landscapes at the Best Golf Courses
Golf players can spend the best time at Dyker Beach and Marine Park Golf Course in Brooklyn. These lavish green gardens with incredible views have eighteen golf holes for players. They host various championship tournaments and workshops for members. It’s not a public park but a spacious green garden for play and relaxation to enjoy refreshing vibes.
12. Visit the WeeksVille Heritage and Cultural Center
The WeeksVille Heritage and Cultural Center is a Freed Black community center that displays the history and heritage of black slavery in America. The latest live exhibitions at the cultural center are In Pursuit of Freedom, Resurrect Resistance, Home is Where the Hip-Hop Is, and Black Exhale Nest. The sadness and emptiness in the stories from the terrible history of Black Slaves in America can be seen in these deep art collections at this cultural center.
13. Stroll at the Little Sanctuary the Walt Whitman Park
Walt Whitman is a famous New Yorker, American Poet, and Journalist, and the beautiful small sanctuary Walt Whitman Park is dedicated to his name in Brooklyn. You will find the giant stone statue of Walt Whitman in the park while resting, relaxing, and enjoying the picnic around the greenery, floral blooms, and natural scenery. Get some stunning clicks at the water fountain and refreshing air in the park.
14. Visit the Historical Heritage Greenwood Cemetery
The Greenwood Cemetery is a historical heritage site that holds iconic structures and stone monuments built on graves, huge statues of strange figures, and gargoyles. This massive graveyard is covered with lush greenery and floral blooms, looking like a state park, and people love to explore the site for picnics. Its significance portrays the unique and quirky tombstones, beautiful wildlife around, and fascinating landscapes. The graveyard has a Gothic Revival entrance with solid stone gates, and it’s a historical monument for fantastic architecture from the past. It’s one of the famous weird places to visit in Brooklyn.
15. Enjoy the Great Adventure at Trampoline Adventure Park
Are you an adventure geek? You can enjoy indoor adventures at the Trampoline Adventure Park. The park has a giant space that holds the best indoor wall trampolines, climbing walls, dodging ball games, warrior course of Ninja warriors themed, bumper cars, and a Virtual Reality Zone in the huge indoor playground. It’s one of the best adventurous things to do in Brooklyn for adults, teens, and kids.
