# A free day in Brooklyn, NY: what shall I see/do? **URL:** \ **Category:** In My Humble Opinion\ **Created:** [September 13, 2011, 5:50pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/a-free-day-in-brooklyn-ny-what-shall-i-see-do/596179 "2011-09-13T17:50:54Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 18\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![E.Thorp](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/e/898d66/32.png) [@E.Thorp](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/E.Thorp)\ **Post date:** [September 13, 2011, 5:50pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/a-free-day-in-brooklyn-ny-what-shall-i-see-do/596179/1 "2011-09-13T17:50:54Z")
After a red-eye flight from Seattle this Thursday night (yawn), I’ll have a full Friday to kill in Brooklyn before a 7:00pm event. This will be my first visit and I’ll be a little sleepy, so I’m expecting some disorientation…but could Dopers recommend places to see or things to do? I love to wander through lively neighborhoods, see interesting architecture & parks, eat in interesting ethnic restaurants (uh, I hear Brooklyn has a few of those), wander in bookshops, gaze out over water…oh, and a good photography exhibit is always welcome. I suppose I could wander over the Brooklyn Bridge into Manhattan, but I’d kind of like to give my day over to Brooklyn itself if I can. All advice (including where to get a day pass for transit) is welcome and appreciated… Thanks in advance, **E.** ---
**Author:** ![Hello\_Again](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/h/85e7bf/32.png) [@Hello\_Again](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Hello_Again)\ **Post date:** [September 13, 2011, 6:02pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/a-free-day-in-brooklyn-ny-what-shall-i-see-do/596179/2 "2011-09-13T18:02:45Z")
> [@E.Thorp](#): > > After a red-eye flight from Seattle this Thursday night (yawn), I’ll have a full Friday to kill in Brooklyn before a 7:00pm event. This will be my first visit and I’ll be a little sleepy, so I’m expecting some disorientation…but could Dopers recommend places to see or things to do? I love to wander through lively neighborhoods, see interesting architecture & parks, eat in interesting ethnic restaurants (uh, I hear Brooklyn has a few of those), wander in bookshops, gaze out over water…oh, and a good photography exhibit is always welcome. I suppose I could wander over the Brooklyn Bridge into Manhattan, but I’d kind of like to give my day over to Brooklyn itself if I can. > **E.** Where will you be in Brooklyn? Where will you be coming from to get there? And where do you have to be at 7pm? Brooklyn is quite a large place. Depending at what time you arrive and where you have to be at 7pm, I might steer you differently HOWEVER, to answer the question more generally, some idea are [NYC Transit Museum](http://www.mta.info/mta/museum/#hours) + A walk on the [Brooklyn Heights Promenade](http://nymag.com/listings/attraction/brooklyn_heights_promenade/) or [Brooklyn Museum](http://www.brooklynmuseum.org/) + a walk in the [Brooklyn Botanic Gardens](http://www.bbg.org/) ---
**Author:** ![GilaB](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/g/8e7dd6/32.png) [@GilaB](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/GilaB)\ **Post date:** [September 13, 2011, 6:05pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/a-free-day-in-brooklyn-ny-what-shall-i-see-do/596179/3 "2011-09-13T18:05:17Z")
I’m a big fan of the transit museum, but I think it’s much more fun for New Yorkers, who are learning about a system they use all the time, than it would be for an out-of-towner. I don’t spend enough time in Brooklyn to guide you to anything other than museums, which doesn’t sound like your primary objective. In what neighborhood do you need to end up by seven? ---
**Author:** ![E.Thorp](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/e/898d66/32.png) [@E.Thorp](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/E.Thorp)\ **Post date:** [September 13, 2011, 6:36pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/a-free-day-in-brooklyn-ny-what-shall-i-see-do/596179/4 "2011-09-13T18:36:52Z")
Thanks for the suggestions so far. I’m enough of a transit geek that a transit museum may interest me even as a foreigner… I do understand that Brooklyn is quite large. At 7:00 I need to be in Brooklyn Heights. ---
**Author:** ![panache45](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/panache45/32/64_2.png) [@panache45](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/panache45)\ **Post date:** [September 13, 2011, 7:34pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/a-free-day-in-brooklyn-ny-what-shall-i-see-do/596179/5 "2011-09-13T19:34:10Z")
Since you need to be in Brooklyn Heights, that’s where the Promenade is. Superb view of The New York Harbor, the Lower Manhattan skyline and the Brooklyn Bridge. It’s especially inspiring after dark. The Brooklyn Botanic Garden is the best I’ve ever been in. Any trip to Brooklyn is incomplete without a stop at Junior’s, for their incomparable cheesecake. ---
**Author:** ![kayaker](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/kayaker/32/441_2.png) [@kayaker](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/kayaker)\ **Post date:** [September 13, 2011, 7:45pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/a-free-day-in-brooklyn-ny-what-shall-i-see-do/596179/6 "2011-09-13T19:45:50Z")
Take in Dodger’s game? ---
**Author:** ![Hello\_Again](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/h/85e7bf/32.png) [@Hello\_Again](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Hello_Again)\ **Post date:** [September 13, 2011, 8:13pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/a-free-day-in-brooklyn-ny-what-shall-i-see-do/596179/7 "2011-09-13T20:13:47Z")
> [@kayaker](#): > > Take in Dodger’s game? ?woosh? They moved to LA in 1958. Yeah, since you will be in the Heights anyway the Promenade makes tons of sense. On nearby Montague St you’ll find many restaurants. The Bklyn Museum and Botanical garden (which are next door to one another) have the 2/3 right outside (“Eastern parkway - Brooklyn Museum”). You can take that to Nevins, Juniors is just a short walk from there. Get back on, and go two more stops to Borough Hall. From there its a few blocks walk to either the Transit Museum or the Promenade. ---
**Author:** ![kayaker](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/kayaker/32/441_2.png) [@kayaker](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/kayaker)\ **Post date:** [September 13, 2011, 8:20pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/a-free-day-in-brooklyn-ny-what-shall-i-see-do/596179/8 "2011-09-13T20:20:08Z")
> [@Hello\_Again](#): > > ?woosh? They moved to LA in 1958. Ahh. Guess I don’t keep up as well as I should. 😃 ---
**Author:** ![Hello\_Again](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/h/85e7bf/32.png) [@Hello\_Again](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Hello_Again)\ **Post date:** [September 13, 2011, 8:25pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/a-free-day-in-brooklyn-ny-what-shall-i-see-do/596179/9 "2011-09-13T20:25:33Z")
> [@kayaker](#): > > Ahh. Guess I don’t keep up as well as I should. > > 😃 Ach! A Weisenheimer! For the record though, Brooklyn does have a pretty fun minor league team, the [Brooklyn Cyclones](http://www.brooklyncyclones.com/). But they are so far from where the OP needs to be, I don’t think taking in a game is realistic. ---
**Author:** ![K364](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/k364/32/5_2.png) [@K364](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/K364)\ **Post date:** [September 14, 2011, 12:42am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/a-free-day-in-brooklyn-ny-what-shall-i-see-do/596179/10 "2011-09-14T00:42:46Z")
Yeah, make sure you take in the Brooklyn Heights Promenade, by going down Montague street. The [Moonstruck House](http://www.flickr.com/photos/emilio_guerra/5383697371/) is nearby if you are interested in that sort of thing. Also nearby is Grimaldi’s pizza… you can report back to your friends on how average the world famous pizza tasted. ---
**Author:** ![Biggirl](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/biggirl/32/3294_2.png) [@Biggirl](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Biggirl)\ **Post date:** [September 14, 2011, 1:26am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/a-free-day-in-brooklyn-ny-what-shall-i-see-do/596179/11 "2011-09-14T01:26:03Z")
You can start at Prospect Park (visit the zoo and the carousel, they’re close to each other), take a trolley to the Brooklyn Museum (if it is the first Saturday of the month, the museum is free), although I was never able to figure out the trolley’s schedule. The Brooklyn Botanical Garden entrance is a few steps walk from the Museum. You can walk to the main branch of[The Brooklyn Public Library](http://www.brooklynpubliclibrary.org/central/) at Grand Army Plaza from the Garden and take a stroll around the plaza. If it’s Saturday, there will be an open air market there. Hey, your back at the other end of Prospect Park right by The Long Meadow. Stroll around for a bit. Time to make your way downtown. Take a bus or the train (or even walk, if you are into long walks) to Boro Hall were you can eat at a really nice restaurant on Montgomery St and you are now just a hop, skip and a jump away from the Promenade, The Transit Museum and are in Brooklyn Heights. You may need to start at 5 am to get all of that in. P.S. You can get a daily Fun Pass at any train station. ---
**Author:** ![Biggirl](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/biggirl/32/3294_2.png) [@Biggirl](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Biggirl)\ **Post date:** [September 14, 2011, 1:29am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/a-free-day-in-brooklyn-ny-what-shall-i-see-do/596179/12 "2011-09-14T01:29:38Z")
You know, I really should have given a shout-out to my old nabe and the place where I raised my children-- Park Slope. From Grand Army Plaza and/or Prospect Park, you can stroll down the slope and into a family-friendly, bohemian 'hood filled with good restaurants, friendly bars and funky shops. ---
**Author:** ![Hello\_Again](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/h/85e7bf/32.png) [@Hello\_Again](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Hello_Again)\ **Post date:** [September 14, 2011, 1:33am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/a-free-day-in-brooklyn-ny-what-shall-i-see-do/596179/13 "2011-09-14T01:33:57Z")
> [@Biggirl](#): > > You know, I really should have given a shout-out to my old nabe and the place where I raised my children-- Park Slope. From Grand Army Plaza and/or Prospect Park, you can stroll down the slope and into a family-friendly, bohemian 'hood filled with good restaurants, friendly bars and funky shops. Did your kids go to 321? I grew up there in the 80s. Maybe I know them 😃 ---
**Author:** ![jackdavinci](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/jackdavinci/32/3259_2.png) [@jackdavinci](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/jackdavinci)\ **Post date:** [September 14, 2011, 1:44am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/a-free-day-in-brooklyn-ny-what-shall-i-see-do/596179/14 "2011-09-14T01:44:58Z")
I’m fond of the Brooklyn Superhero Supply store. I think there’s a good French restaurant around the corner. ---
**Author:** ![Biggirl](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/biggirl/32/3294_2.png) [@Biggirl](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Biggirl)\ **Post date:** [September 14, 2011, 1:55am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/a-free-day-in-brooklyn-ny-what-shall-i-see-do/596179/15 "2011-09-14T01:55:12Z")
> [@Hello\_Again](#): > > Did your kids go to 321? I grew up there in the 80s. Maybe I know them 😃 Nah, they went to 282. Perhaps we saw each other at Two Boots. ---
**Author:** ![E.Thorp](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/e/898d66/32.png) [@E.Thorp](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/E.Thorp)\ **Post date:** [September 22, 2011, 10:35pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/a-free-day-in-brooklyn-ny-what-shall-i-see-do/596179/16 "2011-09-22T22:35:14Z")
Just checking in to thank everyone for the suggestions: I had a great day in Brooklyn! An old friend unexpectedly offered to play tour guide, which helped me find my way. We started in Prospect Park, took in the Public Library, Park Slope, Court/Smith streets, had lunch in a good Colombian joint, and eventually got to Brooklyn Heights and the Promenade…lovely. I hope to return soon. ---
**Author:** ![Hello\_Again](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/h/85e7bf/32.png) [@Hello\_Again](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Hello_Again)\ **Post date:** [September 22, 2011, 10:42pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/a-free-day-in-brooklyn-ny-what-shall-i-see-do/596179/17 "2011-09-22T22:42:11Z")
Glad to hear it. It’s a beautiful area and the perfect time of year for walking about. Come back soon, y’hear? ---
**Author:** ![DMark](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/e68b1a/32.png) [@DMark](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/DMark)\ **Post date:** [September 23, 2011, 12:47am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/a-free-day-in-brooklyn-ny-what-shall-i-see-do/596179/18 "2011-09-23T00:47:36Z")
Heard rumors a tree grows in Brooklyn. Ya might wanna go see that.