WHAT TO EAT, DRINK & DO — ACCORDING TO ARTISTS WE LOVE
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Snag authentic Caribbean at Ali’s Roti Shop
“My family is Caribbean-American and my mom’s from Guyana, and I wanted to highlight authentic Caribbean food that all of us grew up going to so people can go eat there!
They’re Trinidadian and their food is ah-mazing. I don’t really eat meat, and the cool thing about Caribbean food is there’s always a fish option. They have a really solid shrimp curry roti… it’s spicy, but not too spicy. It’s a healthy dose, but not gonna kill you.” – Olivia K
1267 Fulton St, (718) 783-0316 ; 337 Utica Ave, (718) 778-7329
Find good vibes and secret pies at Barboncino
“For a lot of reasons, this place has always been a cozy space for me. They sometimes do live jazz, the lighting is perfect…
I know it’s not novel to be into pizza, but I’m, like, INTO PIZZA. You know, I’ve waited hours and hours in certain places. This is really good pizza. And they’ve got the off-menu, the Free Willy. I don’t even know how I found out about it. It’s just one of those things—like the pizza underground. Anyway, it’s insane… I love a vibe where you can order a secret pizza… and I just always just have a good time here.” – Cavale
781 Franklin Ave, (718) 483-8834, barboncinopizza.com
Hang and skate at Brower Park
“Everyone knows Prospect Park, and for good reason, it’s beautiful! I’ve gone on many a run and bike rides there. But there is also the smaller Brower Park that’s two blocks away from my apartment, and it’s got some nice little benches to hang out on if the day is nice. Also, it’s got a small skatepark that has helped inspire a return to skateboarding after stopping in high school/college in the pursuit of elite distance running.” – Quinn Devlin
Mark’s Ave, Park Pl between Brooklyn Ave and Kingston Ave, nycgovparks.org/parks/brower-park
Have your cake and drink it too at Butter & Scotch
“Butter & Scotch is sooo good, and it’s so cute inside. It’s a bar that has a bunch of crazy desserts.
I have a huge sweet tooth. When I went there, they had a pineapple pie. It was pineapple and… I want to say passion fruit — it was something amazing — and I was like, yo, this is so good. They also have a milkshake that has booze in it.” – EZRAH
818 Franklin Ave, (347) 350-8899, butterandscotch.com
Find authentic island flavors at The Food Sermon
“I’m Seventh Day Adventist — that’s where I think I got almost all my musical backing from, as a start, is the church. We go to church on Saturdays, so we observe the Sabbath. It’s from Friday night, sundown, to Saturday night, sundown. You’re not supposed to work. That’s your resting period — your time with god.
My sister went to Oakwood University in Alabama, which is a Seventh-day Adventist university, [and] I believe the owner [of Food Sermon] also went to Oakwood University. So they close on Friday nights and Saturdays.
Another tie: this is a Caribbean restaurant. My parents are from Dominica, which is in the West Indies. The sorrel here is the best, after my mom’s. It’s so good — it’s so freaking good. And it’s super close [to home]. There’s been so many nights when I’m really craving some good food — food food, where I can sit down and feel good after. I usually call before, just come pick it up, and then — back on the train.” – EZRAH
355 Rogers Ave, (718) 484-7555, thefoodsermon.com
Get funky at Friends and Lovers
“Every first Saturday, they do a soul night, which has the feel of what I imagine northern soul nights in the ’70s in Europe were like at places like the Wigan. I think it’s a really cool thing that they do, and unfortunately I have not been to enough of them.” – Quinn Devlin
641 Classon Ave, (917) 979-3060, fnlbk.com
Down a hibiscus margarita at Cafe Rue Dix
“They have an amazing happy hour. They have this burger, and I always put the goat cheese on there. They also have a hibiscus margarita that’s so good, and the other margarita on the menu — I can’t remember the flavor — is legit.
It’s also a really cute spot. Closer to 6:00/7:00, when people are out of work, it gets really packed.” – EZRAH
1451 Bedford Ave, (929) 234-2543, caferuedix.com
Suck down a smoothie at MeMe’s Healthy Nibbles
“It is so good. There are like 600 different types of smoothies —I am Alive, I am Energized, I am Content… it’s so cute. It’s the lunch spot. My best friend Dorothy and I used to go there constantly. The food is amazing.” – Lizzie No
707 Nostrand Ave, (718) 493-1375, memeshealthynibbles.com
Get your late-night food fix at Neptune Diner II
“I love diners. Diners are, to me, the best places in the world. The food could be better, usually, but the idea.
Clubs are too loud. I love talking to people, listening to people, feeling close to people and hearing stories. Everyone’s like, “Let’s go out!” No, let’s sit in a circle at a diner and hear each other talk.
Diners have a special place in my heart, especially 24-hour diners, because usually they are like angels — they come when you need them. After the first Troubadour Lounge, it was such a good night, I get home and I realized I was locked out. I was like, wait — Neptune Diner! I stayed there, and the staff was so nice. They’re professional, they’re warmhearted.” – Prince Johnny
699 Classon Ave, (718) 623-1111
Spend your Taco Tuesday at Taqueria Milear
“This is a solid hole-in-the-wall BYOB Mexican place on Nostrand. Affordable, and you can’t beat the BYOB nature of the establishment!” – Quinn Devlin
752A Nostrand Ave, (718) 484-8005, taqueriamilear.com
Soak up history and culture at Weeksville Heritage Center
“Weeksville was one of the first major free black communities established before the Civil War and one of only a few that have been historically preserved until now. The Heritage Center would be interesting enough just as an artifact and repository of that history, but what’s even better is that they host lots of great arts, culture, and community programming that’s public and free. As the commons, especially in places like Brooklyn, continue to be encroached on by spaces devoted only to commerce and consumption, I’m ever more grateful for places like Weeksville where people can just go and exist.” – Mobley
158 Buffalo Ave, weeksvillesociety.org