I discovered Red Hook during my month-long stay in New York in 2011 thanks to a recommendation from Twitter to go for cocktails at Fort Defiance. Turned out that it was close that night but we had a great burger at the Hope & Anchor. We didn’t do much on that night but I had a good feeling about Red Hook and wanted to go back ever since to explore more. I had the chance to go again this summer with Daniel and my friend Alisha who gave us a fantastic tour of the neighborhood. As you will see in the post she wrote about it, Alisha knows a lot about this part of Brooklyn that a lot of New Yorkers might only know as the neighborhood that has an IKEA store…

It’s hard to explain why I liked Red Hook so much but I think it’s because Brooklyn is definitely my favorite borough of New York. But Red Hook is so out of the way and secluded in a way that it has is own appeal. Maybe it’s this stupid “off the beaten path” obsession or the fact that no-one ever told me about Red Hook, but I really felt like I randomly “discovered” something very nice.

In the end, Red Hook is only about a few streets: Van Brunt, Reed, Conover, Van Dyke, etc. but this gives a very nice “village” feeling to it that you don’t get in the other massive neighborhoods of Brooklyn.

And since it used to be one of the main port of NY–it’s still where the RMS Queen Mary 2 docks–a lot of things are about the sea and you sometimes feel like you are in a fishing village sometimes. If you are into seafood, it’s supposed to be one of the best places to get lobster rolls. Sorry but I can’t confirm…

My favorite places there includes: Fort Defiance, Sunny’s and Hometown Bar-B-Que. But make sure to check Alisha’s post for a more comprehensive guide of Red Hook!

Let’s finish with some of the photos that Daniel took while we were there!

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