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Neighborhood east of Sunset Park (the park itself) — Brooklynian

Neighborhood east of Sunset Park (the park itself)

triple b
triple b
edited November -1 in Greenwood Heights and Sunset Park
Hi all:

I'm bringing my family (wife and 2 yr old daughter) to Brooklyn in January to start a new position at Brooklyn College. We may have an opportunity to rent a place near 42nd and 8th Ave and save on broker's fees. We've done quite a bit of research online including this board (thanks, you guys are great) and think we have a handle on Sunset Park (the nabe) in general.

We're interested in some specific opinions on the blocks just east of the park itself. We figure the pros are the proximity to the park and its services, the subway on 9th Ave, the B11 bus (to Brooklyn College), good asian and latino cuisine, heaps of bodegas. This might just be a one or two year landing spot for us while we figure out the city and the school systems. Anyone have any more details to fill in on this part of the neighborhood?

Cheers

Comments

  • MOD
    MOD
    Isn't that Bay Ridge? 8th ave, I think that's the chinatown area? If I remember the last time I was there, there's some pretty dirty and crappy parts of 8th ave that I wouldn't want to live on, 7th is much better. I could be wrong, definitely check out the area before you sign a lease.
  • curlygirl
    curlygirl
    8th avenue is an enormously busy commercial strip with lots of restaurants and shops. It could be noisy and/or smelly if you're on the avenue itself. The side streets around there are fine, quiet. Don't know 42nd street specifically, but many of them have nice row houses. I have a friend who lives in one of the apartment buildings near there and it's clean and fine. And of course there's Ba Xuyen, best banh mi in the whole darn city, on 8th right at 43rd/44th I believe.

    The good thing about 42nd/8th is that you're really near the D train.
  • raedog
    raedog
    You're probably talking about one of the Finnish coop buildings; there's a fairly big one on 42nd and 8th. It's a fine block, neither the prettiest in Sunset Park (definitely not Bay Ridge, which starts around 60th/65th Street) nor the most unattractive, with mostly smaller houses, save for the coop building I mention. 42nd beyond 8th (going toward 9th Avenue, say) feels sketchy to me, but the other blocks around there do not. (I live on 41st and 7th.) Sunset Park is a very affordable, very family-friendly neighborhood, but I've been somewhat disappointed in the lack of certain amenities I'd been used to when I lived elsewhere in Brooklyn--coffee shops, access to more sort of gourmet groceries (yesterday a neighbor asked me if I knew of a place he could get brie, and I honestly had no idea--he ended up driving to Park Slope), a bar where I can get a pint, etc. For this reason, I'm glad my husband and I bought a car when we moved here--though we'd never had a car in a decade in another Brooklyn hood. There are definitely wonderful Chinese and Hispanic restaurants--and for cheap! I do not have a child, but I do know that there is a fairly active Sunset Park Parents Group operating online--they organize picnics in the park and other sorts of outings and generally serve as a means of disseminating information. Hope this helps.
  • agitpunkt
    agitpunkt
    I have some limited experience with that area, so I can't say for sure, but it does seem to be very busy, very community oriented, and while there aren't a lot of great restaurants in that area, must things are a couple of train stops away.

    On a different note, I would like to welcome you to Brooklyn College! I've been working there for years, and I'm sure you'll enjoy it.
  • armchair_warrior
    armchair_warrior
    well if you see alot of asian faces ;) its chinatown.
  • ssp stacy
    ssp stacy

    Subject: Sunset Park is great!

    I live in Sunset Park, closer to 4th Ave, but my husband is Chinese so we go to 8th Ave a lot.
    I've been here for 8 years, and really like this neighborhood. It's not "cool" like the Slope in terms of shops and coffee shops, and the supermarkets are pretty basic, but there's a Steve's C-Town in the part of the neighborhood you're looking at that's actually pretty good -- 8th Ave around 45th St., as I recall. Key Food on 5th at 44th is also okay.
    In terms of restaurants, if you like Chinese, Vietnamese, and Mexican food, it's hard to beat Sunset Park -- cheap and authentic and completely family friendly.
    The main problem with 8th Ave vicinity is the parking situation is really bad. It's a very busy commercial area, so if you don't have your own parking, it's probably pretty frustrating (we don't have a car, so it's not an issue for us). Public transport is excellent and probably less hassle than a car.
    My 6-year-old goes to a local public school near where we live and she's been very happy there. I've heard the public school close to the park is also very good.
    The park itself is really nice for just wandering around. It has some sports facilities, including a huge public pool (free of charge) during the summer. The kid's playground is well-populated and quite well maintained.
    It is definitely a family-friendly area, and household necessities are about a cheap as you can get them in NYC. There are zillions of hardware stores, laundries, trade and service outlets, etc.
    My daughter is mixed white/Chinese, but she's always gotten along wonderfully with her classmates and kids she meets in the park, very few of whom share her racial demographic. People are open and welcoming. Apart from the occasional noisy party (and that situation has improved under Bloomberg), I've thoroughly enjoyed my experience in this neighborhood, and encourage you to give it a try.
  • triple b
    triple b
    Raedog wrote: yesterday a neighbor asked me if I knew of a place he could get brie, and I honestly had no idea--he ended up driving to Park Slope
    I can identify with this problem. We're in Perth, Australia right now, where it basically comes down to "what kind of cheddar would you like?"

    Anyways, thanks to all for your responses. It's been a big help. The place that might be available to us is the first floor of a brownstone (one of the tiny cluster on 42nd between 8th and 9th). Has a tiny backyard which would be good for the little one. After hearing your responses, we think it might be a good place to start, depending on my wife's employment situation when we arrive.

    Here's a coffee question though...I'm happy to forgo a good cappuccino or macchiato (the real stuff, not Starbucks) as long as I can get some good cafe con leche at a hole in the wall (one of the best cups of coffee I ever had was in Puerto Rico). Anyone have any recommendations for this type of experience in Sunset Park?

    Thanks to Agitpunkt for the "welcome". I look forward to starting my new job in January.
  • kikintina
    kikintina
    There are lots of cafe con leche bakeries on 5th Avenue to choose from (Gran Via in the mid-40's is my favorite). And you can get a great vietnamese (or thai) style coffee on 8th Avenue.
  • seasidearms
    seasidearms
    Here is my little bit of input on the school near the park on 7th Ave....try NOT send your child there. I live a block away and I thouroughly researched. visited etc. and it is a bad school academically. Most parents who live on my block do not send their kids there either! Other than that I love this area. The park is nice and it has an old school neighborhood feel that Park Slope which is where I was raised used to have.
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