Fort Greene
Brooklyn’s cultural brownstone heart anchored by BAM and a historic hilltop park.
Radiating outward from the thirty-acre hillside of Fort Greene Park—Brooklyn’s very first public park, designed by Frederick Law Olmsted and Calvert Vaux in 1867—Fort Greene is a masterclass in neighborhood grace. Its tree-shaded blocks of Italianate and Eastlake brownstones have nurtured generations of writers, filmmakers, and musicians (from Walt Whitman and Richard Wright to Spike Lee), while the surrounding BAM Cultural District stages some of the most adventurous theatre, dance, and cinema on the planet.
Must-Visit Spots
Brooklyn Academy of Music (BAM)
America’s oldest performing arts center (1861), home to the Howard Gilman Opera House, the distressed-brick Harvey Theater, and BAM Rose Cinemas.
30 Lafayette Ave & 651 Fulton St
Atlantic Ave - Barclays Ctr / Lafayette Ave (C)
Fort Greene Park & Prison Ship Martyrs Monument
Climb the grand 100-foot-wide granite staircase designed by McKim, Mead & White to the 149-foot Doric column overlooking Brooklyn.
DeKalb Ave & Washington Park
DeKalb Ave (B/Q/R) or Fulton St (G)
Greenlight Bookstore
Community-funded independent bookstore on Fulton Street with author readings, Brooklyn literary journals, and curated staff tables.
686 Fulton St (at S Portland Ave)
Lafayette Ave (C) or Fulton St (G)
Miss Ada & Evelina
Whipped ricotta, sweet potato hummus, and wood-fired Israeli pita on Miss Ada’s backyard patio, or handmade Mediterranean pasta at Evelina.
184 DeKalb Ave & 211 DeKalb Ave
Clinton - Washington Aves (G/C)
BRIC House & Mark Morris Dance Center
Free contemporary art exhibitions, public media studios, and world-class dance performances right across the street from BAM.
647 Fulton St & 3 Lafayette Ave
Lafayette Ave (C) or Nevins St (2/3/4/5)
Fort Greene Park Greenmarket
Every Saturday year-round along Washington Park, Hudson Valley orchards, cheesemakers, and bakers line the park’s southeastern corner.
Washington Park (between DeKalb & Willoughby)
Lafayette Ave (C) or Fulton St (G)
Stories from Fort Greene
BAM Next Wave: Where Avant-Garde World Cinema & Experimental Theatre Collide
For more than 160 years, the Brooklyn Academy of Music has championed artists who reinvent their mediums—from Philip Glass and Pina Bausch to 35mm indie cinema retrospectives.
Deals in Fort Greene
All deals →Brooklyn Museum First Saturdays: Free DJ Parties & Art
Beloved monthly community festival featuring live bands, DJ sets, curator talks, film screenings, and late-night gallery access completely free with advance online RSVP.