Neighborhood Watch: Sheepshead Bay

Although I’ve never officially lived there, Sheepshead Bay has played a vital role in my teen years. From grades 7 to 9, I attended James J. Reynolds Junior High School (now rebranded as The Bay Academy), and had several good friends, and early loves,  who called the neighborhood home.

Most New York City residents, however, haven’t been as fortunate as I’ve been in experiencing the area’s charms. So i reached out to Ned Berke, editor of the delightful Sheepshead Bites, for his take on the sleepy neighborhood by the shore.

In a way, Sheepshead Bay is like Midwood, the place where I reside. People have heard of it, but haven’t really taken the time to visit. Tell us a bit about your neck of the woods.

Looking at New York’s media and blogs, it’s as if Brooklyn were Williamsburg, DUMBO, Park Slope, Red Hook and maybe – maybe – Bay Ridge. And then there’s, well, the rest. This is one of the most infuriating things about living in and writing about Sheepshead Bay. People simply don’t hear about us until some 13-year-old gets stabbed to death with a screwdriver or some other awful crime – which doesn’t exactly help our image. In reality, Sheepshead Bay is a pretty safe place full of character and history. It’s one of the east coast’s oldest fishing communities, has a large number of remarkable restaurants, well-performing schools, and is walking distance from three beaches: Manhattan Beach, Brighton Beach and Coney Island.

A recent wave of wealthy Eastern European immigrants – many of whom want to live near but not in Brighton Beach – is fueling a bit of an economic boom and cultural transition in the waterfront area. It’s changing the business culture and the physical landscape, wherein many one- and two-story homes are being replaced with condominiums, and businesses that served the area for decades are being replaced with Russian salons, nightclubs, boutiques, cafes, grocery markets, etc. As you can imagine, there’s a bubbling clash between the old and the new and many embittered residents on both sides. As a local blogger, I couldn’t be happier – there’s no end to the content this produces.

Outside of the waterfront area, Sheepshead Bay remains incredibly diverse. There is a huge Asian community around Avenue U – which has gifted the area an amazing selection of authentic Asian restaurants – there are several African American communities, Orthodox Jews, Italians, Catholics, and on and on.

Sheepshead Bay is a great place that gives a bit of a break from the crowd and clamor of Downtown Brooklyn and Manhattan while still capturing its diversity, and I’ve been both lucky and proud to be born and raised here.

When people see Sheepshead Bay on the map, they instantly think how far out it appears from Manhattan. How long would it take someone to, say, reach Midtown by subway?

Sheepshead Bay is ridiculously easy to get to, and I’ve always hated the excuse my Manhattan friends would give me when they didn’t visit: “Oh, it’s so far.” But it’s not. From midtown you can reach the Sheepshead Bay train station – which serves the B/Q lines – in about 30 minutes on the express B train and 45 minutes on the local Q.

At various times in recent history, both of these trains were said to have the best subway service by the MTA’s Rider Report Card (I believe it was the Q last year). And we’re close enough to the Coney Island Stillwell Avenue station – which is the last stop for most Brooklyn trains – that it’s easy enough to get here from almost any Brooklyn-bound train line.

What should one expect to pay in rent for a studio, 1BR, or 2BR apt?

Lucky you should ask, since I’ve been looking for an apartment. A studio can go as low as $800/month (I’ve heard lower but haven’t seen it). One bedrooms range, for obvious reasons, from $900-1200. And two bedrooms are in the range of $1100-1500. Actually, I found a two bedroom recently for $1050, which is quite a steal anywhere in New York City. To me, this is a much better place to live than, say, Bushwick or East Williamsburg, where the train ride is only about 20 minutes shorter, the rents higher, and the neighborhood far less safe. But, hey, if you’re a hipster you’ve got your priorities, right? One word of caution, though: parking down here is limited, and many people rent spots if they can find them.

What type of nightlife does Sheepshead Bay have? Can you stay in the neighborhood on a Friday night and have some fun, or will one have to venture outside of the borders for entertainment?

Depends on what kind of fun you’re looking for. I’ve already mentioned the restaurants in general, but a few specific ones worth visiting include Randazzo’s Clam Bar and Clemente’s Maryland Crab House for some classic Sheepshead Bay seafood; Roll-n-Roaster for a quick bite (they specialize in hot Roast Beef sandwiches); Istanbul Restaurant for good Turkish food; and any one of the dozens of sushi places in the area. Okay, not any one of them, but many of them are excellent and cheap. After that, take a nice stroll along the waterfront and you’ve just had yourself the makings for a great date.

There are several Russian nightclubs which I’ve never entered, but if you’re a clubber I’ve heard they can be a hell of a lot of fun. If you’re more of a bar man, like me, it can be a bit limiting if you’re not Russian. Still, there are bars like Wheelers on Sheepshead Bay Rd. which is a local staple. Sweika is a nice, newer one that I’ve taken a liking to as well. It’s a German-themed bar with Czech influence. Several of the older bars have given way to Russian bars/cafes; some are good, some make you feel unwelcome if you’re not Russian. There are also party cruises at night that seem to be doing pretty well, business wise. And though it’s technically going outside of my borders, Coney Island is close enough that I still consider it a nice evening attraction for Bay residents. So, in short, there’s no need to leave Sheepshead’s borders for a fun-filled Friday night.

Considering the bay and pier are vital elements of the neighborhood, are there many aquatic-based activities in SHB?

Of course! I’ve already mentioned the party cruises, but perhaps the most traditional aquatic activity is fishing. Sheepshead Bay is home to one of the city’s only recreational fishing fleets, which take passengers on half-day deep sea fishing trips for about $40-50 and includes everything you’ll need. The fishing fleet has been fighting a battle for survival over the past two or so decades, and economic conditions for them have gotten much worse in the past couple of years – so I emphatically recommend taking a fishing trip and supporting them while they’re still around.

There are also a couple of private marinas for those interested in sailing (they offer sailing classes to the general public), and I’ve heard there are places you can rent jet skis, but I don’t know if I’d recommend that. If you follow Emmons Avenue – which runs along the water – down all the way to where it ends and joins the Belt Parkway, there’s a small bike/walking path that runs into Plumb Beach and is part of the Jamaica Bay wildlife reserve. In addition to bird watching and hermit crab collecting (the latter is how my mother kept me entertained as a child… along with sea glass), it’s becoming a well-known spot for windsurfers. And, as I said, we’re walking distance from three beaches – so there’s always that.

Photo credit: michaeleurbin

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