Wilson Avenue (L)

This stop is grungy and gentrifying.

There are a lot of artists and creatives, with a general vibe of graffiti, gender-queerness, loud-print clothing, and the like, mixing in with the Black American population, which you can find mostly hanging out in the local barbershops.

Of note, the train stops right outside a Catholic cemetery, but the cemetery is a bit easier to access off the Bushwick-Aberdeen station.

Here are my publicly accessible* recommendations:

1. Father Knows Best: A bar at night, a cafe during the day. The Sunday brunch is incredible. You can either sit down, or get a pastry to go. I recommend sitting down. And if the weather is nice, the patio is nice. One fun Sunday plan could involve brunch at Father Knows Best, then wandering through the grunge north towards Mister Sunday for a daytime rave, profiled off the Halsey L stop.

2. Purgatory: This is a deep-grunge, indoor/outdoor bar and event space. It’s surrounded by grafitti and auto-industrial outposts. Likely to be all-locals. If you want a deep Brooklyn night out without a full-on warehouse rave, here you go.

3. Money Cat Vietnamese: A cute Vietnamese spot, perfect for date night, take out, or a solo adventure.

4. Protection Spell: Small and cute locally-run vintage shop. Project472 landed an excellent steel belt chain by a local artisan out here.

5. The Evergreen (Bar): A bar that’s also equidistant to the Chauncey JZ station, and profiled on that stop.

6. The Evergreen Cemetery: If you want to access the cemetery off this stop, navigate to Purgatory, then cross under the sketchy bridge, and you’ll find the entrance. Chances are very high the cemetery will be empty when you visit. Though the cemetery looks large (and it is), it’s sectioned off by gate, meaning if you enter from the gate next to Purgatory, you have to exit from that gate, too.

*Ok, so what’s not publicly accessible? Well, amid the grungy industrial chaos particularly along Moffat are a lot of IYKYK spots where the local creatives gather, like RAKit Club. You’d need an in to get the when and where for events - or just follow their IGs.

The outdoor patio at Father Knows Best

Inside Money Cat

Grungy street vibe

The pink-and-red patio set up is the outdoor part of Purgatory.

Vibes along Moffat, headed north towards Nowadays (profiled on Halsey L).

I spy the train, landing at the Wilson (L) station!