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Get to know East Williamsburg

If it’s east of Williamsburg but not quite Bushwick, it must be East Williamsburg, right? While this neighborhood’s boundaries and actual existence are subjects of debate, there's no denying that there are people, places, and things located near the Grand Street, Montrose Avenue, and (technically) Morgan Avenue L train stops in northwest Brooklyn. History certainly doesn’t clear things up. What is now East Williamsburg had initially been part of the Dutch settlement of “Boswijck,” which later became the Town of Bushwick and (for a period in the early-to-mid 1800s) contained the Village of Williamsburg. Regardless of the confusion, you can see that lineage recalled in the many streets bearing the names of early Dutch landowners such as Devoe, Meserole, and Vandervoort. Today’s East Williamsburg maintains an industrial feel from its still-active warehouses and former warehouses converted into residential lofts.

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East Williamsburg Commerce & Culture

Functionally, the neighborhood is split in two by Morgan Avenue: The eastern side over to Newtown Creek is zoned explicitly for industrial purposes — part of the appropriately named East Williamsburg Industrial Park — while commercial and residential opportunities await to the west. Given that, East Williamsburg packs in about all you could want into limited space. Grab drinks at several (though maybe not all in one go) fantastic dives, cocktail bars, and craft breweries. Plenty of top-notch dining options are available to explore, plus cafes for a cup of joe or a quick bite. Vintage shops are in no short supply either. East Williamsburg is its own thing: neither Williamsburg, Bushwick, nor even Greenpoint. Yet, it arguably incorporates some of the best aspects of them all. After all, where else but East Williamsburg can you grab a beer, coffee, or sandwich mere steps from where a 17th-century settlement first rose?