Midwood, Brooklyn Neighborhood Guide

I’ve been visiting every NYC neighborhood, trying to explore my own city the way I do when I travel. I’m 213 (!!!) neighborhoods deep now out of approx. 350 and have documented it all on TikTok.

Now I’m on a mission to write it all out. Next up: Midwood.

The name Midwood comes from the Dutch settlers, who named the area in between Bushwick and what was then known as Brooklyn “Midwood,” or “middle woods.” It was rural farmland through the 19th century, became part of Flatbush, and then was annexed to the City of Brooklyn in the 1890s.

Midwood today is a very family-centered neighborhood best known for its strong Orthodox Jewish community. And here’s how I would spend the perfect day here. Make sure you stay till the end for the most unique subway station in New York, which literally has a cottage-style porch.

First stop is Tanami, which was on the New York Times list of 100 Best Restaurants in New York City two years in a row. They’re known for their crispy falafel and house-made laffa. It’s definitely a hole in the wall, but it’s clearly a neighborhood favorite, as the door just kept swinging open and open the whole time I was eating. You’d be surprised how hard good falafel is to come by, and this one was pretty darn good.

You could then walk and just explore all the different shops in Midwood catering to the Jewish community, one being Eichler’s Judaica. It has served Brooklyn for over 50 years. It’s a one-stop shop for everything from religious texts to toys and wedding gifts. It’s like the Barnes & Noble for Jewish people. And I always love exploring children’s books from different cultures and religions in all the neighborhoods that I’ve been to. It’s been one of the most unexpected things I’ve enjoyed.

Then there’s Pomegranate, nicknamed the Whole Foods of kosher. It’s a luxury kosher supermarket. Their prepared salads just looked amazing and the store was literally ginormous.

Although Midwood is on the border of Flatbush, which is seeing rapid gentrification, walking around Midwood it didn’t feel like it reached here yet, until I passed by the Vitagraph. It looks like your typical modern luxury apartment complex in Brooklyn, but, it was actually once home to one of America’s earliest movie studios. They produced silent films in Midwood starting in 1907 and later became an NBC studio. Although it is obviously housing now, the original smokestack still stands. So it’s really cool to see one of the last traces of Brooklyn’s early film history.

And then, last but not least, is Fiske Terrace, developed in the early 1900s as a part of Victorian Flatbush, which is, by the way, one of my favorite parts of Brooklyn. Fiske Terrace is known for its grand homes, tree-lined streets, and suburban feel. It was originally a planned suburban-style community, and the Avenue H Q train station was once its real estate office. The cottage-like subway station still stands. It even has a porch and rocking chairs, which is pretty cool.

Another part of doing these videos that I love is being able to try all the famous pizza in New York, and Midwood is home to a heavy hitter. Di Fara Pizza opened in 1965. Dave Portnoy gave it over a nine-star rating. They use imported Italian cheeses and olive oils, and it definitely has a cult following. Definitely a good slice, but is it one of the best pizza places in New York City? I really don’t think so. But did I just go on an off day? Because honestly, I would rate this like a 7.5 or 8. You gotta try it at least once.

Afterwards, you can walk over to Ostrovitsky’s Bakery. It’s a family-run bakery that opened in 1947, serving traditional Jewish baked goods. Obviously, I had to get a black and white cookie to end off my day. Let me know which of your favorite spots I missed and what neighborhood you want to see me do next!