This Sunday is my favorite street fair in all of New York. It goes far beyond the usual generic street fairs that abound all summer long. You know, the grilled Italian sausages with peppers, the traveling purveyors of the same old products...BORING!!!
Well, trust me, the Atlantic Antic is something altogether different. Admittedly, you can still get your grilled Italian sausages, but so much more.
Try To Stuff This Into A Hot Dog Bun
The fair is about a mile long and you can't walk far without coming across either a stage or some other live music venue. Plus the many restaurants that line Atlantic Avenue have their own food offerings which run the gamut from pulled pork sandwiches at the Waterfront Ale House to grilled sardines at La Mancha.
At many of the restaurants they have outdoor eating areas set up where you can sit and enjoy the day and, gasp, even have a beer. Now don't tell anyone I said this, but they are also pretty lax about letting you walk around with a plastic cup of your favorite brew. This used to be the way all the street fairs were before the illustrious Rudy G. put a stop to that back when he was mayor. Got to protect our streets from fun, don't you know.
Some of my favorite places to stop by for a bite to eat, a bit of music, and a brew or two include:
The Brazen Head
The Waterfront Ale House (big surprise there)
Floyd (where you can play bocce ball inside)
Way down at the other end of Atlantic Antic, but well worth the walk, is Hanks. They always have a dynamite group playing and you really owe it to yourself to stop in here. It might look like it has been abandoned, but trust me, it is one happening place.
Hanks
In my opinion, if you only get to one street fair in your life, this is probably the one you want it to be. As you can see from these pictures that I took last year, you won't be alone.
