Avenue U

I can't remember when or where I first saw a photo of this donut shop on Avenue U, but I knew that I needed to see the storefront for myself, and take my own photo before it was too late. It was the perfect spark for a sunny Sunday adventure, one that took me into a few different streets and neighborhoods in South Brooklyn.

Avenue U is a main thoroughfare in Brooklyn, stretching west to east from Gravesend to Bergen Beach, through Sheepshead Bay, Marine Park and Mill Basin. In addition to the Donut Shoppe, which more than lived up to my expectations, the street is populated with hundreds of shops and restaurants with interesting storefronts and wonderful signage. 

Neighborhoods that seem untouched by time are getting harder and harder to find in New York, but I try to get excited about what's left instead of dwelling on what is already gone. G & S Pork Store has a nearly-perfect sign with beautiful hand-painted lettering and pigs holding a length of sausage links, which is just the right amount of whimsical and macabre if you think about it too deeply.   

These type of neighborhood walks are my favorite way to really experience New York, without any real itinerary, agenda or destination. I walked until I was tired and a little sunburnt, fortified by a 90-cent donut and a renewed love of this city and its infinite delights.