Most people meet Sheepshead Bay in passing: a stop on the Q, a drive along the Belt Parkway, a dinner on the way home. That undersells it. This is one of the few corners of New York where a working fishing fleet, a long bayside walk and a quiet bay all sit a short walk from the subway, and where a whole day can unfold on foot.
If you’ve been looking for things to do in Sheepshead Bay, Brooklyn, here is how we’d spend a day here, from the first boats leaving the piers to the last glass of the evening. We’ll start on the water, cross over to Manhattan Beach, wait for the light to go gold, and finish, as you might guess, at our table on Sheepshead Bay Road.
Quick answer: The best things to do in Sheepshead Bay are walking the Emmons Avenue waterfront and its piers, watching the fishing boats come and go, crossing the Ocean Avenue Footbridge to Manhattan Beach, catching the sunset over the bay, and ending the day with cocktails and dinner on Sheepshead Bay Road.
Things to Do in Sheepshead Bay at a Glance
Most Sheepshead Bay things to do sit within a short walk of each other, so the whole route below works on foot. Here’s the shape of the day.
| Time | Where | What to do |
|---|---|---|
| Morning | Sheepshead Bay Road, then Emmons Avenue | Breakfast or brunch, then a walk to the water |
| Late morning | Sheepshead Bay piers | Watch the fishing boats and the seafood stalls on the piers |
| Midday | Ocean Avenue Footbridge | Cross the bay into Manhattan Beach and back |
| Late afternoon | Sheepshead Bay waterfront | Golden hour and sunset over the bay |
| From 4 PM | Terra’s bar | A first cocktail or a glass of wine |
| Evening | Terra’s dining room | Dinner and a bottle worth lingering over |
You don’t need to follow it to the minute. Treat it as a loose plan and let the weather decide how long you stay by the water.
Morning on Emmons Avenue, Brooklyn: Piers, Boats and Breakfast
Every good Sheepshead Bay day starts on Emmons Avenue. This is the street that runs along the north shore of the bay, and it’s where the neighborhood’s character is easiest to see: boats tied up at the piers, anglers checking the weather, and the smell of salt water a block from the shops.
Breakfast in Sheepshead Bay Before the Walk
Fuel up first. From Tuesday to Friday, Terra serves breakfast from 9 AM, a few minutes’ walk up from the water. The breakfast menu keeps things simple and European: Grand Benedict with prosciutto or smoked salmon ($19), zucchini crêpes with smoked salmon and avocado ($16), avocado tartine with a poached egg ($16), or oatmeal with fresh seasonal berries ($12). If you have a sweet tooth, the syrniki with cherry sauce and plombir cream ($16) are a house favorite.
On weekends, breakfast gives way to brunch, served Saturday and Sunday from 11 AM to 3 PM, with oysters, a seafood platter and lobster salad on the brunch menu. We’ve written a full guide to brunch in Sheepshead Bay, including when to come and what to order, if you’d rather make the morning a long one.
Sheepshead Bay Piers and the Fishing Fleet
From Sheepshead Bay Road, it’s about five minutes on foot to the water. Turn onto Emmons Avenue, Sheepshead Bay, and the piers start appearing one after another along the bulkhead. The pier line dates back to the 1930s, when the city widened Emmons Avenue and built a row of docks for private and charter boats.
In the morning, the Sheepshead Bay piers are at their busiest. Party boats load up for the day, and a few stalls on the piers sell fresh seafood, a living reminder of the neighborhood’s fishing roots. It’s one of the most genuinely local things to do in Sheepshead Bay, and it costs nothing to watch.
Sheepshead Bay Fishing: Join a Boat or Just Watch
Sheepshead Bay fishing has drawn New Yorkers for well over a century, and it’s still the waterfront’s main business. If you want to get on the water yourself, a Sheepshead Bay party boat fishing trip is the classic way: you pay per person, can usually rent tackle on board, and share the rail with regulars who’ve been coming for decades. Schedules and prices vary by boat and season, so check with the boats directly before you go.
If you’d rather keep your feet dry, simply walk the pier line. The Sheepshead Bay fishing boats, with their names painted across the stern, are half the charm of any Sheepshead Bay, Brooklyn, fishing morning, even for people who have never held a rod.
Midday: Cross the Ocean Avenue Footbridge
Walk along the water to where Emmons Avenue meets Ocean Avenue. Here a pedestrian bridge crosses the bay to Manhattan Beach, and it’s one of the simplest pleasures in South Brooklyn. The Ocean Avenue Footbridge is short, but stop halfway: on one side you have the boats and the Emmons Avenue skyline, on the other the quiet, tree-lined streets of Manhattan Beach.
On the far side, wander a few blocks south toward Manhattan Beach Park and the ocean, then come back the way you came. The whole loop takes about an hour at an easy pace. We compared the two neighborhoods, and Brighton Beach next door, in our guide to restaurants near Sheepshead Bay, if you want to stretch the walk further.
What Is Sheepshead Bay Known For?
Sheepshead Bay is known for three things: its fishing fleet, its long waterfront along Emmons Avenue, and its seafood. In the late 19th century, Ocean Avenue and a rail line to the Manhattan Beach resort turned this secluded fishing village into a weekend destination for New Yorkers. The boats, the piers and the appetite for fish have been part of the neighborhood ever since.
Why Is It Called Sheepshead Bay?
The neighborhood takes its name from the bay, and the bay takes its name from the sheepshead, an edible fish once common in these waters. It has a striped body and a mouthful of surprisingly human-looking teeth. That’s the short answer to how Sheepshead Bay got its name, and a good fact to have ready when you cross the bridge.
Lundy’s and the Old Emmons Avenue
Back on the Sheepshead Bay side, look for the large Spanish Colonial Revival building near the corner of Emmons and Ocean Avenues. This was Lundy’s, the legendary seafood restaurant that opened here in the mid-1930s and, at its height, was among the largest restaurants in the country. Lundy’s is long gone as a restaurant, but the building is an official city landmark, and it’s a reminder of how central food has always been to Sheepshead Bay.
Sheepshead Bay Sunset: Golden Hour on the Waterfront
By late afternoon, head back to the water. The Sheepshead Bay waterfront is at its best in the last hour of daylight, when the bay goes still, the boats return to their slips and the light turns the water gold. It’s the moment locals mean when they say there’s no need to leave the neighborhood for a view.
There’s no single viewpoint to claim on Sheepshead Bay’s Emmons Ave. Any stretch of the railing works, and the footbridge gives you water on both sides. Bring a jacket outside of summer: the breeze off the bay is cooler than the streets a block inland.
When to Catch the Sheepshead Bay Sunset
Timing changes a lot through the year, so check the exact sunset time for the day of your visit. As a rough guide, the sun sets in New York around 4:30 PM in late fall and early winter, and as late as about 8:30 PM in midsummer.
That makes the colder months surprisingly convenient. In November and December, golden hour lands just as Terra’s bar opens at 4 PM, so you can watch the sun go down and be holding a cocktail a few minutes later. In summer, you’ll have dinner first and walk down to the water for the sunset afterwards.
Evening: Eat and Drink at Terra on Sheepshead Bay Road
When the light goes, walk five minutes back up from the water to 1716 Sheepshead Bay Road. Sheepshead Bay food has always been generous and deeply local, and Terra adds something the neighborhood was missing: a European dining room with a proper bar and a wine list you can spend a while reading. Of all the places to eat in Sheepshead Bay, this is where we’d send you to close the day: a restaurant in Sheepshead Bay, Brooklyn, built for long, unhurried evenings.
First Drink: The Bar Opens at 4 PM
Terra’s bar opens at 4 PM from Tuesday to Sunday, an hour before dinner service, which makes it the natural next stop after the sunset. The signature cocktails ($18 each) lean on modern technique: a Molecular Piña Colada under coconut ice-cream foam, a Clarified Basil Smash, and the Altai Spritz, built on Sauvignon Blanc with clarified apple juice, bourbon and Siberian Sagan Dalya tea. On a cold evening, the Terra Old Fashioned or the Honey-Ginger is a good way to warm up.
Dinner: What to Order After a Day on the Water
After a day by the bay, it feels right to start with the sea. The raw bar brings oysters, Chef’s Oysters with cherry vinaigrette and black caviar, and shrimp cocktail. Among the starters, the beef tartare with black truffle and caviar ($28) and the beetroot ravioli with goat cheese ($18) are the dishes guests mention most.
For mains, the dinner menu by chefs Dima Martseniuk and Anna Shitova runs from halibut with citrus-ginger sauce ($34) and red-wine-braised veal cheeks over polenta ($34) to the prime ribeye with chimichurri ($74). If steak is the plan, our guide to steak in Brooklyn covers the ribeye in detail. Leave room for dessert: the San Sebastián chocolate cheesecake with warm cherry sauce is a fine way to end a long day.
What Guests Say
“Sheepshead Bay is lucky to have a restaurant as great as Terra in our neighborhood.” — Vlad, Google review
“This is a Manhattan-quality restaurant in Sheepshead Bay.” — Misha, Google review
Wine to End the Day
A day on the water calls for coastal whites, and Terra’s list has plenty. With oysters, try a Galician Albariño such as Do Ferreiro Rías Baixas, or Gaia Thalassitis Santorini Assyrtiko, whose volcanic minerality tastes faintly of sea salt. With caviar, Chablis is hard to beat, and we explain why in wine and caviar pairing.
If you move on to the veal cheeks or the ribeye, switch to red: a Barolo from Vietti or Luigi Einaudi, or a Napa Cabernet. Our guide to the best wine with steak goes through the options cut by cut. You don’t need to know the list in advance; tell your server what you’re eating, and the wine can follow the plate. The bigger picture of why a list like this belongs here is in why Terra brings a serious wine list to South Brooklyn.
Planning Your Day in Sheepshead Bay
Where Is Sheepshead Bay in Brooklyn?
Sheepshead Bay sits on the southern edge of Brooklyn, between Gravesend and Marine Park, with Brighton Beach and Manhattan Beach just across the water. The bay itself separates mainland Brooklyn from Manhattan Beach, which is why so much of the neighborhood’s life faces the water.
By Subway
The easiest way in is the subway. Sheepshead Bay station, on the Brighton Line, is served by the Q train at all times and by the B train on weekdays. Terra is about three minutes’ walk from the station, and the Emmons Avenue waterfront is about five minutes further south. From Manhattan or Prospect Park, the Sheepshead Bay Q train stop is a straight ride with no transfers.
If you live in South Brooklyn and typed “terra restaurant near me” on your way out, you’re probably closer than you think: Brighton Beach, Manhattan Beach, Gravesend and Midwood are all a short ride away.
Best Days for Things to Do in Sheepshead Bay
Terra is closed on Mondays, so plan your day for Tuesday through Sunday. Weekdays are quieter on the water and come with breakfast from 9 AM. Weekends are livelier on Emmons Avenue and bring brunch from 11 AM to 3 PM. Either way, dinner runs from 5 PM until 10 PM, or 11 PM on Fridays and Saturdays, and booking ahead through reservations is a good idea on weekend evenings. Groups larger than 12 should call us at +1 718-675-3939.
FAQ: Things to Do in Sheepshead Bay
What are the best things to do in Sheepshead Bay?
Walk the Emmons Avenue waterfront and its piers, watch the fishing fleet or join a party boat, cross the Ocean Avenue Footbridge to Manhattan Beach, and stay for the sunset over the bay. Finish with cocktails and dinner on Sheepshead Bay Road.
Are there fun things to do in Sheepshead Bay in winter?
Yes. The waterfront is quieter but still beautiful, and early sunsets mean golden hour arrives just as Terra’s bar opens at 4 PM. A brisk walk along the bay followed by a cocktail at the bar is one of our favorite cold-weather plans.
Where is Sheepshead Bay?
Sheepshead Bay is a neighborhood in southern Brooklyn, New York City, on the north shore of the bay of the same name, next to Manhattan Beach, Brighton Beach and Gravesend. Sheepshead Bay station is on the Q and B lines.
How did Sheepshead Bay get its name?
It’s named after the sheepshead, an edible fish that was once plentiful in the bay’s waters.
Is there a place for breakfast in Sheepshead Bay?
Terra serves breakfast Tuesday to Friday from 9 AM and brunch on Saturday and Sunday from 11 AM to 3 PM, at 1716 Sheepshead Bay Road. You can see every dish on the Terra menu.
Can I go fishing in Sheepshead Bay without my own boat?
Yes. Party boats and charters leave from the piers along Emmons Avenue. Check schedules and prices with the boats directly, since they change by season.
Where can I eat in Sheepshead Bay after a walk by the water?
Terra is a five-minute walk up from Emmons Avenue, with a bar from 4 PM and dinner from 5 PM, Tuesday to Sunday. Note that several restaurants in New York share the name Terra; ours is the European restaurant at 1716 Sheepshead Bay Road, Brooklyn.
End Your Sheepshead Bay Day at Terra
The boats, the bridge and the sunset are free. The table at the end of the day is the part worth planning. Reserve a table at Terra Sheepshead Bay, 1716 Sheepshead Bay Road, or call +1 718-675-3939. We’ll have a glass of something coastal waiting.