Entertainment

Gowanus is upon us!

Many people look at Gowanus — the gritty-hip Brooklyn nabe squeezed between more polished siblings Carroll Gardens and Park Slope — and see an industrial wasteland atop a toxic waterway.

Unfair! Among the warehouses and amid the occasional waft of canal odor is a lively land of restaurants and bars, rock venues and antique furniture stores, reading rooms and artisan pickles.

“It feels a little like Greenpoint did in the late ’90s,” says Adam Sober, co-owner of the bar and eatery Lavender Lake, which had its official launch last month.

Sure, Gowanus may lack its neighboring hoods’ stately old homes and seemingly endless strips of pretty storefronts, but it’s affordable enough for an array of intriguing businesses to move in.

“We couldn’t have [opened our restaurant] anyplace else,” says Aaron Lefkove, 31, co-owner of the bustling eatery Littleneck on Third Avenue. Rents were too high elsewhere.

Lefkove’s seafood joint is packed most Saturday nights, and he and his partner, Andy Curtin, are teaming up with Angelo Romano (formerly of Roberta’s) to open a second restaurant down the block called the Pines.

On the adjacent block, Chris Pizzulli and Peter Endriss (veterans of Blue Ribbon and Per Se, respectively) are planning a bakery called Runner & Stone. On nearby Union Street, a Dinosaur Bar-B-Que is set to open this winter.

“The rents are definitely kinder out that way,” says Dinosaur owner and pit-master John Stage. “And Fourth Avenue is getting the new stadium [Barclay’s Center]; there’s a lot of action in that.”

And did we mention that a Whole Foods is starting construction a little farther down the avenue?

Go shop

At Find (43C Ninth St.; 718-369-2705), you’ll find Thonon oak side chairs and antique apothecary cabinets at a (sometimes) reasonable price. For more eccentric offerings, both industry professionals and adventurous non-pros head to the Film Biz Recycling & Prop Shop (540 President St.; 347-384-2336) to rent or buy enormous disco balls ($300 per week), gigantic bananas ($100 per week) and nearly every type of old typewriter or skeleton imaginable.

Brooklyn Homebrew (163 Eighth St.; 718-369-0776) proves Gowanus is really hopping. The store stocks everything needed to make your own beer, from hops to instructional books to bottles and jugs. Get started with their introductory equipment kit ($85).

At Brooklyn Brine (574A President St.; 347-223-4345) you can grab a jar of owner Shamus Jones’ traditional NYC deli-style pickles or his more creative offerings, like maple-bourbon pickles, pickled beets, or lavender asparagus (all $8 each). Sure, you could also get them at Whole Foods or Williams-Sonoma at this point, but better to get them at the source. The company actually makes the pickles in the back.

Go eat

One of the most-talked-about Gowanus spots to open in the last few years, Four & Twenty Blackbirds (439 Third Ave.; 718-499-2917) is best known for its pies (salted caramel apple, peach or whatever strikes the baker’s fancy, at $4.75 per slice), but the bakery also has cholesterol-laden savory and breakfast goods, like “eggs in a nest” ($4.50) and cinnamon brioche ($3) on offer.

Frequented by Frank Sinatra and Sammy Davis Jr. back in the day, Monte’s (451 Carroll St.; 718-852-7800) is a must. The restaurant’s Sicilian-born chef, Salvatore Zapparata, cooks up fare like spaghetti with blanched cod, olives and basil pesto ($19) that is a bit more authentic than your typical red-sauce restaurant. Rest assured, the standards are also available. “We get customers who want chicken parm — and we’ll make them chicken parm,” says owner Dominick Castelvetre, who worked at the restaurant as a youngster parking cars.

You wouldn’t want to eat anything that came out of the canal, but there is great seafood to be had in Gowanus. Littleneck (288 Third Ave.; 718-522-1921) serves up New England-style oysters, clams and lobster. The specialty of the house is a clam roll ($16), but even nonfishy items impress. The burger ($11) — a custom blend of brisket, angus shoulder and end trimmings from London Meat Company served on a bun from Caputo’s on Court Street — is “off the charts,” according to local Darryl Zudeck.

The burnt ends, pulled pork and fatty brisket at Fort Reno Provisions (669 Union St.; 347-227-7777) are tasty enough to bring out the barbecue sauce-smeared glutton in anybody. Harlem’s Dinosaur Bar-B-Que will soon join it on Union Street.

Mexican taqueria Oaxaca (250 Fourth Ave.; 718-222-1122) has one of its four locations in the area. Fear not, the tasty tacos can be enjoyed without guilt. They’re made from sustainable ingredients.

Aussie pub Sheep Station (149 Fourth Ave.; 718-857-4337) has hearty favorites from Down Under, like leg of lamb ($13), mussels and fries ($12) and minced meat pies ($6) — the better to fill up on before hitting the bars.

Go out

There’s no shortage of watering holes in Gowanus, from the divey neighborhood fixture Canal Bars (270 Third Ave.; 718-246-0011) to the year-old pub Halyards (406 Third Ave., 718-532-8787), with its toasted cheese sandwiches.

Nestled between the American Legion and a tire shop, Bar Tano (457 Third Ave.; 718-499-3400) doesn’t have the most glamorous location, but it does have perfectly balanced drinks like the Tano Cocktail ($10), a blend of muddled orange, whiskey and Amaro Ramazzotti that goes down all too easily.

The newest kid on the block, Lavender Lake (383 Carroll St.; 347-799-2154), is destined to be part of the popular crowd. Twenty-something singles and young moms with infants in tow all crowded the bar when it opened last month. Tasty libations like the Lucy Ricardo — jalapeño tequila, strawberry, mint, lime and soda — and the St. Basil — gin, basil, St.-Germain, lemon, soda and an orange twist — have kept them coming. (Both $10)

Grab a beer or catch an intimate show at The Rock Shop (249 Fourth Ave.; 718-230-5740). The stage may be small, but big name Thurston Moore has played there with his trio Northampton Wools, as have the Posies and the Wrens. Wyatt plays tonight, the Gowanus All-Stars take the stage Monday.

For bands, dancing, comedy and delightfully random diversions, head to The Bell House (149 Seventh St.; 718-643-6510) or Littlefield (622 Degraw St.; littlefieldnyc.com). At the former, there’s a “Spice World” sing-along later this month and a We Were Promised Jetpacks show in September. The latter is the venue for Hot Tub, a regular comedy night hosted by Kurt Braunohler, and events like Punderdome 3000 and Brisketlab.