Brooklyn: Williamsburg, Greenpoint & Bushwick

An international byword for beards, body art, bustling bars and fixed-wheel bikes, Williamsburg is now well and truly gentrified. Property prices are eye-watering, the last warehouses have been snapped up for boutique hotels and gourmet food halls, and the streets are lined with incitements to consume. And yet it remains one of Brooklyn's most funky and enjoyable neighborhoods, with great dining, vibrant music and nightlife, and an unmistakable village culture of its own. The 'cutting edge' has moved east, to Bushwick.