Many of us know Bed-Stuy just a little, either because it’s birthplace of Jay-Z and the setting of Do the Right Thing, or because we’re familiar with its fringes along Franklin Ave. and the outskirts of Bushwick. But Bed-Stuy is one of the largest and densest neighborhoods in Brooklyn. There is so much to explore, especially now.

This weekend marks the start of Bed-Stuy Alive, a week of enticements to check out neighborhood shops, artists and restaurants, and next weekend residents open up their homes as part of the Bed-Stuy House Tour. A bunch of new cafes and shops also open in the next few weeks, supporting the recent Times story about Bed-Stuy’s mini-boom.

If you have a bike, that’s the best way to get around the neighborhood. Shady, tree-lined streets with bike lanes are prevalent around Stuyvesant Heights, the landmarked area and the blocks around it that we focused on. (Meaning a lot of the recommendations we got from Bed-Stuy Bloggers Petra and Joanna, like Foulkie, Tiny Cup and Saratoga Square Park, aren’t in this part of the hood.)

To get there on foot, take the A/C trains to Utica Avenue and walk east toward Lewis Avenue.

First, pop into Bread-Stuy, a neighborhood bakery and coffee shop, at 409 Lewis. Bread-Stuy is well known for more than just its quirky name — the sandwiches are delicious, the coffee strong, and the red velvet cake is the bomb: moist and chocolatey with toothache-sweet icing.

Next door to Bread-Stuy is the neighborhood’s local bookstore, a dying breed these days. Brownstone Books is small, but coziness and books go hand in hand. The shop is a staple in the community: local authors have readings and a story time for kids is held every Wednesday and Saturday from noon to 1 pm.

A few blocks south is Fulton Park, a charming and tree-lined patch of green with well-kept benches, a giant bronze statue of Robert Fulton, and plenty of space to roam around.

The Brooklynite Gallery, on Malcolm X Boulevard, has become synonymous with street art — the “sign” sculpture on its storefront is by pioneering street artist Leon Reid IV — though graphic and pop art really inform owners Rae and Hope McGrath’s curatorial choices. Their openings are blowout affairs, often drawing crowds in the hundreds, and the installations for each of their artists is unique. For the current DAIN show, the gallery was transformed into a 1940s parlor, complete with chandelier and wainscoting. The artist’s mixed media collages of Hollywood starlets like Lana Turner, juxtaposed with Coney Island imagery, are up through Saturday before the street art duo Peru Ana Ana Peru opens their show on Oct. 17.

On October 10, the new American Orchid Cafe opens around the corner on Patchen Ave., and there’s always the Malcolm X Farmer’s Market in nearby Jackie Robinson Park on Saturdays, but for the most part the best eats, and now drinks, are back on Lewis. At the brand-new Therapy Wine Bar, owner Angela Terry has renovated a garden brownstone into a warm, sexy bar with a great backyard. The wine list is short but expanding, and the cheese and charcuterie plates are light on cheese and charcuterie (at least on our visit), but the big, $7 pours make up for it.

Nearby, Peaches is well-known for its soul food with flair. The dressed up sister to The Smoke Joint in Fort Greene serves comforting fare like tender short ribs and a peppery mac and cheese, but also goes greenmarket fresh with rainbow trout and heirloom tomatoes, and a roasted beet salad for brunch.

Right now, the best newcomer is Saraghina, on the corner of Lewis and Halsey. In a borough where pizza counts as a major food group, Saraghina is a total surprise, with its rustic wood decor, Borscht Belt signage and delicious, wood-fired oven pies. Start with an octopus salad, then dig into one of their stellar pizzas, like the prosciutto and funghi. Their homey backyard is a fantastic spot for a birthday party or big group and rumors from the kitchen tell us that they will expand the main dining room later this year, adding a lunch counter/commissary to the joint.

Just last month, a new restaurant and cocktail lounge in opened in North Bed-Stuy that pushes the food options further from Lewis. The Sarah James Speakeasy, on Pulaski and Throop, set up shop in an adorable yellow brick building and has plans to take the neighborhood by storm. The restaurant is charming in its decor (antique furniture, celebrity photographs, wine and beer served in mugs) and serves classics like mussels in white wine and garlic. Sarah James’ full liquor license is pending and the basement, which will be home to a cocktail lounge and live music, is not yet open.

A close second to the central hub of Lewis Avenue is Tompkins Avenue, with its various boutiques. CasaBAN sells a mix of Mid-Century Modern and Victorian furniture and housewares, all original and reasonably priced, with a few pieces from films mixed in (right now owner Ban Leow has some paintings from the set of Drew Barrymore’s Whip It on hand). Next door is Freestyle Kids (401 Tompkins Ave.), a boutique for the little ones that sells toys, clothing and gifts.

Down the street, Common Grounds is a good place to refuel, with its large, beautiful backyard. Beside it, an upscale sneaker and women’s boutique is slated to open in late November, and by Halloween, the French Patisserie La Table Exquise, owned by the former personal chef of Julianne Moore, will open on the corner of Putnam and Tompkins.

For a taste of the neighborhood pre-French pastries, the book Walking Brooklyn is a great guide to its architectural wonders. If there’s one building to see before the end of your tour, it’s the Brooklyn Boys School, one more block east past Tompkins, on Marcy Ave, where Norman Mailer and Aaron Copland graduated. The school is still in operation, and the Romanesque Revival-style building is in remarkable condition. Keep going down Marcy, and you’ll see the Hattie Carthan Garden at Clifton Place, where the late environmentalist secured landmark status for a Southern Magnolia tree planted here in 1885. Every Saturday the garden hosts a farmer’s market, and this Saturday, Oct. 10, you can catch their first annual Oktoberfest.

Text and all photos by Georgia Kral, except Saraghina, by Heather Strelecki via Flickr. Sent by Nicole.