Amputated from Brooklyn since the construction of Gowanus Expressway and the Brooklyn-Battery Tunnel, for years Red Hook was a derelict district of low-income housing and industrial buildings.

As Brooklyn became the next big thing, however, an increasing number of artists -- and, later, young professionals -- "discovered" the 'hood, appreciating its cheap rents and jaw-dropping waterfront views. Over the years, a smattering of hip businesses opened along Columbia Street (which some may argue is still Carroll Gardens) and Van Brunt Street, in the heart of the 'hood.

Red Hook's tipping point might have been in 2005, when real-estate maven Barbara Corcoran paid $1.075 million for a three-story building on Van Brunt.

Still, for now, there remains a kind of "end of the earth" feeling in Red Hook; it's a nabe that truly has a small-town feel. But, thanks to the Brooklyn Cruise Ship Terminal (where the Queen Mary 2 docks), a giant Fairway supermarket (in a building that also has market-rate rentals) and the much-maligned opening of IKEA, more and more visitors will be finding their way here.