First Friday and Taco Tuesday (on a Sunday): 12 things to do this weekend

By Ethan Jakob Craft

Pick your poison: all-you-can-eat tacos; comedy show cabarets that double as music trivia nights; ‘90s throwback dance parties—all of which and more can be found around the borough this weekend.

Here’s your official breakdown of what’s going on for the weekend starting (yikes) April 1:

Friday, April 1

Celebrate the sideshow business’s best
Doors at 6 p.m., show at 7
You may or may not know that Coney Island is home to America’s Sideshow Hall of Fame (but really, where better for it?), and this Friday is its 16th annual Hall of Fame induction ceremony; nomination categories include “Self Inflicted,” “Born Different” and “Show Folk,” among others, and it’ll also include a slew of sideshow performances and a keynote speech by “connoisseur of the bizarre” Marc Hartzman. In-person tickets are $15 while virtual tickets, in the form of a Zoom link, are just $5.

Mix and mingle on First Friday
7:30 p.m.
Kick back and relax with dancing, drinks, music and “good vibes” all around at Brooklyn Tea’s First Friday celebration, held at its Nostrand Avenue in Bed-Stuy from 7:30 to 10:30 p.m. Tickets are just $18 each and include two complimentary cocktails, with a portion of the night’s proceeds also benefiting Puissance, a non-profit group that provides scholarships to local students interested in attending HBCUs.

Laugh along with fellow April Fools
7:30 p.m.
If your friends’ lame pranks and corporations’ uninspired “April Fools’ jokes” (a.k.a., lies) haven’t sapped your ability to laugh by sundown on April 1, then head down to the Third Rail bar at 895 Broadway—right on the border of Bushwick and Bed-Stuy—which is hosting a “definitely real” comedy show on Friday night. There’s no minimum drink requirement, and advance tickets are just $3 each, or $5 if bought at the door day-of-show.

Test your music trivia knowledge
11:59 p.m.
With a surprise line-up of comedians, musicians and burlesque performers, this 21-and-over cabaret show doubles as a music trivia competition, hosted by New York comedian Sally Ann Hall. Hosted at the BKLYN Comedy Club in Williamsburg, doors open 20 minutes ‘til midnight, and attendees should be advised that while there is a two-drink minimum at this $12-per-person show, the online event listing promises “reasonable drink prices.”

Saturday, April 2

Ride the Cyclone
11 a.m., then all day long
If you didn’t get your fill of Coney Island at Friday’s Sideshow Hall of Fame induction ceremony, then you may consider heading out there on Saturday morning, because Luna Park will officially be open for the summer season. Starting at 11 a.m. with the park’s traditional christening of the Cyclone roller coaster—which turns 95 years old this year—the first 95 guests can enjoy a free ride and an egg cream. What’s more Brooklyn than that?

Swing by the Spring Market
12 p.m.
Spring is here, and for three Saturdays in a row starting April 2, TBA Brooklyn in Williamsburg will host its Spring Market to showcase dozens of local bakers, designers, jewelers, artists and more; this weekend’s event alone includes the Left Lane Pepper Company, JuJu Lee and the Resiness Ash. Running until 5 p.m., but with free mimosas given out during the first afternoon hour, this pop-up market is completely free to attend.

Learn the basics of soldering
1 p.m.
One of the core pillars of working with electronics is soldering, a sort of small-scale welding process that allows you to fuse components and create electrical connections within devices. In this immersive workshop, attendees will learn how to use a soldering iron hands-on to create their own LED tiles that generate “nifty animations”; no previous electrical experience is required, making this intensive a great choice for beginners interested in the field. The class is held at NYC Resistor in Boerum Hill; tickets are $90 each and include all materials.

Enjoy a Saturday of art, music and literature
Starting at 5 p.m.
First Saturdays are back at the Brooklyn Museum for the 22nd consecutive year, bringing an agenda of free monthly programming back to the borough that includes speakers, sessions, concerts and artistic performances. Due to high demand and capacity restrictions, advance registration is required on a per-session basis, and while some events are already booked solid, others have allotted blocks of RSVPs that’ll be made available ahead of each event on Saturday. Sessions run until 11 p.m.

Party like it’s 1999… or the early 2000s
11 p.m.
Billed as New York’s biggest throwback attire party of the year, this event at Polygon in East Williamsburg is a pageant of all things ‘90s and 2000s—especially the two decades’ sometimes cringey, puzzling fashion trends. Tickets for the event, which runs into the wee hours of Sunday morning, cost $30 per person and include an open bar stocked with Casamigos that’s available to patrons until midnight; tables and bottle service are available for purchase, too. “Seinfeld”-era dress is mandatory.

Sunday, April 3

Indulge in Brooklyn’s kosher cuisine
11 a.m.
It’s not just gefilte fish and pickles on the menu during this new-age tour of the city’s Jewish cuisine. Featuring everything from “artisanal croissants to kosher pizzas,” this three-hour trek through Crown Heights will explore culinary hotspots and give attendees a peek at the new world of kosher eats. Hosted by Brooklyn chef Itta Werdiger, tickets for this guided tour are $36 each, though remaining slots are limited, so snap up yours now.

Sample the borough’s tastiest tacos
1 p.m.
Ladies and gentlemen (21 and older), come one, come all to the Brooklyn Taco Takedown this weekend, featuring a roster of the city’s finest amateur chefs who will be competing for your votes to win this ultimate battle of tacos and wits. General admission tickets for Sunday’s all-you-can-eat fiesta at the Bell House in Gowanus are $30 each; the event technically kicks off at 1 p.m., though if you’re planning to drink, the venue’s bar opens at noon.

Catch Tom Segura’s world tour
Doors at 7 p.m., show at 8
Beloved comedian Tom Segura is stopping in Brooklyn this weekend as part of his “I’m Coming Everywhere” world tour, taking his critically acclaimed act to the historic Kings Theater in Flatbush on Sunday night. Of the few tickets that are still available, the cheapest seats start at $39, while “platinum” tier floor seats are retailing online for $54; doors open an hour before the show.