On the Avenue: Summer Stroll is Bay Ridge’s hottest event — literally

Talk about a hot night in the city!

Brooklyn’s heatwave continued last Friday, with temperatures reaching well into the 90s, but that didn’t stop thousands of pedestrians from strolling along Third Avenue for the second installment of the 2022 Summer Stroll on 3rd, which closed Third Avenue to vehicular traffic from 83rd Street all the way to Marine Avenue.

Merchants of Third Avenue Civic Association, Inc. President Dan Texeira said the association was proud to host another successful event “on the avenue.”

“To see that an even bigger crowd came out to enjoy the festivities despite the ongoing heatwave was really encouraging,” he said. “So many people recognize that the Summer Stroll on 3rd is a staple of this neighborhood — and this avenue — and look forward to spending time with their families dining, listening to music and patronizing our many wonderful shops and businesses along Third Avenue. We can’t wait to welcome everyone again Aug. 5 and 19.”

Legendary freestyle recording artist Noel performed his classic hits “Silent Morning,” “The Question” and “Like a Child” on the event’s main stage to a huge crowd of fans, many of whom had come earlier to witness the first-ever taco eating contest sponsored by Ho’ Brah, 8618 Third Ave.

The contest was hosted by comedian Lil “Mo” Mozzarella and pitted 10 hungry contestants against each other to see how many tacos they could consume in 15 minutes. After maintaining nearly a taco-per-minute pace, Steve B. was declared the overall winner and took home a cash prize and a gift card for (what else?) more tacos at Ho’ Brah!

Summer Stroll on 3rd Coordinator David Annarummo organized the celebrity appearances for the event, which were made possible through the generosity of several local businesses and organizations serving as the evening’s Live Performance Sponsors: Adelphi Academy of Brooklyn, the Kiwanis Club of Bensonhurst & Bay Ridge, Ben Bay Realty of Bay Ridge, Window-Fix and Bliss Entertainment. Cebu Bar & Bistro and Jabour Realty also helped sponsor the appearance of Lil “Mo” Mozzarella, who live-streamed the taco eating contest to his 200,000 Instagram followers. The New York-based comedian also strolled the avenue with his social media team and visited with businesses and event participants.

“I wanted to make sure to do something special for each end of the avenue this year, and thanks to our generous sponsors we were able to arrange for special performances by two of the most popular freestyle recording artists — Joe Zangie, who sang his new hit single ‘Love You Like WOW’ on July 8, and Noel this past Friday evening,” Annarummo said. “They performed for great crowds composed of diehard fans and families who stuck around for the show after the eating contests. It was a great mix of people having fun on Third Avenue.”

Be sure to follow @SummerStrollon3rd on Facebook and Instagram as well as @SummerStroll3rd on Twitter for highlights from each event and updates on all upcoming activities. Use the hashtag #SummerStrollon3rd to have your photos and videos shared on social media.

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Everybody, have “fun” tonight!

Members of the Bay Ridge Fifth Avenue BID are set to welcome thousands of guests tonight for the first of several #FunonFifth events taking place “on the avenue” throughout the summer and into the fall. Part of the 2022 “Open Streets” initiative brought to Bay Ridge through the efforts of the BID, along with Councilmember Justin Brannan and the Merchants of Third Avenue Civic Improvement Association, Inc., each installment of #FunonFifth runs from 72nd Street through 85th Street.

Among the highlights confirmed for this evening are live performances by The Rigbees, DJ Frankie and Lordz of the Fjords, as well as Mexican folklore dancers. Before heading out to enjoy the event, check the BID website for a complete guide of activities and locations.