The Brooklyn Academy of Music is bursting with a range of programs this autumn: the Next Wave Festival, “Jonathan Lethem Selects,” and “New French Film,” just to name a few. But with BAM situated in a corner of Fort Greene, Brooklyn, Manhattanites new to the area might wonder where a comparably good dining experience can be had. They needn’t worry: The neighborhood is home to many well-loved bistros and eateries, and the growing Fifth Avenue restaurant scene in Park Slope is only a few minutes’ walking distance. Dinner and a Movie drops in on a selection of nearby eateries, and highlights “Hotel Cassiopeia,” the latest Next Wave offering at BAM.

DINNER

For some restaurateurs, “Asian Fusion” might not be the most appealing label. But Nana’s mixed menu of Japanese sushi and Southeast Asian entrées bears it well. The Malaysian kueh teow noodles — thick egg noodles fried in dark soy sauce with squid, shrimp, and egg — are spicy and fulfilling, and the restaurant’s various happy hours are added incentive to pull up to the bar and slurp them up. If noodles don’t fit your mood, Nana serves up all kinds of fish: raw, fried, broiled, and more. The butter crispy “Ipoh” squid is a dish overflowing with thickly cut sautéed calamari covered with a piquant sauce. (155 Fifth Ave., between Douglass and Degraw streets, Park Slope, Brooklyn, 718-230-3749)

A Fort Greene mainstay, Luz, boasts plenty of devoted locals who flock to the eatery between brunch and dinner. Diners can start with the Chino-Latino ceviche, thinly sliced tuna marinated in soy sauce and served with grilled pineapple. For a heavier appetizer, go with the pinchos de res, grilled beef tenderloin cubes served with crispy fried yucca fries and a lime-soaked mojo sauce. Despite being the least-expensive entrée on the menu, the Peruvian rotisserie-style pollo is a favorite, served with its flaking, crispy skin still intact, and with a round of side dishes, including yucca, maduros (sweet plaintains) and tostones (fried plaintains). (177 Vanderbilt Ave., between Myrtle and Willoughby avenues, Fort Greene, Brooklyn, 718-246-4000)

New York oenophiles know South Africa for its wines, but the country’s tasty cuisine is a hodgepodge of dishes developed over the course of various periods of colonization. Dutch and Indian influences have left their mark on the country’s foods, and Madiba restaurant in Fort Greene remains the only restaurant in New York City based on a South African kitchen. The menu includes samoosas — derived from Indian samosas — the pastry triangles filled with spiced vegetables, and chicken livers peri-peri that are sautéed with chilies and served on toast. Bobotie is a dish that combines Dutch and Indian flavors: Spiced mincemeat is mixed with an egg custard and baked, creating a pseudo-curried soufflé, and served with rice and raisins. (195 DeKalb Ave., between Adelphi Street and Carlton Avenue, Brooklyn, 718-955-9190)

THEATER

A reclusive artist who rarely left his family home in Queens, Joseph Cornell, became known for creating miniature worlds inside of glass-sealed boxes. His life (he died at 69 in 1972) and his expansive imagination are the inspiration for Charles Mee’s “Hotel Cassiopeia,” an ode to the wild characters that Cornell dreamed up. While Cornell, played by Barney O’Hanlon, sits at a desk at one corner of the stage, actresses and ballerinas are seen floating by — as are members of the artist’s family — just out of Cornell’s reach. Mr. Mee joined with Anne Bogart’s SITI Company to mount this latest Next Wave production. In yesterday’s New York Sun, Joy Goodwin wrote, “Grafting Mr. Mee’s talents and Ms. Bogart’s stagecraft onto Cornell’s life and art has produced a deeply resonant work, steeped in the kinds of yearnings and associations Cornell held so dear.” (Friday, 7:30 p.m., Brooklyn Academy of Music, Harvey Theater, 30 Lafayette Ave., between Ashland Place and St. Felix Street, 718-636-4100, Brooklyn, $28–$60)