Tag Archives: Central Harlem

The Fourth Annual Spring Harlem Restaurant and Retail Month starts February 15

Harlem Park to Park kicks off its fourth annual Spring Harlem Restaurant and Retail Month tomorrow (Feb 15) with an impressive list of restaurant and retail establishments in Central Harlem. With food options like Ristorante Settepani’s Braised Monkfish, and the Chicken and Red Velvet Waffles at 67 Orange Street; along with services that include a week’s worth of Unlimited Led Classes from Land Yoga, and the popular Men’s Razor Relief Treatment at Harlem Skin Clinic, Harlemites and visitors alike can experience a variety of options and opportunities to sample Harlem’s finest offerings from February 15 – 28.

Twenty businesses are participating, including:

Restaurants
67 Orange Street, Bleu Violin, Chez Lucien, Chocolat Restaurant and Lounge, Corner Social, Cove Lounge, Harlem Food Bar, Harlem Tavern, Lenox Coffee, Moca Lounge, Native Restaurant, Red Rooster Harlem, Ristorante Settepani, Sylvia’s/Sylvia’s Also Lounge

Retail Services
Brownstone Fitness, Doggedly Devoted, Franz James Floral Boutique, Harlem Flo – A Floral Boutique, Harlem Skin Clinic, Land Yoga

For more information about Spring Harlem Restaurant and Retail Month and a full list of offerings, visit Harlem Park to Park on Facebook or link below for prix fixe menus and retail/service items.
HP2P-RandR-week-2013-Poster

Take a walk at Harlem Art Walk Tour October 6-7

There is so much happening in the month of October in Harlem. Love it! In addition to the Harlem Harvest Festival on Saturday, October 6, there is the annual Harlem Art Walk Tour. This weekend event provides an opportunity to walk around Central Harlem Saturday and Sunday, October 6th and 7th, from 12 pm to 6 pm. The tour features the work of more than 80 artists living and working in Harlem.

Casa Frela Gallery, located at 47 West 119th Street, is the starting point where maps will be distributed to tour participants. The maps highlight the various stops on the walking tour including open artist studios, museums, and cultural and historic venues.  All forms of art will be featured including sculptures, ceramics, painting, photographs, etchings and prints and textiles.

For further information about the tour please visit the Casa Frela Gallery website  or call the information hotline at 212-722-8577.

Introducing Belle, a new restaurant coming to Harlem by Chef Darryl Burnett

The restaurant scene in Central Harlem continues to grow with new places planned for this year and 2013. Recently mentioned was Vinatería, which is opening up (hopefully this year) on Frederick Douglass Blvd and 119th. Maison Harlem on 127th Street and St. Nick is getting close to opening up. That place looks practically ready. Chef Stephen Putnam, the former chef at Lido Italian Restaurant and Bar, recently announced he is planning to open up his own restaurant in Harlem in the near future.

Next up is Darryl Burnett, a former chef at Bergdorf Goodman, 5 and Diamond Harlem and a resident of Harlem. Burnett recently announced on Kickstarter that he is starting his own restaurant in Harlem, which will be called Belle. As for location, Chef Burnett says Belle will be located “in the center of Harlem’s restaurant row and within walking distance of other new and hot Harlem restaurants, bars, and lounges.”

According to Burnett, Belle Harlem will be a “casual dining restaurant focusing on Southern classics with a modern vision with touches of French, Italian, Moroccan and Asian.” Belle Harlem already has a Facebook page where friends can see some of Burnett’s delicious creations. I have experienced Chef Burnett’s delectables and it is fantastic!

Interested in helping Chef Darryl Burnett and his Belle restaurant, go here to learn more.

Senior Swim begins, age-friendly program available at two Harlem pools

NYC Parks and Recreation announced yesterday (August 9) the launch of designated Senior Swim hours at 14 public pools citywide, two of the 14 pools participating are in Harlem. The Harlem pools are Jackie Robinson Pool and Thomas Jefferson Pool.

Senior Swim hours offer adults a stress-free, quieter time to socialize, swim, stretch, and enjoy the benefits of water in NYC Parks’ outdoor pools. The program runs from July 9 through August 24, and is open to those over the age of 62. Please note: there are no fitness instruction involved in the program.

On July 9  at the Thomas Jefferson Pool, the Harlem Honey and Bears Swim Club, a synchronized swimming group for adults 50 and older, kicked off the Senior Swim Program with a synchronized performance.

To learn more about the hours dedicated to the Senior Swim Program, click here.

Rental building planned for St. Nicholas Avenue in Harlem

20120522-074952.jpg
For the last several years, all Harlem has seen is condo buildings going up-one after the other-especially on or near Frederick Douglass Blvd. Another building is going to be constructed in this Harlem area. However, it’s not going to be a condo. Several sources tell Harlem Gal Inc that the next building to be built from the ground up in Central Harlem will be a rental building and the developer responsible for this will be Hans Futterman. Futterman has built 2280 FDB and several other buildings in the surrounding area in Harlem.

Futterman purchased the space on St. Nicholas Avenue between 121st and 122nd Street. It’s where the gas station use to be. If you walk by you will see that it’s been closed and permits are hanging on the fence. Futterman has told several business people in Harlem that he is going to build a rental building at this location in Harlem since most of what he has built has been condos!

There is no word yet as to what the building will look like in terms of layout or how high. As with most stories, that information will unfold over time.

As for whether this building will be an affordable rental building, I seriously doubt it. Most of what Futterman builds is mid-to-high end. Stay tuned!

Larry’s Freewheeling Bicycle Shop now open in Harlem

20120423-082707.jpg

20120423-082921.jpg
I was walking along 110th Street in Harlem heading to the westside this past weekend and noticed that a new bike shop arrived at the base of Harlem. It’s called Larry’s Freewheeling and located at 301 Cathedral Parkway. It is not too far from Cafe Amrita and I believe the second bike shop to open in Central Harlem. The first bike shop to open was ModSquad on Frederick Douglass Blvd.

According to signage on Larry’s window, it’s has been open since the beginning of April. Has anyone checked this business out? If so, tell us how it is!

The Village of Harlem stars in NYC 22, watch Sunday evening April 15 on CBS

Do you recognize the scenery in the photos above? If you live in Central Harlem, you should recognize the location. That is our Harlem in the background and its starring in a new television series called NYC 22. It was previously called The Rookie. I guess that name did not test well in focus groups.

NYC 22, which is a drama about a fictional police precinct in Harlem, is receiving a lot of press right now. Mainly because the TV show premieres this Sunday , April 15 on CBS, and it has huge names behind it, such as executive producers Robert De Niro and Jane Rosenthal. However, what is really interesting about NYC 22, and one of the many reasons why I plan to watch the show and hopefully you will too, is that it was created by a Harlemite. The creator is Richard Price, who lives in Harlem according to The New York Times. Price has resided in Harlem since 2008.

Price told the Times he “made the rapidly changing neighborhood of Harlem an important element of the show, drawing creative fuel from its churning mix of longtime residents and gentrifiers, families and hoodlums, cultural landmarks and upstart bistros.”

If you want to learn more about NYC 22, read the reviews in The Los Angeles Times and NY Times.

NYC 22 is on CBS, Sunday nights at 10 pm.

Mount Morris Park neighborhood of Harlem Annual House Tour is this weekend

Jun 10, 2011 @ 14:38
By HarlemGal
Don’t forget the annual Mount Morris Park Annual House Tour is this weekend hosted by Mount Morris Park Community Improvement Association. It is this Sunday, June 12th!

This is the time when one can see some of the most beautiful brownstones in New York City that make up Central Harlem, also known as the Mt. Morris Park area. Also the area was recently praised by New York Magazine.

Here is the schedule for the day for those interested in attending:

  • 11 AM to 4 PM: Follow the Self-Guided Tour of Homes 
  • 1 PM and 3 PM: Join the Architectural Walking Tour
  • 12 Noon and 2 PM: Go Inside Historic Harlem
  • 1:30 PM: Join the Marcus Garvey Park Walking Tour

Harlem featured in The Boston Globe

Jun 6, 2011 @ 8:00
By HarlemGal
Not too long ago, Harlem was profiled in  The Financial Times, the UK-based publication. Now The Boston Globe takes its turn and profiles our community in its travel section this past weekend (June 5). Jessica Allen, the reporter, spends two days in Harlem along with her husband and discovers “Harlem makes a visitor feel and taste its forward movement.”

The article highlights various experiences from listening to jazz, to eating at Amy Ruth’s and to drinking at some of our unique establishments, such as 67 Orange and bier international. However, the most notable items in this article are not necessarily about places, but crafted words about Harlem. Allen states “perhaps no other area in New York so eagerly honors its history as Harlem.” She points to our famously named streets, such as Malcolm X and Adam Clayton Powell, Jr. Furthermore, Allen goes on to say “despite the interest in what came before, these days Harlem seems utterly future-oriented.”

We couldn’t agree more with The Boston Globe! And to Jessica Allen and her husband, come back and see us (Harlem) again now!

Harlem’s Marcus Garvey Park and Hamilton Heights make New York Mag’s Next Big Neighborhood List

Apr 5, 2011 @ 7:00

By HarlemGal
It is that time of year where New York Magazine profiles some of the upcoming neighborhoods for 2011. In this week’s edition (April 3), they list 20 of The Next Big Neighborhoods in New York City and two Harlem sections made the list!

A big congrats to Marcus Garvey Park.  This area located in Central Harlem was ranked fourth out of 20. NYMag says Marcus Garvey Park “is undergoing a several million dollar renovation, including smoothed-out sidewalks and the transformation of its existing bandshell into a state-of-the-art amphitheater.” In addition to park renovations, several buildings have sprung up, such as 5th on the Park, located at Fifth Avenue and 120th Street; and “the recently constructed Windows on 123, a pair of buildings graced with limestone-balconied apartments and full-floor lofts.”

Hamilton Heights located in West Harlem, finishes out the list placing 20th on the list.

Another notable mention, is Manhattan Valley, which is right below Harlem on the Westside. They were ranked second out of 20.