Category Archives: 116th Street

Harlem Arts Festival Annual Gala May 29, HAF forms new partnership with MIST Harlem

Building on the momentum from their inaugural year, the Harlem Arts Festival will hold their second annual fundraising gala on Wednesday, May 29 at MIST Harlem, a local cultural entertainment center located near 116th Street and Lenox Avenue. The fundraising event is an opportunity for the organization to raise money and awareness about the talent that will hit the festival stage in June through preview performances.

The Harlem Arts Festival has also formed a new partnership with MIST Harlem that will create opportunities and provide an ongoing platform for local artists. While both organizations are fairly new to the Harlem community, they share a vision of creating a central hub for artists to create, experiment and interact with new and existing forms of art in their own backyard.

In addition to hosting this year’s fundraising gala, MIST Harlem will serve as the backdrop for a new open-mic jam session event series hosted by the executive committee of the Harlem Arts Festival.

Tickets for the May 29 gala range from $75 for Young Patrons (under 30) to $150 for VIP guests and are on sale now at www.harlemartsfestival.com/gala.

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Help wanted at upcoming Harlem restaurant, Silvana hiring

I walked by Silvana Harlem yesterday, this is the new restaurant opening soon on 116th Street and Frederick Douglass Blvd., and noticed the scaffolding is down and a help wanted sign is up!

If you’re interested in working at this upcoming Harlem hot spot, stop by Silvana this coming Tuesday, April 30 from noon to 2 pm.

By the way, I took a quick peak inside the place. It appears Silvana will have exposed brick on the first floor from left to right and columbia blue is featured on the exterior. It’s coming along! Stay tuned here for more details as they become available!

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Sign says Silvana, the next Harlem restaurant aiming to open soon

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A long time reader of this blog captured the first photo of signage for Silvana, the Harlem restaurant that will be located on 116th Street and FDB, and sent it in to HarlemGal Inc for all of us to view. A big thank you to the reader!

As HarlemGal first told you, Silvana is a restaurant that the owners of Yatenga French Bistro will be opening soon. The first floor of Silvana will be a cafe and boutique. The Harlem restaurant will sell local, domestic and international home decor, accessories gifts and more. Wine and beer will be served as well. The restaurant and bar will actually be located in the lower level and will have acoustic live music. Silvana will serve Israeli food, such as shawarma, falafel and other vegetarian dishes.

Preview menus of Harlem’s up and coming Destiny Sandwich & Juice Bar

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Harlem’s getting another dining option on Harlem’s restaurant row and the owners have exclusively shared their menus with HarlemGal Inc. Take a look at the menus below.

Destiny Sandwich & Juice Bar plans to open in Harlem on Frederick Douglass Blvd., between 116th and 117th Street, before the summer season begins. Destiny Sandwich & Juice Bar will offer affordable gourmet style sandwiches with Tom Cat bread, nothing with Boar’s Head, below the $10 range, along with fresh squeezed juices and smoothies. On their website, which is closed to the public for now, it says “all our rotisserie meats are freshly prepared, carved and served on TomCat Artisanal sandwich breads. Juice’s are made to order from the freshest seasonal produce available. And coffee beans will be supplied by KOBRICKS COFFEE Roasting Since 1920.”

Tony and Emilio, who are business partners and the owners of Destiny Sandwich & Juice Bar, tell HarlemGal they are excited to open in Harlem and to be able to offer healthy affordable food options using the best local products available.

Looking forward to checking out Destiny Sandwich & Juice Bar at 1266 Frederick Douglass Blvd. Stay tuned for more information.
Destiny Menu 1

Destiny Menu 2

Harlem Arts Festival hosts Open Mic Jam Session March 27

Listen up Harlem! There is a fun event happening tomorrow! The Harlem Arts Festival (HAF) is hosting an open mic jam session at My Image Studios Harlem (MIST Harlem) tomorrow (March 27) starting at 10 pm. HAF is hosting this event to raise money for this year’s 2013 festival.

According to Neal Ludevig, the executive director of the Harlem Arts Festival, organizing a festival is no small task. “The Harlem Arts Festival presented 33 artistic acts on two stages to more than 1,000 people over the course of two days last year and we’re excited to do this again in 2013,” said Ludevig. “The money we raise tomorrow night at the open mic jam goes directly toward providing our artists with the best equipment, promotion, and resources.”

Ludevig also explained that HAF is holding their event at a venue that was specifically designed for events such as an open mic jam. “The late Roland Laird envisioned MIST Harlem as an opportunity to aggregate culture and create a destination to present theater, music, poetry slams, and more, said Ludevig. “In that way, MIST Harlem is a fantastic new space in Harlem that represents what the HAF is all about. We’re both new organizations, trying to embrace and build on the wonderful neighborhoods and communities that are already here.”

Tickets for the Harlem Arts Festival’s open mic jam, costs $10. Interested in attending? Go here for tickets.
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East Harlem’s Aromas Boutique Bakery & Cafe hosting dessert tasting event March 26

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The good folks over at Aromas Boutique Bakery & Cafe located in East Harlem have given us the heads up that they are having their monthly dessert tasting on Tuesday, March 26th from 5 to 7 pm. All are welcome!

At this event there will be sampling of Fresh Lemon Loaf, Carrot Cake, the Best Pumpkin Cake in the World and a New Hazelnut Cake. Aromas Boutique Bakery & Cafe recently added Gluten free Pumpkin Cake and a Brownie to their menu.

Aromas Boutique Bakery & Cafe
2248 First Avenue (Between 115th and 116th)
New York, NY 10029
Phone: 212.360.0010
Fax: 212.360.0012

1Forno Pizzeria in Harlem joins the red awning club

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Most of the Harlem businesses love the color red when it comes to their outdoor awnings with signage, such as Red Rooster Harlem, Harlem Food Bar, Cedric French Bistro, etc. 1Forno Pizzeria at 135 West 116th Street near Lenox Avenue decided to do the same and has installed a big bright red awning with their logo, phone number and address. I walked by the pizza place yesterday (March 10) and noticed the signage. I also noticed in the new awning the Harlem pizza place goes by the name 1Forno Pizzeria, instead of Il Forno.

If you haven’t tried a pie or a slice of pizza from 1Forno on 116th Street, give it a try. I order from them all the time and love that one can create their own toppings from a varied list of toppings! 1Forno also gets good reviews on Yelp. See contact details below.

1Forno Pizza Harlem​
135 w 116th St
New York, NY 10026
212- 222- 3030

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Support Changing Face of Harlem, film in final stretch of completion

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Changing Face of Harlem, a documentary about Harlem’s ongoing transformation told from the voices of longtime residents, business owners, politicians, developers, and clergy, is in the home stretch to complete the film. This month they have launched an Indiegogo campaign to raise $30,000 to meet final post-production costs. Post-production costs cover final sound mixing, edit, color correction, and costs of archival footage, graphics and music.

To help Changing Face of Harlem meet their goal, go here to donate. The campaign runs for the month of March.

Read prior posts here on Changing Face of Harlem.

Tweet of the Week: Have you dined at Harvist Harlem?

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In this weeks Tweet of the Week, I’m singling out followers @leagoldman, @nikkimmascali and @iamjcrack who recently asked: have you dined at Harvist Harlem? If so, how was it?

Answer: yes, I have dined at Harvist Harlem located inside My Image Studios Harlem (MIST Harlem) on West 116th Street between Fifth Avenue and Lenox Avenue.

I shared the Grilled Cheese with Gruyère on sourdough bread. This item was extremely tasty and very heavy. I recommend it! I tried the Kale Salad with endive and pears. This salad is extremely healthy. I ordered the Kale Salad because I knew was I was going to have the Berebere Rubbed Filet Mignon as my main dish, which was delicious! The Filet Mignon was juicy, tender and seasoned to perfection! I ended my meal with the Red Velvet Soufflé! It was fancy! I liked it, but I’m more of a cheesecake kind of gal, so I’ll probably try the apple crisp the next time I return to Harvist Harlem.

As for price point, small plates range from $10 to $14 and large plates start at $18 and up to $25.

And an interesting feature about Harvist Harlem is that it is extremely spacious. When dining there it won’t feel crowded or small. Plus it’s easy to get to by taking the 2/3 subway to 116th Street. Check it out and enjoy!

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Yatenga owners confirm opening of another restaurant in Harlem, Silvana to serve Israeli food

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The owners of Yatenga French Bistro at 2269 Adam Clayton Powell Jr. Blvd and Shrine Bar located next door will be expanding their presence in Harlem. Sivan Baron Ouedraogo tells HarlemGal Inc that they will be opening a new restaurant in Harlem at 300 West 116th Street, right across the street from Harlem Tavern. The new dining establishment will be called Silvana and hopes to open this April.

The first floor of Silvana will be a cafe and boutique. Silvana will sell local, domestic and international home decor, accessories gifts and more. Wine and beer will be served as well. The restaurant and bar will actually be located in the lower level and will have acoustic live music. Silvana will serve Israeli food, such as shawarma, falafel and other vegetarian dishes.

If Silvana food and service will be anything like Yatenga French Bistro, this place will be good and a nice diverse addition to Harlem’s restaurant row.

To read my review on Yatenga, click here.