Category Archives: New York City

Casting Call: Food Network Star and Chef Bobby Flay is looking for Food Entrepreneurs

Posted on October 18, 2011 | 1 comment

Listen up Harlem! This is a casting call blog post! And it is about an exciting opportunity. Bobby Flay’s Rock Shrimp Productions is  currently developing a new show for the Food Network.  The title of the show is still unnamed. However, it is going to center around Food Entrepreneurs.

Rock Shrimp Productions defines Food Entrepreneurs as individuals who left their day job and are currently in the process of opening a food store or restaurant before mid December with…no culinary experience and are taking a risk to pursue their passion of launching their own food business.  These individuals must be planning to open a brick-and-mortar space (restaurant or singular food ideas welcome) before the end of 2011.

In addition,  the Food Entrepreneurs should preferably in, but not limited to, the greater New York City area (NY, NJ, CT). Those chosen will receive culinary business coaching from a major celebrity chef and restaurateur, as well as nationwide publicity.

So if you are a Food Entrepreneur and want to rub elbows with Bobby Flay, the celebrity chef who did a Throw Down with Melba’s Restaurant in Harlem, contact Heather Briggs at hrb@embassyrow.com or learn more about the project on Facebook.

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Posted in 125th Street, 5 and Diamond Harlem, Adam Clayton Powell Jr. Blvd., art and culture, baking, bier international, business, Cedric French Bistro and Bar Harlem, Community, drinks, entertainment, food, Frederick Douglass Blvd., Harlem, Harlem Tavern, Lenox Avenue, Lido Italian Restaurant and Bar, New York, New York City, NYC, Red Rooster Harlem, restaurant row, restaurants

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Super, super cool photos of Lady Gaga in Harlem

Posted on October 16, 2011 | Leave a comment

There has been a boat load of news coverage about Lady Gaga filming her latest music video called Marry the Night in Harlem. However, UK-based The Daily Mail has published the best pictures by far of Lady Gaga in Harlem-once on Friday, October 14 and today, October 16. Check them out! Aren’t they super cool?

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Posted in 125th Street, art and culture, entertainment, fashion, Harlem, music, New York, New York City, NYC

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Harlem In the News: Dining Establishments and Real Estate receive high praise

Posted on October 16, 2011 | 2 comments


Recently, the Village of Harlem received high praise mainly on two fronts, real estate and dining establishments.

In the eating out area, both DNA Info and The New York Daily News raved about how there are several great places to dine uptown and some of those dining establishments have received positive reviews in Zagats.

In the NY Daily News, they mentioned Red Rooster and Lido Italian Restaurant and Bar in one sentence, specifically stating that Zagats says these dining establishments are “the new stars to watch.” The article also mentions “Covo Trattoria & Pizzeria, where happy hours go until midnight, most dishes are less than $15, and the outdoor dining is a Zagat top pick.”

In a separate article, The New York Daily News raved about how Levain Bakery has the best chocolate chip cookies in the City. No surprise there. Their hot and cold coffee is not bad either. Try it.

DNA Info spoke to our favorite Harlem Gal and the women behind Eat In Harlem, Sakita Holley, about how Harlem now has several restaurants “to suit any mood.” Holley endorsed several eating out places starting from East Harlem all the way West. Milk Burger, 67 Orange, Hudson River Cafe and more received a thumbs up from Holley.

Of course, what’s driving all these great new and interesting restaurants in Harlem is real estate or is it the other way around? The Wall Street Journal reported recently that “the number of Harlem apartment sales rose to the highest level since September 2008, according to analysis of city records. But they were only slightly above sales reported in the same quarter in 2010.” The article goes on to say that Harlem is not only performing well in the real estate area, it’s even attracting buyers who are from the second largest economy in the world-China!

Check out all the articles in their entirety below! And that’s Harlem In the News!
Harlem Restaurants to Suit Any Mood
Harlem’s Culinary Treasures
Best of New York
Harlem Attracts Post-Slump Buyers

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Posted in 5 and Diamond Harlem, apartments, bier international, Community, drinks, food, Frederick Douglass Blvd., Harlem, Harlem Tavern, Lido Italian Restaurant and Bar, New York, New York City, real estate, Red Rooster Harlem, restaurant row, restaurants, review, spending

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Gwyneth Paltrow and Mark Ruffalo seen dining at Lido Harlem?

Posted on October 12, 2011 | 2 comments



If you walked by the corner of Frederick Douglass Blvd. and 117th Street tonight (October 12), you may have noticed Gwyneth Paltrow and Mark Ruffalo were dining at Lido Italian Restaurant and Bar in Harlem? Well, sort of. They were actually in character for their upcoming movie called Thanks for Sharing. The entire scene was a dining out scene at Lido Harlem. Hope they mention their location in the script!

This is such a big compliment for Lido Harlem. They haven’t even been open for a year and now they have big name movie stars filming in their restaurant. The film scouts clearly liked the design and layout of the restaurant or they would not have chosen it. When you take pictures of Lido, it is very photogenic. The place comes out vibrant in pictures.

I had a quick exchange with Mark Ruffalo as I stopped him to take a photo. I told him the food at Lido Harlem is excellent. He said, “yeah, I’ll have to tell my wife about it.” You do that Mark! There is some great dining out places in Harlem and Lido Harlem is one of them!

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Posted in Bars, business, Community, drinks, entertainment, fashion, food, Frederick Douglass Blvd., Harlem, Lido Italian Restaurant and Bar, New York, New York City, NYC, restaurant row, restaurants

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Harlem Harvest Festival 2011 turned into a Samba Festival

Posted on October 9, 2011 | 1 comment



Yesterday’s second annual Harlem Harvest Festival was a complete success filled with plenty of locals and lots of great vendors to visit and shop at! If you missed it, you missed something special-especially watching a mass of Harlemites learn to samba. That part of the agenda was a HOME RUN! The entire day at the Festival was just beautiful-in my view. Didn’t attend? No worries. The event was covered by NY1, click here to see the video or you can view photos of the Harlem Harvest Festival here! Have a great day Harlem!

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Posted in art and culture, Community, education, entertainment, Events, food, Free!, Harlem, music, New York, New York City, NYC, shopping

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The Catskills come to the border of East Harlem

Posted on October 8, 2011 | Leave a comment


While most of us will be attending the Harlem Harvest Festival today, let’s all start making plans to head East next weekend…to East Harlem that is. Manhattan Country School brings the Catskills farm to the border of the barrio in their annual Farm Festival on Saturday, October 15th from 11 a.m. to 4 p.m. “Parent volunteers turn East 96th Street between Madison and Fifth Avenues into an urban carnival, offering family friendly entertainment including rides, games, crafts, a silent auction, raffles and live music. The MCS Farm Festival offers a variety of homemade baked goods, a wide variety of delicious ethnic cuisine and fresh produce from their farm in Roxbury, N.Y.”

Admission is free and all from the public are invited. Tickets for food, games and rides will be available for purchase. In the event of rain, festivities will take place indoors.

This sounds like a great event for family and friends! Hope to see you there next weekend!

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Posted in art and culture, baking, Community, education, entertainment, Events, food, Free!, Harlem, health and wellness, New York, New York City, NYC

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West Harlem ranks third as best place to live for retirees

Posted on October 4, 2011 | 1 comment


Did anyone see the article in The New York Daily News this past weekend on the best places to live in the Big Apple for retirees? I thought it was really interesting. I was pleasantly surprised to see that Morningside Heights, an area located in West Harlem, was ranked third out of 10 places in the City. Murray Hill was ranked first and the Lower East Side was ranked last.

The article states there are several reasons why it is a great area for retirees. Morningside Heights is “one of the easiest places to live… There is something to do every night (lectures, classical concerts, film series, etc.), and it will keep anyone young.” Amen to that. I don’t live too far from Morningside Heights. I now know where to go to stay…forever young!

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Posted in apartments, art and culture, business, commercial real estate, Community, education, Harlem, health and wellness, New York, New York City, NYC, personal care, real estate

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Learn about Harlem Grown and Founder Tony Hillary

Posted on September 29, 2011 | Leave a comment


Harlem Grown and its co-founder Tony Hillary received a huge write-up in The Huffington Post yesterday, Sept. 28. The article beautifully explains how Harlem Grown was born and what inspired Tony to start this non profit in Harlem. I highly recommend taking the time to read: A Tree Grows in Harlem by Alex Budman. It is so worth it! And after you are finished reading the article, watch this video below. It stars Roderick, an 11-year-old student from the Bronx, who takes part in Harlem Grown.

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Posted in Community, education, food, Harlem, health and wellness, New York, New York City, NYC

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Harlem Tavern making plans to weatherize its outdoor space

Posted on September 26, 2011 | 2 comments

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We went to Harlem Tavern this past weekend. We ordered appetizers, drinks and enjoyed sitting outside. While there we wondered, what’s gonna happen to all this outdoor space once the weather changes? We asked. Harlem Tavern plans on building a marquee, a roof like shelter, projecting above the outdoor space. The marquee would have indoor heaters and the shelter would be clear where possible. Maybe on the side walls, but unlikely the roof? The plan is to build the marquee in the next few weeks. And of course, this is all dependent on approvals and costs.

So if you were wondering like we were about whether all that door space was gonna close down for the late fall and winter or stay open, the plan is to have it available! That’s going to be awesome to have winter outdoor seating at Harlem Tavern, don’t you agree?

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Posted in Bars, business, drinks, food, Frederick Douglass Blvd., Harlem, Harlem Tavern, New York, New York City, NYC, restaurant row

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Frederick Douglass Memorial Dedication completes Central Park

Posted on September 20, 2011 | 1 comment

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Federal, State and local NYC leaders, along with descendents of Frederick Douglass, came together today, September 20, to dedicate the circle and statue of the African-American abolitionist, orator, writer and statesman Frederick Douglass. The Frederick Douglass Memorial/Circle,located at Central Park West, Frederick Douglass Boulevard and West 110th Street, consists of an eight-foot bronze portrait sculpture by Gabriel Koren, and a large circle and fountain with ornamental and symbolic features designed by Algernon Miller. The fountain was actually operational today to go along with the dedication ceremony.

While there were endless speakers, a few comments resonated with me. Someone said most of what Frederick Douglass said or wrote back then is still applicable today and that not much has changed, it is just disguised. I also like how one speaker said “Central Park is now complete with all four corners as vibrant public space for everyone to use.”

To see a collection of photos from today’s event, click here.

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Posted in art and culture, Community, education, Events, Frederick Douglass Blvd., Frederick Douglass Circle, Harlem, history, New York, New York City, NYC

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