Category Archives: NYC

Confirmed: Whole Foods Market is coming to Harlem

A reader tipped off HarlemGal Inc this afternoon with info that confirms Whole Foods Market will be opening a store on Lenox Avenue and
125th Street. They announced this news less than an hour ago on their Facebook page!

This is good news that Whole Foods has decided to open in Central Harlem, which is accessible from the East and West side, and right there by the 2/3 subway line, which is express. What do you think? Do you like the location? What do you think about Whole Foods opening in Harlem?
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Attend Manhattan Country School Farm Festival in East Harlem October 20

Every year Manhattan Country School (MCS) in East Harlem aims to bring a little bit of the Catskills to the streets and children of NYC during their annual Farm Festival. This Fall season is no different. MCS will host its annual Farm Festival for children ages 3 and up from 11 a.m. to 4 p.m. on Saturday, October 20. This is when 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-all for FREE! The MCS Farm Festival also offers a selection of homemade baked goods, a wide variety of delicious ethnic cuisine and fresh produce from their farm in Roxbury, NY.

Admission is free and tickets for food, games and rides will be available for purchase. In the event of rain, festivities will take place indoors.

MCS Farm Festival – FREE
Saturday, Oct. 20, from 11 a.m. to 4 p.m.
7 East 96 Street, NY 10128 (which is where Harlem begins on the East side)
Between Fifth and Madison Avenues, Near Central Park

Subway/Bus directions
Take the #6 to 96 Street or MTA bus M1, M2, M3, M4, M96

In the News: Victoria Theater Development Project in Harlem moves closer to reality

The Victoria Theater Project is moving closer to becoming a reality. On September 26, Real Estate Weekly reported that Danforth Developers, the developers behind the project, picked Aufgang & Subotovski as the designers of the commercial and residential project. The article also states that construction is “slated to begin early next year.”

Fast forward to this week and we have the Globe St. And The New York Observer reporting that there are more changes to the design plans. The Empire State Development Corporation approved plans for two 26-story towers: a 230-unit apartment tower and a 210-room hotel versus the previously planned 140-unit rental tower and 175-room hotel.

So in 2014 or 2015, West 125th Street will have two new towers that will be the tallest buildings in Harlem. Stay tuned.

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Attend Harlem Pop-up Green Market October 11 in Harlem

More information has come in regarding the pop-up farmers market planned for October 11 at The Harlem Treasure Chest. According to a flier, this event is being organized by the Frederick Douglass Boulevard Alliance, Grow NYC Green Market and Manhattan Borough President Scott Stringer. It starts at 4 pm and ends at 9 pm on the corner of 117th Street and FDB. Prepared food will be provided by 5 and Diamond Harlem, Lido Harlem and Harlem Tavern. For additional details, see flier below.

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Attend Maysles Members Night Out in Harlem

Listen up! The Maysles Institute in Harlem will be hosting an exclusive event soon for its members. It’s one you don’t want to miss if you love Cuban history as I do (see blog post on visit to Cuba). And if you’re not a member, you may want to become one to meet fellow members from the Harlem and NYC area.

Maysles Cinema, which is located at 343 Lenox Avenue between 127th and 128 Street, is having a reception for members only on Monday, October 15 at 6:30 pm. After the reception, Maysles Cinema will be screening the film titled Cuba: An African Odyssey at 7:30 pm. “Cuba: An African Odyssey explores the 300,000 Cubans who fought alongside African revolutionaries: from Che Guevara’s military campaign to avenge Lumumba in the Congo up to the fall of apartheid in South Africa. Cuba, an African Odyssey is the previously untold story of Cuba’s support for African revolutions, one of the Cold War’s most vigorous contests over resources and ideology.” Click here to watch a trailer of the film.

As mentioned,  this event is exclusive to Maysles cinema members and requires a reservation to attend. To RSVP email member@mayslesinstitute.org and to become a member go to mayslesinstitute.org/membership.

Hope to see you there!

Celebrity-filled weekend at Melba’s Restaurant in Harlem, Ashton Kutcher spotted

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It was hopping at Melba’s Restaurant in Harlem this past weekend (well, it always is from what I witness)! But according to Melba’s Facebook page, she had some celebrities over for brunch at 114th Street and Frederick Douglass Blvd., which is where Melba’s is located. The celebs that stopped by were Ashton Kutcher, and Tamar and Vince.

This past Saturday, the TV and film actor Ashton Kutcher was in Harlem dining at Melba’s. It must have been for brunch because another website reports he was in the West Village at night for dinner. There is no word from Melba’s Facebook page on whether his new girlfriend, Mila Kunis, was with him? Hmmm…

Then on Sunday, Tamar Braxton and Vincent Herbert from the new TV show Tamar & Vince paid a visit to Melba’s Restaurant. This married couple is currently out and about all over New York City promoting their new television show, according to online reports. However, Tamar and Vince must know good food cause no matter how busy their schedule was this past weekend, they made time to dine at Melba’s Restaurant in Harlem.

If I was a celeb (or not), I would be hanging at Melba’s too! Us Harlemites know, the food there is delicious!

West Harlem’s Morningside Heights to get its own glossy magazine

Read all about it right here. You’re the first to learn that Morningside Heights, a section of Harlem located on the Westside, is getting their own general interest magazine reporting on all aspects of living in the area. The magazine will be named…Morningside Heights (of course) and plans to profile “local people, business owners, restaurant reviews, calendar of events, trends, and ideas that capture the spirit of life in Morningside Heights” in West Harlem.

The publication debuts in December and will be mailed to 5,000 residents of Morningside Heights. Interested to know more about Morningside Heights magazine, email morningsideheights@hibu.com.

NY Mag’s Grub Street lists Twelve Harlem bars to check out



Yesterday afternoon, Grub Street, New York Magazine’s blog, posted about the bars to bottoms up at in East,Central and West Harlem. Some of the establishments mentioned are no surprise that they made the cut, such as Ginny’s Supper Club, 67 Orange, bier international, Harlem Tavern, Corner Social, etc. What is a surprise is that Grub Street mentions some great places to check out in East Harlem, new places, and along Adam Clayton Powell Jr Blvd that rarely get mentioned but deserve the recognition, such as Shrine (very fun place in my view), Harlem Public, its brand new, and The Duck, who wouldn’t want to head to East Harlem and drink at a place that’s named ‘the duck.”

Where Grub Street misses the mark is naming Harlem Lanes. Isn’t that place closed? Clearly whoever wrote the blog post has not been to Harlem or did not do their research or Harlem Lanes is not closed.

It’s a comprehensive bar list by Grub, but Harlemites know best. Tell us if Grub overlooked a particular drinking establishment or if they got it right!

To read the entire article, click here.

The Harlem International Film Festival starts September 19 at the Schomburg Center

The 2012 Harlem International Film Festival starts tomorrow Wednesday, September 19 at 7pm at the Schomburg Center for Research in Black Culture, located at 515 Lenox Ave (at West 135 Street). Opening night begins with the World Premiere Showcase of Theodore Collatos’ film MOVE and the New York Premiere of HERMAN’S HOUSE.

The Harlem International Film Festival runs from September 19-23, 2012. For more details visit www.HarlemFilmFestival.com.

Signage says Vinatería coming soon to Harlem

It’s official! Vinatería is coming soon to Harlem at 2211 Frederick Douglass Blvd. The owners have finally hung up signage on site recently for passerby’s to see and it says coming soon on their website as well! According to its Facebook page, Vinatería will be “a casual restaurant that will offer a market-driven menu with global influences and will offer the highest quality wine and food at a reasonable price, while providing friendly, attentive and knowledgeable service.” Hmmm…interesting. Wonder what the menu will look like!

If you recall, this commercial space was to be the home of the Cupcakery, but clearly that did not work out. Now this particular block from 119th Street and 120th Street on FDB will have two restaurants on the westside of the block, Chocolat at the northwest corner and Vinatería at the southwest corner. Moca and Bad Horse Pizza are on the opposite side of the block. Stay tuned for more info on Vinatería…

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