Tag Archives: Lifestyle & Entertainment

Section of West 121st Street in Harlem to become George Carlin Way

The Columbia Spectator reports today that Community Board 9 in Morningside Heights, a section of West Harlem, approved renaming a part of West 121st Street to George Carlin Way, where the stand-up comedian, actor and social critic grew up. In his stand up performances, George Carlin was known for calling the area where he grew up as “white Harlem” because it sounded much tougher than its subset name of Morningside Heights.

This decision to rename part of West 121st Street to George Carlin Way comes after a year-long fight. To read more of the Columbia Spector article, click here.

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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!

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.

Harlem to star in Lenox Avenue, a web series

The Huffington Post reports today that actor and filmmaker Al Thompson is working on a digital series “that showcases Harlem’s influential culture” in Lenox Avenue. According to the article, Lenox Avenue is centered on three friends as they navigate through the challenging dating scene in Harlem, which is a lot of territory to cover when it comes to “looking for the one.” And Mr. Thompson is from Harlem (born and raised), so he’s been witnessing its change and felt it was time for Harlem to be depicted in a positive light on the web other than the stereotypical TV series or films we have seen in the past, such as New Jack City or New York Undercover.

To read the entire article with Al Thompson, go here, or go to LenoxAvenueSeries.com to learn more about the web series.

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See ‘Beasts of the Southern Wild’ in Harlem this weekend


Beasts of the Southern Wild ,” the fantasy drama film that Oprah Winfrey has praised and learned about from President Barack Obama, will be showing for the first time in Harlem this weekend. The film has been out for sometime showing in limited locations in New York City. However, no need to go downtown ’cause it starts playing uptown starting tomorrow, Friday, August 31.

Magic Johnson Theater, located at 124th Street and Frederick Douglass Blvd., will be showing the award-winning film over the Labor Day weekend holiday. The film received the top prize at Cannes Films Festival and Sundance Film Festival. And online reviews give the film four out of five stars.

If you’re having a stay-cation in Harlem this weekend, like I am, put seeing this PG-13 film on your to-do-list! I know I am! Click here to buy tickets.

New York Comedy Festival 2012 coming to Harlem’s Apollo Theater

The New York Comedy Festival 2012 is coming to Harlem’s famous Apollo Theater in November! There are two shows lined up in Harlem so far, according to a recent email sent out today (August 13) to subscribers.

The first show is scheduled for the evening of November 9 with comedian Aziz Ansari from the TV show ‘Parks and Recreation.’ The second show is scheduled the following evening (Nov 10) with Jim Gaffigan, who has appeared on Letterman and Conan shows many times.

To purchase tickets to either event, go to the New York Comedy Festival 2012 website.

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Save the Date: Mafrika Music Festival set for June 24 in Harlem

The sixth annual Mafrika Music Festival is scheduled for June 24 in Marcus Garvey Park in Harlem. The program starts at noon and runs till 7 pm. And its FREE to the public. Enter Marcus Garvey Park at 120th street and 5th Avenue in Harlem. As always, this event has involvement from Yatenga French Bistro and Bar and ShrineNYC.

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


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