Getaway to New York | Authentic Harlem

(New York) Not all guides to New York sing the praises of Harlem – the Online Backpacker doesn’t even display it on their map! However, the district of north Manhattan deserves to be discovered. Cradle of black culture in New York, Harlem has no shortage of places to discover, to fill your eyes, ears and stomach. La Presse brings you some of the treasures of this ancient village.

Marissa Groguhe
Press

Why Harlem?

Harlem is not Times Square. This is not the posh Upper East Side and it is not the lively Broadway. What we find in this corner of the city is a neighborhood life, some places less touristy a priori, but many others which are bubbling with culture. Many streets are quite mundane, with no Instagram photo opportunities on the horizon. But you don’t have to look very far to find something to occupy your day in the neighborhood. In the east, in Spanish Harlem, it seems like they speak more Spanish than English, Puerto Rican flags are everywhere and colorful murals decorate the concrete. In the center and west of the neighborhood, black culture permeates everything from museums to restaurants. Harlem lived through dark years in the last decades of the XX^e century; it was a ghetto where life was not very good, a part of town where African-American communities were left to fend for themselves. The neighborhood has since recovered. And long before that, in the 1920s, Harlem was in its prime, in a time known as the Harlem Renaissance. A flourishing period of which the district has kept several traces, which we like to discover.

The soul food and more

Let’s start with the food. Because what better way to discover a culture than to feast on its dishes? In Harlem, you will discover the soul food (soul food), that which has been inherited from African-American culinary traditions. Sylvia’s Restaurant is recognized throughout the United States for soul food that it has been serving since the beginning of the 1960s. For a more modern take on the typical dishes of the soul food, the Red Rooster is a very popular address in the neighborhood, home of renowned chef Marcus Samuelsson (who opened the Marcus at the Four Seasons Montreal). On Lenox Avenue, at the corner of the main artery of Harlem, the 125^e Street, the Red Rooster offers a relaxed atmosphere and a vibrant decor paying tribute to the culture in which it takes root. It serves hot cornbread and butter as a starter, a delight. We tasted the lobster mac & cheese there as well as one of the many cocktails on the menu. The portion is generous and the food, exquisite, seasoned to perfection, delicious. A little earlier, we had passed by the famous Patsy’s pizzeria at dinner time. They serve delicious New York style tips – not recommended for those monitoring their cholesterol levels! In front of Patsy’s, New Yorkers, double-parked as is customary in the city, eat standing next to their car, the cardboard box on the hood – we tested the technique, the pizza seems to taste even better in this way.

Cohabitation of cultures

Where Spanish-speaking culture thrives, on the east side, murals and graffiti are plentiful. Upon disembarking from Montreal, where these works of art are as numerous as they are impressive, the bar is set. But Spanish Harlem offers a part of its culture through its graffiti. The Graffiti Hall of Fame, in the courtyard of a school (accessible on weekends only), begins a route that we continue along the 3^e Avenue, then 111^e Street, where street art occupies every intersection. Then, going a little further west, we come across the Malcolm Shabazz market, a corner of Africa in the middle of the city. Stalls offer all kinds of goods. Leather and fabric satchels. Wooden figurines. Hundreds of pieces of clothing with colorful patterns. The merchants are welcoming and negotiation seems to be possible!

Our favorite: the locals’ corner for dinner

In front of the market, we meet Alex and Diana, a couple born and raised in Harlem. As soon as we strike up a conversation, they have nothing but good words for their corner of New York – “get on the 125^e, everything happens there! “. They advise us to go through the Sea & Sea Fish Market, a fish market adjacent to Malcolm Shabazz. “It’s still early, but in a few minutes there will be a huge line,” Alex assures us, just before noon. In the establishment, a single room with stocked shelves and a counter for take-out meals (where you can only pay in cash), the workers on lunch breaks quickly congregate. On site, Kim Jackson explains to us that she has a fish market right next to her house, but that she goes here because it is the best of its kind. We let ourselves be tempted: the fish and chips are really successful, unlike any other we have tasted before. A glance at other customers’ orders makes us want to try everything!

A show…

Duke Ellington and Louis Armstrong lived there, great African-American artists made their debut there. Music is inherent in the history of Harlem. Kim Jackson, we met at the fish market, gave us a list of her cultural must-sees, historic places that Harlem residents themselves frequent. The Cotton’s Club, a legendary jazz club opened in 1923, saw the birth of modern jazz, notably through the presence of Duke Ellington. Joséphine Baker, Cab Calloway and Louis Armstrong (among others) climbed on his boards. Always on the music side, a stop at the Apollo Theater is essential, if only to contemplate this illustrious monument of culture, located just after the intersection between the 125^e Street and African Square. With any luck, it’s possible to stumble upon an interesting performance to really enjoy – New York Queen Alicia Keys was there the day after our visit.

… or a museum

For a whole other part of culture, the Schomburg Center for Research in Black Culture, on the boulevard Malcolm X, is also recommended to us by Mr.^me Jackson. There, the African-American experience is put forward, celebrated, preserved. American black literature saw a turning point during the Harlem Renaissance, and the research center will allow you to see why the neighborhood has long been considered the capital of black culture. Harlem is full of museums, but most are only open on weekends. The National Jazz Museum and the Studio Museum are worth a visit. On the outskirts of Central Park, the Africa Center (open Thursday to Sunday only, noon to 8 p.m.) showcases the talents of the African diaspora and its legacies. Exhibitions, meetings and all kinds of cultural events are hosted there. For another piece of history, it is possible to visit the home of founding father Alexander Hamilton in the center of the district, recently renovated and hosting an exhibition on the first floor.

At nightfall, the streets of Harlem themselves become a spectacle. The district does not exhibit any trace of opulence or luxury, and for good reason, it has not been very long since he extricated himself from poverty. Its simplicity is also its charm. By keeping the course on the main streets, safer and more lively, the atmosphere does not disappoint the visitor. This is also the New York experience, and it is worth living.