I live in and love Harlem. (Yes, it's the front line of gentrification and affords a complicated vantage point on social and economic issues in New York and the U.S.) There are so many wonderful things to try and do north of 110th Street, but people who might not live in the neighborhood might not know where and when these wonderful things happen. (An excellent source for more information beyond just this post is Harlem Bespoke.)

Daytime Suggested Itinerary of Awesomeness:
1. Saturday brunch at any of the excellent restaurants mentioned below;
2. Followed by a stroll past the original Red Rooster location, for a sense of Harlem lore (138th and Adam Clayton Powell aka 7th Avenue, See here.);
3. Then, a stop at the north end of Marcus Garvey/Mount Morris Park for fresh fruit at the farmer's market (Saturdays until November, ends at 3:30pm). Fun Fact: the park's name was changed in the 70s to Marcus Garvey Park by a politician looking to curry favor in the district; it didn't take and the locals still insist upon calling it by its older name, Mount Morris Park;
4. And, finally, sitting at one of the benches in the park to listen to the drumming circle that gathers every Saturday and plays for hours.

Nighttime Suggested Itinerary of Awesomeness:
(aka A few of the many excellent restaurants in the neighborhood):

Chez Lucienne on Lenox Avenue (aka 6th Avenue), just north of 125th Street.
This French bistro is run by Burkinabés (people from Burkina Faso) and has interesting dinner or drink themes every night. Saturdays feature live African bands. Expect good French wines, mussels, French fries, steak au poivre, etc. They have sidewalk dining when the weather is nice (as it is these days), which is great people watching.

Mobay on 125th, a few steeps east of Lenox Avenue (aka 6th Avenue).
Caribbean fusion food and drink, festively decorated with hanging lanterns and lights both in and outside. Live music many nights. Jerk chicken, coconut encrusted shrimp, signature rum punch cocktails. The food is amazing.

Native on Lenox Avenue, just north of 118th.
Creative reinterpretations of "traditional" dishes from across the world with addictive sangría. Moroccan fried chicken served with collard greens, beef short ribs braised in red wine. They also have sidewalk seating during warm nights. And did I mention the sangría?

Red Rooster on Lenox Avenue (aka 6th Avenue) just north of 125th.
Marcus Samuelsson's Harlem spot is in the spotlight as New York's latest haute cuisine. Its fame is deserved. They have a happy hour before 7pm on Mondays through Thursdays, which is an excellent way to sample the signature cocktails (note the infused bourbons that line the back of the bar). My favorite is the Earl of Harlem. Reservations are hard to get, so why not just walk up, put your name down for the evening and be flexible about where they seat you? Communal tables at the bar, al fresco dining, and live music some nights.

"Do you have to be white to be a food critic?"-- question I wish I had asked.
"What's the relationship food critics have to producing food? Do they cook, too?"-- question I actually asked.

The most excellent gentlemen of Gelf magazine hosted a Media Circus on Food Writers, with three of New York's (employed) food writers presenting their thoughts on a range of issues from food blogging ("Print is dead!" cried one) to food porn ("I love it!") to anonymity ("If you're made, pretend anyway!"). The man in the audience wearing a devil mask (and wig), who initially creeped me out, turned out to be the quite charming, and determinedly anonymous, Village Voice food critic Robert Sietsema, who was joined by Time Out New York's Gabriella Gershenson and NBC's Alex Vallis.

It was fun, but raised the question of "the new foodism"-- our attitudes about food and what food critique is. Sietsema is, apparently, unusual in the field because he reviews what one of the other critics called "authentic, fresh-off-the-boat, ethnic food." Though it's easy to criticize that unfortunate characterization, I want to make a stronger argument about why those kinds of restaurants are very much worth reviewing and eating at. The stronger argument is not about politics, it's about the practical. The people who eat there are the people who are cooking the food at the fancier restaurants being reviewed.

The people who are making the fine dining, culinary fashion-forward cuisine of New York City, the restaurants that are being reviewed and noticed by taste-making critics are not the celebrity chefs. The people who are actually doing the cooking, pulling together the recipes in the kitchens, the ones who are crafting the food of New York are the working class immigrants who eat at these local unassuming ethnic restaurants. They are bringing their sense of spices and flavorings, of how to prepare dishes. And so, to understand what's happening in the upscale restaurants that lead the way in food in the US, we need to sit at the tables of the people who cook it.

And so, my part in this endeavor will be unveiled in the near future.

Tango Contempo is a series of intimate performances begun by a group of tangueros (tango musicians) who were looking for a way to play classic pieces and their own compositions in a setting that's not as commercial or kitschy as the overblown showpieces found in tango shows. The result: small concerts every Thursday night at 9:30pm at Buenos Aires cafe venues.

Last night's show was at Café Vinilo on Gorriti (but check the "agenda" on the website to confirm details) and featured two sets: the first included piano, bass, bandoneón, and vibraphone performing original compositions. The second was [2004 Grammy nominee] Pablo Maimetti and Cesar Angeleri on bandoneón and guitar. Both were world class and lovely.


My favorite thing from the evening was the way Pablo (the bandoneón player) would use his body for percussion-- not only would he tap his feet or shake the body of the bandoneón, but in dramatic moments, he'd slide his right foot with a stamp and a long slip to the right.

UPDATE: Just to give a sense of the quality of the musicians we heard for 25pesos, here's one quotation about Pablo Mainetti:

"the most talented composer of Argentina's new Tango generation"

One of the benefits of living in Mos Eisley is the diversity of the cuisine. Though there are several Korean restaurants in this Paraguayan city of 300,000 (I'm more inclined to think the real population of CdE is closer to 125,000), Man House rises above them.

Not to be missed: the bulgogi is good, the pork ribs are even better, and the spicy seafood (marisco) soup (I think it's number 10 on the first page of the menu) is stellar. They serve the meat with sesame leaves for rolling (not just lettuce). Prices (which are reasonable are in dollars, but they accept guaranies, reales, and pesos--even all at once.

Open for lunch and dinner during the week. On Abay between Adriana Jara and Pai Perez.

Note: I'm trying to show the exact location via Google maps, but it has the streets either unfinished or mislabeled for this city-- in fact, they label the city Puerto Presidente Stroessner (!!!) a name not used since 1989. Wow. Bad job on this.

I give up. No Google Maps link to CdE is accurate enough.

Satisfy your cravings for excellent seafood in Foz do Iguaçu at Trapiche. The name of the restaurant means "sugar cane mill" or "olive press," but in this border town in Brazil, it translates to "damn fine food." The shellfish fresh, the sushi quite respectable, and the caldeira of Moquequa (a stew made from coconut milk, palm oil, cilantro, onions, and seafood--a traditional dish of Bahia) was enough for at least three people (though, being a good cubinicana, I ate a share for at least two) and served with rice and pirão (yuca/mandioca/cassava farina made with the broth from the moquequa). It runs about $69 reales ($34 USD). Open for lunch Wednesday-Sunday, dinner every night of the week, and a rodizio of shellfish on weekends. Located on Deodoro across from Hotel Rafain.

It's nearly impossible to get a good espresso in Asunción (this is, after all, the native country of yerba mate and this is to be had in copious amounts and in creative ways). I haven't been able to buy coffee beans at any price (which is why I brought in several bags of coffee as well as a cappuccino machine in my luggage when I moved here-- it raised a few eyebrows at customs).

Nevertheless, Cafe Literario, in the microcentro of Asunción serves a compelling brew. It's located on Estigarribia (aka Palma) between Caballero and México just next to the Plaza Uruguaya and is open daily from 4pm-ish until past midnight. Outdoors there's great people watching. Indoors is a cozy two-level room crammed with books and tables around which you can crowd and talk anthropology or sit quietly at your computer trying your best at a dissertation chapter.

One exposed-brick wall is a photo tribute to Paraguay's literary greats. This is the only cafe of its like/caliber I've been able to find in Asunción that isn't an imported franchise. And it's excellent.

No internet, unfortunately. The food and desserts and drinks are fine. The chocolate mousse cake is particularly worth a try. As is the "cafe literario"-- sweetened-condensed milk and espresso.

On Pte Manuel Franco between Ayolas and Montevideo (micro-center), Asunción, Paraguay. Here you can get excellent breads (including many whole-grain varieties), desserts, a middling cup of coffee (par for the course in Paraguay), baked breakfast goods, and sandwiches. Open during the day (and not on weekends).

Notice the empty shelves? It's 9 in the morning and they are already selling out of delicious breads. Mostly German recipes (quarkbrot), but their ciabatta sells briskly. But fear not, through a large window you can see more being prepared. And while you sit, sipping coffee and nibling on your palma, read the local German newspaper. Note: no air-conditioning (this is a bakery, after all).

(Images by me.)