Uptown To Do List - Week of Nov. 18, 2024

An ever changing list of things to do above the park

Hello and Happy Monday! We’re still here and you’re still here, so that’s great news. Tell your friends, tag us on your socials, and thanks for reading!

EATS AND DRINKS

Harlem Breakfast Club (2167 Adam Clayton Powell between West 128th and 128th): Once you try out Harlem Breakfast Club, you won’t be getting your breakfast sandwiches anywhere else. The spot is a breakfast window with take-out only, and the $5 sausage, egg and cheese is a steal. The menu says you can choose from three kinds of sausage: beef, chicken or turkey, but there are actually two variations on the beef sausage (spicy and mild). We chose spicy and were not disappointed. While we were in breakfast sandwich mode, Harlem Breakfast Club has non-sandwich offerings too, which include shrimp & grits, catfish & grits, pancakes and waffles. Haven’t tried them yet but they are sure to be great. While Harlem Breakfast Club has limited beverage offerings (all cold and no coffee), one of those options is watermelon juice, which sounds like a fun way to chase down any of their excellent offerings.

Fumo (1600 Amsterdam at West 139th): your cute and family-friendly, local Italian spot. Pizzas shine. Pastas are solid—and only $12 at lunch. Pro tip: wine bottles are half price on Mondays, so go on Monday but maybe also take a friend because wines by the glass do not get the same discount.

Wonder (5 West 125th between 5th and Malcolm X): we were initially skeptical about Wonder because 125th Street seems to only have space in its heart for big chain retailers and we love a small neighborhood business. Wonder, if you haven’t heard, is a new of a line of food halls owned by Marc Lore (former Walmart e-commerce CEO and part-owner of the Minnesota Timberwolves). Wonder also owns Blue Apron, if you have ever used that meal delivery service, and it will soon also own Grubhub. (You can read more about that here.) So definitely not a small business like a lot of the places we love. But we were lured into the latest outpost of the Wonder empire with a 20% off coupon. We spent a while perusing menus before committing to order from Yasas and Hanu Poke. Both were really fresh and arrived to our door in under 20 minutes. Everything was packaged nicely and the pricing for the food was actually pretty reasonable at $11 and $15 for each bowl, respectively. Wonder is a needed takeout/delivery option Uptown, for sure. Our only complaint is that you cannot order from a large list of drinks but instead you have to scroll through drinks by restaurant, which seems silly since we imagine they all live together in one refrigerator.

HAPPENINGS

Harlem Lights (along 125th Street): Harlem Lights 2024 is scheduled to take place on Tuesday, November 19th. It’s the day the street decorations are turned on and is designed to be a full night of family-friendly holiday activities. A must see is the Caravan of Lights, which generally leaves Broadway at 6pm and continues around Harlem (going as far east as Madison) until it reaches the end of the route on Morningside. (The pink line on the map has the Caravan route—scroll down on the homepage.)

Winery NYC (257 West 116th Street at Frederick Douglass): The Winery is located in a small, unassuming storefront on 116th Street. Their website will tell you that they have three branches: two in Japan and one in Harlem. The website will also tell you that they will ship and deliver for free, which is cool but also the least interesting thing about this store, which definitely has a philosophy on wine. Just ask the staff. Better yet, do it on Fridays OR Saturdays between 5:30 and 7pm, when they have free tastings. If you overindulge and over-purchase, at least you know you won’t have to carry all of that wine home because they will deliver it to you for free.

Bronx Documentary Center (614 Courtland Avenue between East 151st and 152nd): the Bronx Documentary Center is one of the coolest places you probably haven’t heard of: just check out some of their events. The center itself was founded by a New York Times photographer (Michael Kamber) who wanted to create a space in the South Bronx to provide access and exposure to high-quality documentary work.

Lucky for you, a new exhibit “Por Fin; Paz” is opening on Thursday, November 21, which provides a perfect opportunity to visit the Documentary Center for the first or hundredth time. The exhibit will feature silver and gold medalists from the Scholastic Art & Writing Awards’ Photography category. From 4-6pm, you can listen to teens share remarks about their works, learn how your teens can participate in the Scholastic Awards (national medalists can get $12,000+ in scholarships), go on exhibition tours, and win giveaways. No RSVP necessary—just show up and check it out.

The Met Cloisters (99 Margaret Corbin Drive in Fort Tryon Park): The Cloisters is great for lots of things—art and its annual plant sale are first to come to mind—but its events are sometimes overlooked, which, on the one hand, is a mistake but also means you can always get into them. In the run up to Thanksgiving, the Cloisters will be hosting “Met Expert Talks” on the topic of medieval feasts, focused on feasts and celebrations in medieval social life following the fall harvest and through the winter holidays. Basically, it’s a free guided tour of feasts in art with someone who has many decades of experience studying these things. You can join these tours on Friday, November 22 and 29th from 3-3:30.

Yoga for Women at the Kota Alliance (43 St. Nicholas Place between West 152nd and 153rd Streets): free yoga for women every Saturday from 10-11am through December 28th at the Kota Alliance. All levels are welcome. Classes are led by a yoga teacher for the Harlem Wellness Center and you are invited to enjoy a cup of tea after the class! The event is free but best to let them know you’re coming ahead of time. Sign up here.

Inwood Hill Turkey Trot (park entrance at 600 West 218th Street): calling all Uptown runners! Head to Inwood Hill Park on Thanksgiving morning, November 28th to get your Turkey Day mojo flowing. Bib pick up for the Trot is at 7:30am at Inwood Farm. Trotting officially begins at 9. Proceeds go to the Inwood Food Pantry. Pro tip: bring your phone to snap some photos on on this bucolic course—“NYC’s most beautiful community 5K.” (The “community” shoutout in the tagline is cool but an unnecessary qualifier; the course is definitely the best.) RSVP here.

The Night Before the Night Before Christmas at the Harry Belafonte NYPL (203 West 115th Street, between Adam Clayton Powell and Frederick Douglass): On Sunday, November 30th from 1-2:30pm, be at the Harry Belafonte branch of the NYPL for a free staged reading of Cricket Daniel’s “The Night Before The Night Before Christmas.” The play is about a fellow named Lou, who is hopping the next flight to Hawaii to escape NYC, the freezing cold, his nutty family and the holidays until a freak snowstorm leaves him stranded at the airport (and that was before the renovations). Will some unexpected characters help restore Lou’s Christmas spirit? You’ll have to head to the NYPL to find out. The play lasts about 90 minutes and even features Broadway actors! No RSVP necessary but seating is limited to arrive on time early to secure the best eats in the house!

Holiday Lights on the Harlem Meer (Central Park North between Malcolm X and 5th Avenue): This event, which takes place on Sunday, November 30 from 5:30-7:30pm is a no brainer if only because it features a “flotilla of sparkling Christmas trees” in the Meer. (There is a word we should all be using more.) Technically, the Harlem Meer is south of 110th Street, so it isn’t totally “above the park” like that—but you can always stand on the north side of the street plus the Harlem Meer lights are really fun and family and dog friendly. But also the City just put out a new map identifying all the streets in NYC named after famous (and some not-so-famous) people. Relevant here, that map has the southernmost Uptown neighborhood of East Harlem labelled on East 107th Street. Plus 106th Street is named for two East Harlemites, so I think you’re safe on this one so long as you stay north of East 106th Street. (Because flotillas just aren’t the same if you’re not up close….)

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DID YOU KNOW?

You can Gobble Gobble Give BEFORE You Gobble Till You Wobble….

We at Above the Park have lots to be thankful this and all the years, even though most all of it is above 110th Street. One of those things we are grateful for is the good works of the Apollo Theater and the super gracious people who show up to help others. Rock on, Apollo Theater and super gracious people!

You can join them on Thanksgiving morning this year, when the Apollo will once again open its doors to Gobble Gobble Give NYC (Apollo Theater, 253 West 125th Street between Adam Clayton Powell and Fred Doug). If you are feeling the Uptown love this Thanksgiving, please consider signing up to volunteer for Gobble Gobble Give. (I’m sure it’s fine if you volunteer in your turkey suit. Honestly, they probably will take you dressed as any sort of poultry but don’t quote me on that.)

Shifts start on Thanksgiving Day at 8am and continue throughout the day to help prepare individual meals to be delivered to local families in need. ::heart warmed:: If meal prep is not your thing, there will be stations for organizing meals, donations and supplies, a kids holiday workshop where kids can make cards and other cool things to give to kids in needs—and a family portrait corner where you and yours can have a professional portrait taken to commemorate your meaningful day. You can learn more about the event and sign up to volunteer here.