A very green aesthetic has been appearing in Harlem since many of the new shops and restaurants along the boulevard have been making sure that their storefronts and cafes are verdant for the season. Harlem Flo on FDB/8th Avenue brought it on before anyone else with their extravagant display of flora which recently included hanging ivy (until the hurricane trimmed them down). Even Levain Bakery's modest seating area just north of 116th Street had new additions added in the past month which transforms the concrete surrounding into a micro oasis.
Outdoor dining arrived in a big way this summer and most of the new eateries such as the Harlem Tavern, Bier International, Nectar and Lido have made sure that plants were part of the alfresco mix. Over on Lenox Avenue, Settepani, Katrina Parris, Il Caffe Latte and the Red Rooster can all be found with foliage out front of their shops. This trend is really all about the warm weather season so everyone should enjoy it while it last.
Harlem Flo clearly wins the prize for the greenest store front, also Red Rooster has a nice boxwood topped wooden enclosure to its outdoor dining. I would like to see Chez Lucienne with some Jean De Florette inspired carnations, great story.
ReplyDeleteThe window boxes of Harlem brownstones are always fun to discover, some home owners go all out and put on quite a show throughout the summer.
ReplyDeleteWhile the greening of storefronts in the past few years is certainly notable, tt should also be noted that because Harlem's Avenues (also referred to as Boulevards) are twice as wide as those downtown and therefore afford us with the ability to plant large trees in the middle of our streets: See Lenox and Adam Clayton for the best examples. It's one of the many reasons why uptown feels bigger (and better in my opinion, too)!
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