The empty corner retail space at 3379 Broadway and 137th Street just got a new sign up yesterday announcing the arrival of Parrilla Steakhouse. This section of Hamilton Heights right off of the 1 train stop at City College stalled in the progress of new restaurant development when the classic trio of Vinegar Hill Bakery, Cafe Largo and Tres Pasos shut down last year. The original Parrilla was established in the mid 90's, but this Parrilla might be different than the one up in Washington Heights, which has lit up store signage with a photo of a steak on it and jarring scratchy-type fonts on an aluminum base. The new Parrilla Steakhouse, in contrast, has some tasteful wood paneling, subtle brown awnings, and cool, clean graphics on the exterior. Broadway above 125th Street might just be changing over again as the new wave of business owners rethink their aesthetics and simplify their looks in a more contemporary fashion. The contractor mentioned an anticipated opening this Saturday, so it's yet to be seen if the interior and the food hold up to the new look. Regardless, the restaurant is a good sign of things to come on this developing section of West Harlem. Photo by Ulysses
It does look great on the outside. This area really needs decent restaurants. I hope this will be one of them.
ReplyDeleteReally miss Cafe Largo. Hope this one is just as good.
ReplyDeleteGreat news.
ReplyDeleteThe failure or Cafe Largo has left a huge hole in our neighborhood. Since Largo's shuttering, that whole block has fallen steeply downhill. The spaces are new being covered with graffiti and the windows are also carved up beyond repair.
John Dooley
This is pretty exciting, if it works out. Right now there is Tanto Dulce - which is tiny with only 5 tables, but excellent food and a wonderful staff), and that place on 150th, which is a little weird. The owner says that he wants to reopen Cafe Largo but he's working on branding his brick oven pizza. And he won't give up the spaces to another owner, as apparently he has a deal with the landlord (he lives in the building as well). It's sad, because that place was fantastic, but he needs to relinquish it, which he never will.
ReplyDeleteThis looks fantastic!
I hope it will be a successful (and affordable) place. Our strip really needs some new businesses. So many stores are vacant and not much is happening.
ReplyDeleteAlso, now that the weather is getting warmer it seems that the drug dealers on Broadway are really out there. I see open deals every day. Is that just my perspective or do others see that as well? What to do? 311 or just tolerating?
Usually see lot's of old Dominican guys sitting on crates and hanging out by that fruit stand that's on the corner. If someone's dealing it's pretty discrete. Lot's of grade school kids and City College students walk along this section especially in the afternoon. Call 311 if you do see stuff happening or go to the community board meetings and bring it up.
ReplyDeleteI miss Largo/Vinegar/TresPasos also ... their owner really set a good example for keeping the sidewalk and the storefronts attractive and clean.
ReplyDeleteI sincerely hope that Parrilla doesn't have the same ownership as Talay, or we'll be hearing 900-decibel blaring noise at all hours of the night.
I can not wait for Parrilla to open. Every time I see a new places opening in the area it makes me feel like our area is slowly coming to life. I do hope the owner of Largo re-opens his three spots asap. It would be great to have a handful of places to go to in the area.
ReplyDeleteYou're not alone with the drug dealing - There are tons of them outside of Majestic Deli on 144th and Broadway. Totally in the open, I guess the deli owners know about it, because every time cops come around the dealers just go inside the store. Which is too bad, because they're really nice and the deli is, too.
ReplyDeleteIt's not just you - they're getting worse and the cops aren't doing too much about it. Isn't there any NYC loitering laws? Or at least curfews?
The block gets better when new businesses open up. Be happy that it's happening and if you have issues with petty crime then do something about it instead of just complaining!
ReplyDeleteWalked by last night and the restaurant wasn't open yet.
ReplyDeleteI have been in the new La Parilla and it is gorgeous!!!! The neighborhood is in for a treat!!!
ReplyDeletelucky that you got a preview but the restaurant has not open as of today.
ReplyDeleteI just noticed this place today. It was open and looks great. My roommate said he went there for lunch and it was pretty good - and not too expensive.
ReplyDeleteI think I'll go this weekend sometime. I just hope that the local punk don't tag it with graffiti and that the drug dealers are driven out. It's too bad we can't have nice things in the neighborhood without young punk ruining it.
Went to this place last night, while the appearance is amazingly beautiful (you forget you are in this hood) the service was just horrible. I dont know if it was because they are newly opened and dont have their act together yet but it was just terrible. We ordered and an hr had passed and we hadnt gotten our food. I got my food first because i ordered a cuban sandwhich but my bf hadnt gotten his steak yet. When i opened my sandwich i touched it and it was ice cold. Also if anyone has eaten a cuban you'll know it has pork inside, well interestingly enough mine had chicken strips. (???) We also had some shirley temples that tasted like water too. It was just an awful experience. We complained and they said the next time we go, we could eat for free and gave us a signed business card. Hopefully next time it'll be better.
ReplyDeleteI called to see if their bar was up and running last week but apparently they dont have a liquor license yet :-(
ReplyDeleteWe came in at 6:30pm on a Monday night and were quickly seated. We were told there was not yet a liquor license (which is understandable for a new-ish restaurant), but they only had fruit juice and water, no other drinks. We tried to order two appetizers, fried calamari and a sausage platter. The sausage platter which was $10, had 2 small sausages on it. It was decent tasting but seemed a bit expensive for what we got. They were out of calamari and no alternative was suggested . We ordered 3 meals: a $21 medium rare skirt steak, a $23 medium rare fillet mignon, and a $23 VERY (still moo-ing) rare filet mignon. The skirt steak was the cheapest steak on the menu. Our steaks arrived on sizzling platters and continued to cook quite quickly on the plate. The medium rares ended up 1 under cooked and one overcooked, the rare basically medium rare. The filet mignons were also not filet mignons. They were very large, fatty misshaped hunks of meat. The flavor was okay but the texture was abominable. The mashed potatoes were okay but nothing to write home about, the steak fries barely passable, completely unseasoned. There was a bit of pico de gallo on the plate, but no vegetables nor were there any to be ordered as side dishes. After dinner, we were asked if we wanted desert. I said probably not but asked to see a menu in case I could be enticed while they wrapped my leftover 2/3 of a steak and 1/2 order of mashed potatoes. The waiter took my plate and said they didn't have one before walking away. 10 minutes later we flagged down the waiter (who was busy flirting with the waitress behind the bar) to ask for the check. He brought it back a few minutes later and hidden on the very bottom was a $12 service charge. When we asked he said they add 15% once an order is over $60. This was not mentioned anywhere on the menu or when we sat down or ordered. I decided that was his tip and we sat for a while waiting for change before we left the exact amount and got up to leave, with me never receiving my take home bag. Dinner for 3 with one appetizer and no beverages was $94.27. For that price I'd much rather have eaten downtown. Even with it's uptown location close to my house, I will never eat here again.
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