REMEMBER: HARLEM EATUP! DINNERS 2016

The special dinner events presented by some of uptown's most renowned eateries for the first part of the Harlem Eatup! festival served up some delicious meals last night and we were able to get a behind the scenes look.  First off was a stop at the Red Rooster which had a special celebration in honor of Studio Museum director Thelma Golden at Ginny's Supper Club on the downstairs level but even many more notable local residents showed up during the course of the quick restaurant tour.

Ginny's Supper Club really shined for the evening with one of the most elegant presentations that we have seen at the dramatic lounge space and we especially admired the new artwork on the wall as can be seen in the first photo.  The guest of honor graciously greeted guests during the first cocktail hour and a live jazz band provided the ambiance for the night.  We had a couple of other spots to check out so moved on up the block on Lenox to see what Sylvia's was serving up.

Carla Hall is one of our favorite Top Chefs and happened to be working the kitchen at Harlem's most famous soul food restaurant when we arrived.  Ms. Hall was busy doing all of the prep work for the first course but made it a point to quickly step out and mix with the diners having drinks while the tables were being set up.  We actually had a couple of words with the celebrity and really was impressed at how genuinely amazing she was.  Actor Neil Patrick Harris only lives a block away and ended up showing support for Sylvia's and had a table of friends seated which caused quite a commotion with anyone that had a camera.

Our schedule could not fit in all of the restaurants featured for the Eatup! but a stop at Vinateria was definitely a must on the list of hot spots to visit.  Harlem's finest Italian restaurant is now headed up by Exucutive Chef Carmen Gonzalez and Alex Stupak of Empellón Taqueria was also in the kitchen to help make the dining experience especially memorable. This is the second year of the Harlem Eatup! festival and many of diners at each event are also regulars so it was quite incredible to see everyone make an appearance for their favorite local businesses.  Make sure to check out the free outdoor food fair on Saturday and Sunday to try out some great dishes from even more Harlem restaurants and see few of some of New York's most famous chefs in action: LINK