This week, the USA Character Approved Blog honors Black History Month with a series of posts celebrating African-American history, culture and contributions in many fields. For my post, I took a look at a restaurant renaissance going on in Harlem.
The Great Migration in the early 20th century brought an influx of African-Americans to Harlem from the South. This set the stage for the Harlem Renaissance, a blossoming of African-American culture that resonated not only through the New York neighborhood, but across America. Harlem’s new residents also brought their rich history of Southern cuisine with them. You can still taste that delicious heritage in the traditional soul food cooking at places like the venerable Sylvia’s Restaurant, pictured above.
Now Harlem is experiencing a fresh explosion of restaurants. And although their influences are many and varied—West African, Moroccan, French and even European beer garden—all acknowledge the rich culinary roots of the neighborhood they’ve chosen as home. For more about this Harlem restaurant renaissance, read my latest post on the USA Character Approved Blog. And while you’re there, be sure to check out other Black History Month posts—on fashion, film, writing, music, theater and more.
And finally, a quick thanks to Ulysses, creator of the beautiful, informative blog HARLEM + BESPOKE, for providing valuable boots-on-the-ground background information for my USA Character Approved Blog post.
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