Fish & Chicks is Harlem’s first tiki bar.
Picture by Nia Watson
A pink, inexperienced, and white signal glows on the nook of Frederick Douglass Boulevard and 127th Road. It reads “Fish & Chicks.” When the door opens, the odor of crispy rooster and the sound of music perform.
Fish & Chicks opened in Harlem in February, providing all-day glad hour drinks each day of the week. The kitchen and bar are open from midday till midnight on weekdays and a pair of a.m. on weekends.
The meals choices are within the title: fish and rooster. The menu encompasses a Catfish Po-Boy, Sizzling Honey Fried Rooster Sandwich, and even Jerk Shrimp Tacos. On the bar, there are frozen margaritas and coladas, in addition to specialty drinks just like the Grand Marnier Creamsicle.
“My favourite drink to make is the frozen rum punch,” stated bartender Kaylee Thomas.
The proprietor, Marc Bernstein, says that the restaurant is all about “enjoyable.” Fish & Chicks runs “Karaoke Wednesday” and themed DJ nights on the weekends, like “After Work Get together” on Fridays and “Girls Night time” on Saturdays.
Bernstein described the Saturday idea: “ $7 martinis and $1 floaters for frozen drinks for the women.” He added that he plans to introduce extra specialty nights quickly.
“I really like how the restaurant is a staple in the neighborhood and the way our regulars all dwell within the space,” stated Thomas. “So it’s a spot folks really feel part of.”
The making of a Harlem tiki bar
The partitions and ceilings inside Fish & Chicks are lined with grass and leaves, fishing nets and string lights, and wood carvings that resemble tiki statues, rigorously positioned on the partitions.
“That is Harlem’s first tiki bar,” stated Bernstein.
“Tiki is a Maori time period that refers to a wooden or stone picture of a professed Polynesian supernatural energy,” in accordance with a 2016 research by Stanford Professor of Sociology Glenn R. Carroll. The research explains how tiki bars have risen as a well-liked “cultural phenomenon” within the American meals and beverage business because the 1930’s.
Fish & Chicks has introduced a brand new interpretation of this practically century-old development to Harlem.
Bernstein defined how the core of Fish & Chicks is the island environment. The frozen cocktails give clients a tropical escape—a second of heat away from the winter metropolis chill.
One other common tiki bar in Manhattan, positioned on the Higher West Aspect, is Tiki Chick. Bernstein says he visited Tiki Chick after they first opened in 2019 and was very within the idea.
“ I’ve so many frozen drinks in my institution and I observed that they had numerous frozen drinks,” he stated, referring to each the recognition of frozen drinks at two different bars he has owned since 2012 and the inspiration he drew on from Tiki Chick.
There are similarities in decor between the 2 institutions, however Bernstein says that Fish & Chicks gives totally different drink choices and a bigger meals menu.
“ I’m going out to dinner numerous instances and I strive numerous eating places within the metropolis, since you by no means know the place your subsequent concept’s gonna come from,” he added.
Bernstein says his appreciation for meals helps when working within the restaurant enterprise. He has labored within the business since he was younger and has even owned a spread of eating places in Harlem, together with Cucina Italian Tavern and Cantina Taqueria & Tequila Bar positioned on Lenox Avenue.
Greater than a rebrand
The place Fish & Chicks now sits is the place Harlem Bar-B-Q used to reside. Bernstein opened the earlier institution in 2009, and it was identified for its smoked brisket and ribs.
“ The neighborhood is de facto welcoming and it’s wonderful. We had our core group of individuals that basically supported Harlem Bar-B-Q from 2009 and that very same core group was a bit nervous that we had been rebranding,” stated Bernstein. “However they’ve are available in and so they prefer it much better than Harlem Bar-B-Q, from what I can see.”
Bernstein even stored some components from the previous, based mostly on what he observed the common clients loved probably the most.
“ The mango wings had been common with [Harlem] Bar-B-Q and we stock the identical recipe now,” stated supervisor Carlos Alvarado in regards to the similarities in menu gadgets.
So much modified within the transition, from structural renovations to meals; nonetheless, Bernstein says he stored a majority of his workers, a lot of whom he’s labored with for years, in the course of the transition. He estimates that the present workers is roughly 60% retained and 40% newly employed.
When it comes to neighborhood response, Alvarado echoed Bernstein’s phrases about their loyal buyer base from Harlem Bar-B-Q. Although there are some who miss the previous restaurant, Alvarado says most individuals are excited in regards to the change.
He added that they’ve additionally acquired new clientele, too.
“ If you happen to come to Fish & Chicks, it’s good to calm down, lose your self, you understand, let it go,” stated Alvarado. “Have some enjoyable and respect different folks. That’s truly what we’d like proper now. In every single place, not simply in Fish & Chicks.”
For extra info, go to https://fishnchicksnyc.com/.
