A seat at the table: 5 Black-owned restaurants to visit in New York State
According to an international travel study, African American travelers are more likely to visit destinations that promote diversity and inclusion in their marketing and that are deemed welcoming and safe.
“America’s history of slavery followed by repressive Jim Crow laws, segregation, institutional racism, and continuing police brutality has made Black [American] travelers cautious,” said Ursula Petula Barzey, research committee chair of Black Travel Alliance, in a press release.
“It’s why Victor Hugo Green’s ‘The Negro Motorist Green Book’ published from 1936 to 1966—and now modern-day online communities where Black travelers gather—are so important. We have an increasing desire for leisure travel and love it when destinations actively market to us but want to make sure that the experience will be a positive one.”
When we travel, we are also invested in supporting Black-owned businesses, particularly Black-owned restaurants. And throughout New York State there are plenty of opportunities to find a seat at the table and to support and savor the flavors of Black chefs from diverse diasporic backgrounds.
Here are five Black-owned eateries to add to your New York City-area daytripping or to your upstate New York getaway itinerary. First stop, Brooklyn.
Fat Fowl (Brooklyn, NY; https://www.thefatfowl.com/)
Shorne Benjamin, executive chef and founder of Fat Fowl, had a vision for his stall inside downtown Brooklyn’s Dekalb Market Hall. The native of St. Lucia has maximized his small space that has a chef’s kitchen vibe where you can see your food being prepared, and a countertop with a few seats where we recently spotted Food Network star Carla Hall. On any given day, the foodie hotspot often has folks lined up to snag one of its viral oxtail grilled cheese sandwiches.
Benjamin discovered his passion for cooking in his grandmother’s kitchen. His cuisine is rooted in the traditional Caribbean cuisine he grew up with, but with a “new age” twist.
His path to cooking professionally, however, wasn’t as clear cut. In 2004, Benjamin earned a bachelor’s degree in finance and worked on Wall Street. But when the financial crisis hit in 2008, he went to culinary school.
“As a chef you evoke feelings in someone when you prepare a dish,” the handsome and humble chef says on the restaurant’s website. “For me, I put my heart into every dish, which has led me to become the chef I am today…You have to respect the food and the art that it brings.”
Another Fat Fowl staple is its honey lavender chicken, which is marinated for over 24 hours in a signature brine made with lavender, rosemary, sage, garlic and ginger, then slow roasted in a rotisserie oven. And don’t miss the yummy sides like creamy mac and cheese, sweet plantains, garlic string beans and jerk tamarind mushrooms.
Clover Hill (Brooklyn, NY; https://www.cloverhillbk.com/)
Clover Hill is a 20-seat restaurant nestled on a quiet, cobblestone block in the Brooklyn Heights historic district. Executive chef and co-owner Charlie Mitchell is a trailblazer and has the distinct honor as the first Black chef in New York City and the second in the United States to achieve the esteemed Michelin star rating.
According to the restaurant’s website, the elegant eatery seeks to blend the best elements of old and new school fine dining, with a focus on refined seafood dishes.
Owners Clay Castillo, Gabriel Merino and chef Mitchell say, “We believe that eating should be fun. Our intent is to deliver an experience that feels like home.”
La Talaye (Haverstraw, NY; https://www.latalaye.com/)
At La Talaye, located in the picturesque Hudson Valley, chef Michelle Timothee artfully combines the vibrant flavors of her native Haiti with influences from French, Spanish, Creole and Indian cuisines.
The cafe and catering company’s name is a nostalgic nod to Saint-Michel-de-l’Atalaye, the agricultural region where Timothee spent time with her grandparents as a child. Following in her grandmother’s farm-to-table tradition, she carefully sources fresh ingredients from local farms and farmers’ markets, infusing her dishes with a medley of spices with both flavor and health benefits in mind.
Highlights of La Talaye’s menu featuring international cuisine with a Caribbean twist include the curried lentil soup with organic local vegetables, Louisiana Creole-style chicken gumbo over jasmine rice, and freedom soup (soup joumou), a Sunday special prepared with pumpkin, beef and vegetables.
My Father’s House Southern Cuisine (Nyack, NY; https://www.mfhsc.com/)
Featured on “America’s Best Restaurants” in 2023, when you head to My Father’s House, one thing for sure is that you won’t go home hungry.
Owner and chef Adrienne Cromartie-Wolf specializes in traditional soul food staples like pork chops and collard greens, chicken and waffles, hush puppies and fried okra, and heaping sides of mac and cheese and potato salad. There are also plenty of vegan and vegetarian options.
Come Sunday, pop in for the soulful brunch menu accompanied by live gospel and jazz.
RELATED: NYC Restaurant Week maintains its Midtown Caribbean flavor
Allie B’s Cozy Kitchen (Albany, NY; https://alliebscozykitchen.llc/)
At Allie B’s, every plate is prepared with love. The restaurant is named for the late Allie Bee Bethea, a native of South Carolina who began catering and selling food on the streets of Harlem in the 1960s.
While in New York City, Allie’s tempting and not so lean cuisine was a hit with the city’s prominent religious and political figures. Now her daughter Kizzy carries on her tradition with mouthwatering recipes and Southern hospitality at Allie B’s Cozy Kitchen in Albany.
Choose from the “all day” menu, which includes barbecue pork ribs, fried fish, fried chicken and baked turkey wings, each dish coming with a choice of three classic sides like cornbread, collard greens, candied yams, and macaroni and cheese.
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