me to not just open a restaurant but a place that represented Harlem. The combination of great food, service and also presenting music was key. The original Red Rooster Harlem was a speakeasy. They always had politicians, musicians, artists. And I wanted to continue that. Did success come easily to you? No, it was very
hard. But what’s easy? With a hard journey, you become very good at something. I love my craft, so the fact that I have to work hard for it, that’s nothing. I would be doing this whether or not I got paid. It’s been a very long battle, but it’s also been incredible. I constantly put myself in situations where I’m challenged. My challenge today, running Red Rooster Harlem, is different from the challenge when I was 26 or 27. But I gladly take that on. I think the key is to
always be curious. I was the same when I was 10 years old and cooking with my grandmother. I read that you feel like you grew up in New York. What are some favorite places when you get some downtime?
I love the whole city. For me, there’s always Central Park. When I didn’t have any money, I knew I could go to Central Park and Rollerblade and play soccer. I also love going out to Brooklyn to Roberta’s in Bushwick for pizza. And I love the fact that the core of hip-hop and graffiti comes from the Bronx. On Sundays, I try to bike all over Harlem and get some good food and listen to some great jazz. And then, maybe in spring, watch some basketball being played in the street. A bike is a great way to see the city because it’s not so fast and you can stop and interact with people. IN New YORK | may 2014 | innewyork.com
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