Our Harlem:Seven Days of Cooking, Music and Soul and the Red Rooser by Marcu Samuelsson

Our Harlem: Seven Days of Cooking, Music and Soul at the Red Rooster by Marcus Samuelsson

My rating: 4 of 5 stars



Jacket blurb: Make an audio pilgrimage to Harlem with Ethiopian and Swedish chef, TV personality. and restaurateur Marcus Samuelsson, and get to know the food, history, music, and. . .most importantly . . .the people of an iconic neighborhood that Marcus knows as his home and the home of his Red Rooster restaurant.

Special guests join Marcus each day of the week to cook, sip cocktails and make their Harlem our Harlem including Melba Wilson, Jelani Cobb, Bevy Smith, Kievin Young, for starters.

For Wednesday, with writer Jenani Cobb, Marcus will recreate the short ribs he made for President Obama's fundraiser at the Red Rooster and discuss the significance of the first African American President. With food historian Jessica Harris, Marcus will discover the African and Southern roots of his ingredients. He'll make fried chicken with Harlem's very own Charles Gabriel and visit La Marqueta with Harlem native, Aurora Flores.

You'll learn about Harlem's amazing history, diversity, and current vibrant life and the institutions that are the pillars of the neighborhood. . .the Apollo theater, the Studio Museum and the Schomburg Center. Writers Isabel Wilkerson and Nicholas Lehmann explain the Great Migration from the South that brought mac and greens, new voters and amazing creative talent to Harlem. And Dapper Dan talks about Harlem style.

And like Red Rooster itself, music provides a foundation for each day. . .from El Barrio Night's Latin rhythms to Sunday's Teenage Gospel Choir.


Available as audio book only.

I downloaded this as an Audible Original. I greatly enjoy Marcus's "No Passport Required", so I thought why not? He so eloquently explores other cities, regions and cultures through food, that a seven day "journey" through his experiences as a chef at the Red Rooster and a member of the community in Harlem could only be enlightening.

And it was. I thoroughly enjoyed this dive into the history, culture, and potential future of Harlem. I think I learned more about African-American culture, their influence upon music, food, and culture, than I did in any so-called history class. As one well spoken interviewee noted, it's "his-story". And now I got to hear it from those who lived it, who were there or growing up during key turning points. I also appreciated how Marcus included the other cultures that influenced the ebb and flow of Harlem. Their voices need to be heard as well and it made for a more inclusive story.

I will confess, initially I wasn't certain about the format. This is NOT a book being read to the listener, but it's also not a pod-cast. It's more of a live interview, a live action format, tailored to an unseen audience. It's almost as I was sitting at the next table, the next bar stool down, listening in on another groups discussion. But it's okay to listen in, they want to engage a wider group. This style might not be for everyone, but once I got used to it, it works. The downside of this is sometimes it's hard to hear or hard to listen to because there is definitely background noise.

Overall, this was fun, enlightening, and engaging. The daily "theme" of culture, history, food and drink made me want to go to Harlem, to see the Apollo, to walk the streets, to eat the food. If you have foodie tendencies and don't mind an unconventional "read", I would recommend Our Harlem.



View all my reviews