New York is always a vibe. I went for the Fourth of July weekend and lucky for us there was no rain, so that’s a plus. It was hot, but I live in Florida, so that didn’t really bother me too much.
When I go on a trip, I always make a list of places I would like to visit. If you’re a Black traveler who loves to hang out, eat, and explore NYC nightlife, here’s exactly how my list looked, and what I actually did while on my baecation in NYC.
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Party’s 🎶 | NYC Black Nightlife & Rooftop Vibes
• Amadeus Nightclub – Hip Hop Club NYC
• Code Astoria
• Every (Other) Sunday Brooklyn Black Party – 385 Tompkins Ave at The Narativ
• 333 Lounge – R&B Parties NYC
• the se7en – Bar
• Damballa – Sundays
• Record Room – Thursday night
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Ice Cream/Treats 🍦 | Black-Owned Dessert Spots in Brooklyn
• Island Pops
• Yummy Tummy Kitchen
These are perfect if you’re looking for Caribbean-inspired ice cream or sweet treats in NYC.
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Pizza 🍕 | Viral Black-Owned Pizza Spot in Brooklyn
• Cuts & Slices NYC – a MUST. Everyone on TikTok raves about the oxtail slice. If you’re into Black-owned food spots in Brooklyn, this is top tier.
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Sushi 🍣 | Chill NYC Sushi Spots
• IWAK Sushi + Kitchen
• Ozakaya
If you’re into lowkey restaurants with good sushi, these were solid.
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Seafood 🦞 | All-You-Can-Eat Seafood in NYC
• Shaking Crab – All You Can Eat Monday–Thursday. Messy and delicious.
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Food 🥘 | Black-Owned NYC Restaurants, Soul Food & More
• Tatiana by Kwame Onwuachi (Black Owned)– 4.3 ⭐️ Google Review
• Lost in Paradise Rooftop – 4.7 ⭐️ Google Review
• Cornbread – Soul Food in Harlem (Black Owned) – 4.8 ⭐️ Google Review
• Chiangmai Dinner & Bar (Thai) – 4.8 ⭐️ Google Review
• Saint NYC (Black Owned?)
• Kingston Bakery Brooklyn (Black Owned) – 4.7 ⭐️ Google Review
• The Good Good – Harlem (Black Owned) – 4.8 ⭐️ Google Review
• Mango Bay
• Continent Brooklyn (Black Owned)
Breakfast 🍳 | Where We Brunched in NYC
• Bubby’s NYC
• Hole In The Wall
• Tamar Juice Bar (Black Owned) – 5 ⭐️ Google Review
• Cara Juice (Black Owned) – 4.9 ⭐️ Goggle Review
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Random 💕 | For the Content Girlies
• Roxy Hotel Photo Booth – So cute and vintage for your IG photo dumps or reels.
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Where We Stayed: The Penny Hotel NYC
We stayed at The Penny Hotel. For a four-night stay, we spent $1200. Here’s the rundown:
• The rooms were EXTREMELY small
• Staff was nice
• Area was good
• On the website, it says $25/day for parking. But you can find street parking nearby.
🚗 Car vs Uber in NYC?
If you don’t plan on taking the subway, I do recommend renting a car. For 4 days, we spent almost $500 on Ubers, and that was the same price as a rental car. In my opinion is better to get the rental car because you will be able to go more places.
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Thursday
Our first stop for my husband’s birthday breakfast was Clinton St. Baking Co., which wasn’t on my list. The wait time was 1 hour. The pancakes were good and the service was good, but I wouldn’t wait an hour to go back there.
For dinner, we went to The Continent Brooklyn. My husband ordered the snapper and I ordered the lamb that the waiter recommended. According to my husband, his snapper was good. My lamb did not taste like it had any seasoning. I switched it for the salmon, thinking nobody could mess up salmon, but that also tasted bad.
We went to Record Room. The vibe was nice. It’s a small place and apparently you can make reservations. It’s free to get in. When it comes to New York clubs, they tend to have a line because they let people in as others come out.
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Friday
The next day we tried the Louis Vuitton Café NYC. The ambiance was nice. If you don’t book in advance, you have to sit at the bar. We were told it would be a 1-hour wait, but it ended up being 30 minutes.
We stopped by Blank Street Coffee to grab a matcha. This was my first time tasting matcha and it was horrible. According to the girls on TikTok, I did it wrong and I need to add sweeteners and milk to make it taste better.
We went to Saint NYC for dinner. The food was ok. The fries were burnt. I got the parmesan lamb chops. I rate restaurants based on if I would go back. I would go back to Saint, but it’s not a must. Take that for what it is.
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Saturday
We went to a party — Sunset Social at Industry City. We grabbed food while we were there. Cost to get in was $35. Drinks were $20-something. New York did play the songs too long, and it’s too much of a mix of genres for my taste.
After we left there, we went to The Se7en.
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Sunday
We stopped by Cornbread Harlem because it had such good reviews. The food was mid. Nobody does soul food like the South, so I guess I’ve been spoiled.
We then went and watched Love Jones on a rooftop and ended the night at Damballa Subdays.
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Final Thoughts
NYC was a vibe. If you’re looking for things to do in New York for Black travelers, especially during the summer — rooftop parties, soul food, and late-night events were nonstop.
