A Harlem Oasis: Saurin Parke
Last week my office intern Greg and I met up to pass along some documents and two things took me by surprise.
The first was that Greg, an intern, was willing to meet up outside of his scheduled hours before a long weekend to take on additional work (future employers please note the insane dedication).
The second was that Greg, a Columbia University Junior living on 113th and Broadway, had not heard of Saurin Parke. WTF man? Three years in the area and he does not know of a cafe with blog posts as great as this?
Located on the northwest corner of Central Park, Saurin Parke is a great place to, as the website used to read, "relax with a frothy cappuccino in one of the antique leather club chairs, or settle in on the long banquette with your G4, New York Times and/or master's thesis." When I first read the in house recommendations, I was sitting on the long banquette with my G4, the New York Times, and my master's thesis. Amazing.
And it has free Wi-Fi.
Greg called the place an oasis, echoing a sentiment expressed in a 2005 Columbia Spectator article that it offers a better-lit and somewhat less space-deprived alternative to the Hungarian Pastry Shop. It does.
It also has beer.
I've found that Saurin Parke is best on a weeknight or weekend day. The patrons are varied and interesting, which comes in handy should I need to be stuck in front of my computer. I feel far less antisocial glued to screen if I am around people. The two weekend nights I stopped by left me feeling like the party was going on somewhere else, and I was not invited.
And last but not least, Saurin Parke has a fairly solid menu. Items range from breakfast fare to paninis. The roast beef and boursin cheese panini was my food of choice when thesis writing.
Comments
I have never been so disappointed with a place as with Saurin Parke Cafe...have to say it's the first time I've disagreed with anything on your (amazing) blog. After several minutes of sitting at the bar, the waitress finally rushed by with a whaddya-want. Although I was a bit reluctant to order while still sitting in front of a dirty bar, I asked for a cappuccino. Then, she actually wiped the crumbs off the bar with her hand...oy. When she brought the cappuccino, she literally dropped it in front of me, no spoon, no napkin, no sugar. I waited to ask for these things, but she never came back. While waiting, I noticed some other suspicious things going on; other customers being treated rudely (by other staff), mistaken orders...I was a server for six years and would never have treated people like this, and just don't expect this sort of treatment as a guest. This place is just not up to NYC standards, the only exception being the cost.
Posted by: aliostuni2003 | July 21, 2007 01:00 PM