Award-winning Chef, Restauranteur, and Author, Marcus Samuelsson, will host Our Harlem Live, an interactive discussion celebrating the audio cookbook, Our Harlem: Seven Days of Cooking, Music and Soul at the Red Rooster. Our Harlem is an Audible Original that reimagines the cookbook for the audio space, offering a thoughtful and entertaining look at identity through food by taking listeners through Samuelsson’s journey to Harlem where he founded Red Rooster.
In a thought provoking discussion with Lana Turner, Edward Brumfield, and April Reynolds, Samuelsson will speak on the evolution of Harlem, specifically as it relates to food and music through stories such as the Great Migration that brought soul food to Harlem, and the vibrant, lively parties that inspired Samuelsson to open Ginny’s Supper Club in the basement of Red Rooster.
Join us at MOFAD for a deep dive on Harlem’s rich history, diversity, and vibrant pulse, and hear snippets from Our Harlem that include the sounds of Samulesson’s kitchen, conversations with celebrity friends helping him cook, as well as the gospel and jazz beats from local bands that flow through Red Rooster.
A reception featuring bites from The Red Rooster Cookbook as well as beverages from Brooklyn Brewery will be served. Keep up with Marcus Samuelsson by following @MarcusCooks on Instagram, Facebook, and Twitter. Download Our Harlem exclusively at www.audible.com/ourharlem.
EDWARD BRUMFIELD
As the Executive Chef at Red Rooster Harlem, Chef Edward Brumfield continues to explore his creative passion for the culinary arts. A native of Brooklyn, New York, Chef Ed’s culinary fascination began at home as a child with his dad, Ed Sr. His father taught him specialized cooking techniques from his hometown in Louisiana. Chef Ed attended The New York Restaurant School for culinary arts, where he graduated with an Associate’s Degree in Culinary Arts and Restaurant Management in 2003. After honing his experience at well-established restaurants, Chef Ed later went on to work for renowned Chef Gordon Ramsey at the London Hotel in 2008. Shortly thereafter, he moved on to work with now Iron Chef, Jessie Schenker, at Recette and the Gander, where he helped to build and establish both restaurants from the ground up.
One of the many highlights in Chef Ed’s career was creating and catering a menu for the former first lady, Michelle Obama at an intimate luncheon event in 2015. In 2017, Chef Ed began working with Marcus Samuelsson and the team at Red Rooster Harlem. In 2018, he began curating a hip hop dinner series, “Chef Ed’s Mixtape Dinner,” now in its sixth edition. The dinner has featured guest appearance with hip hop legends Fat Joe, Raewkon from Wu-Tang Clan and many more.
APRIL REYNOLDS
April Reynolds has taught at New York University, the 92nd Street Y and is currently teaching creative writing at Sarah Lawrence College. Her short stories have appeared in several anthologies. She has gone on assignment for the US State Department to lecture on creative writing and her own works. Published by Metropolitan Books/ Henry Holt in 2003, her first novel, Knee-Deep in Wonder won the Zora Neale Hurston/ Richard Wright Foundation Award and the PEN American Center: Beyond Margins Award. Her second book, The Shape of Dreams, is forthcoming.
MARCUS SAMUELSSON
Marcus Samuelsson is the acclaimed chef behind many restaurants worldwide including Red Rooster Harlem, MARCUS Montreal, and Marcus B&P in Newark, NJ. Samuelsson was the youngest person to ever receive a three-star review from The New York Times and has won multiple James Beard Foundation Awards including Best Chef: New York City. Samuelsson was also crowned champion of television shows Top Chef Masters and Chopped All Stars, and was the winning mentor on ABC’s The Taste. Samuelsson received the James Beard Foundation Award for Outstanding Personality for his TV series titled No Passport Required with VOX/Eater and and he is an executive producer of Viceland’s show HUSTLE.
A committed philanthropist, Samuelsson is co-chair of Careers through Culinary Arts Program (C-CAP) which focuses on underserved youth. Samuelsson also co-produces the annual week-long festival Harlem EatUp!, which celebrated the food, art, and culture of Harlem for the fifth year this past May. He is the recipient of the 2019 Vilcek Foundation Prize in Culinary Arts, awarded to immigrants who have made lasting contributions to American Society. He is the author of multiple books including The New York Times bestselling memoir Yes, Chef and his latest book-- The Red Rooster Cookbook: The Story of Food and Hustle in Harlem. Follow him on Instagram, Facebook, and Twitter at @MarcusCooks.
LANA TURNER
A Harlem native, Lana Turner was educated at both The City College of New York and Sarah Lawrence College. She likes botany and ornithology, collects tea sets, chairs a literary group, and produces literary and chamber music salons and is a writer.
Ms. Turner works as an archivist with both private and institutional clients. She is licensed in real estate sales with an interest in architectural and cultural preservation and is with the firm of Denise Shaw, Esq. & Associates.
Prior to real estate, Ms. Turner produced major events. Her productions included Mandela at Yankee Stadium; DNC’s Media Party for 25,000; and originator of Men Who Cook, an event created to support children and the arts.
Her work in real estate, event production, interior design and personal style have been cited in such publications as Animan (FR), Casa da Abitare (IT), Elle, Essence, Fast Company, Interview, The New York Daily News, New York Magazine, The New York Times, The Roo: Red Rooster Newsletter, Swing (DE), Time Out, Town & Country, The Wall Street Journal, and The Zoe Report.