Help Our Neighborhood Restaurants: Mountain Bird In East Harlem Hopes To Keep Flying

Scores of Big Apple eateries are evaporating amid the coronavirus crisis. So each week, Help Our Neighborhood Restaurants will highlight top neighborhood spots fighting to stay afloat while adhering to strict safety standards: the HONoR Roll. Thanks to Kyrie Irving and Beyond Meat, a New Yorker in need will get a plant-based burger whenever you order.

When the coronavirus outbreak forced Mountain Bird into a takeout-only model, the eclectic East Harlem spot had to shrink its menu—but there was never any doubt over the beef bourguignon’s fate.

“The family who came once a week, their little girl, she only ordered that dish,” says owner Keiko Tajima, whose last name means “Mountain Bird” in Japanese. “As long as we can continue, we’re gonna provide that.” 

She founded the poultry-focused restaurant in 2013 with her husband, Kenichi Tajima, a Japanese chef trained in French cuisine; they fell in love by chance after he rented a spare room in her New York apartment. The Tajimas settled into their current location after bouncing around Harlem, becoming an unlikely neighborhood favorite in the culinarily-incongruous El Barrio by providing inventive cuisine and charming ambiance without charging downtown prices. 

In the age of Covid-19, monogrammed plates and ostrich tartare have given way to chicken fried rice and free dessert (if you bring your own bag). A meal of crispy escargot wanton and black truffle chicken wings runs $18; there are only two items on the menu for more than $20, and most of Mountain Bird’s wines have been marked down 50% or more. Still, stopgap measures, both internally and governmentally, won’t cover the bills longterm.

“Loaning is not going to help any business,” says Tajima. “They need to do our rent. I hope we can still survive until then.”

Mountain Bird

Address: 2162 2^nd Ave, New York, NY 10029

Suggested Dishes: chicken schnitzel ($18)

Price Range: from pumpernickel baguette ($3) to venison & foie gras entrée ($25)

Phone Number: (212) 744-4422

Website: www.ilovemountainbird.com

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