Shrine

The Shrine is everything. Please never change. If you DGAF for a night and just relax and dance, come here. If you want to switch it up and have a non-​boring date, come here. If you have friends in town and you want to show them the real Harlem, come here. After midnight, there’s a crowd and you will sweat it out in the best way! Super chill, no one judges. My only complaint is they sometimes inconsistently charge cover (I’m guessing after a certain time) which ruins the vibe a bit. The live music is always top notch and even when the live acts are over, they have a solid DJ. I’ve had some of the best nights here.

This is a very small music venue in Harlem NY always find my way back to my home town. Harlem is hip and happening place with great little family owned places to eat and drink. And don’t believe the bad rap, it’s safe for everyone. This venue has local bands and singers that come in and never saw a bad one. People and staff are very very friendly. Don’t be afraid to venture up there, I make sure to hit it up every time I’m in town, forget the tourist BS, local is where it’s at.

I’ve been here about three times. It’s great! The live music is enjoying. I danced and had a good time. They have a bar and they do serve food. I have even here and their food good is really good, but they do stop serving food after a certain time. I’ve only been here when they’ve had live bands, but I know they do spoken words and a variety of other things.

It’s a lovely place to have fun. I went there Couple times to see Reggie bands, I had a great time!

Best place I have ever been on Manhattan to listen to live music. This place is amazing.
So diverse, like the music. It is a bar like no other in NY. Very unique. You can listen to rock/​reggae/​jazz you never know. It can be a terrific group as well as less terrific group but this is why I like this place. I can say more than come, enjoy, dance…

I took a chance and went here based strictly off of Unilocal reviews and ended up having a great time. It was a friends birthday and she loves live music. We were looking for somewhere in Harlem to celebrate and I wanted to surprise her. When we got to it her face changed because the outside looked shabby, but a nice dude at the door said come on in, there’s no cover charge. So we go in and are greeted by the coolest album cover covered ceiling and groovy lighting. There was a table right at the front of the stage available, and the cool dude at the door ended up being the bands vocalist.
The band was FANTASTIC! It was a mix of R&B and Blues. Very funky. The drinks were great, could have been a tad bit stronger (try the «Roofo Roofo» drink). We ordered wings, which is always safe. The were yummy and we ordered more. The prices are reasonable, the food was $ 10 the drinks were $ 12 each. They also have fish, vegetarian options, various «toasts» espresso, etc…
We saw 3 different bands that night that each performed for roughly 2 hours. The 2^nd was Old School R&B which got the whole place moving and the last was a Afro Carribean drum group that made you want to dance all night. We had a fabulous time and my friend says it was her best birthday ever. We will definitely be going back soon.
The only thing I did not like was their chairs that had no back. That got a bit uncomfortable after a few hours. Otherwise, GREAT! Go!

Saw a show at the suggestion of a friend who’s into african music (me not so much). The atmosphere was great, very friendly people, good drinks. It’s still not my favorite music style but I’d be a lot more enthusiastic next time someone suggests this place regardless.

I love this place. The vibe is lit. The live bands give a lot to the feel of the place. I enjoy going for drinks during happy hour. The fries are amazinggggly delicious.
Bring your friends. Bring your mom. This is the spot!

I enjoyed this spot and it was my first time going. We will be going back again. They played a variety of music and the crowd was mature. If you were thinking about going check it out. The drinks were good. Easy to get parking too.

Great place. Feels like my uncles basement in Flatbush Brooklyn (great reggae music playing in the background (yes I’m Jamaican not bias) ha ha. But awesome to see records from Rufus, Jimi Hendrix and Denise Williams on the ceilings and walls. It’s an amazing laid-​back place to
Enjoy jazz, rock and all music great. Harlem Jem. Our waiting staff amazing despite 40 of us taking over. Mokone (forgive me if spelling his name wrong)

I really should give it 2.5 stars because I only came here once for about 15 minutes. I was on a date. But the Staff is so terrible that they should be lucky I dont give it one star.
The doormen were overbearing, petty, and ignorant. They searched my male friend and I stood there with my mean face because I was not about to let a man pat me down. They told him his pencil was a weapon. At this point i’m thinking …“what the hell am I walking into.” After some back and forth & and proof that we came from a study group, they just checked my purse and we walked in.
I sat at the bar, a woman walked up to me, tugged at my arm and said «10 $ miss.» WTF?! Okay, no problem my date will pay. She insisted I get up from my seat at the bar. Had she turned around, my date was about to pay her. I could not even communicate anything to her because the music was so loud. All the staff treated us as if we were trying to get over on them.
The music was extremely loud. You can not hold a conversation here. I was so turned off by the staff, I asked my date not to pay and we left. We had just came from LSAT studies and wanted to relax. We gladly took our business elsewhere.
I hate to give a BlackOwned business less than five stars, but this is just one of those kind of places that does not know anything about decency and customer service. I do NOT recommend this place.

The music is always amazing. Even if you don’t like the genre, they get great bands to play it, so how unsatisfied can you really be? Also, the lineup is on their website so don’t go if you’re not into that kind of music. Funk, jazz, reggae, and soul are definitely their favorites but I’ve seen others.
There is a cover after 10pm, so just get there beforehand.
The clientele is extremely diverse. I’ve seen every shade and culture in there.
The food is pretty good and reasonably priced. We got 2 meals, 2 bottles beers, and 1 mocktail and it came out to $ 54. But I deduct 2 stars based on it. I went while it was busy and I waited over an hour for it. When it finally came, it was lukewarm. I was very displeased. The waitress, who kept apologizing whenever she made it over to us (infrequently), said they cook for two restaurants. Um, that’s not an excuse to be slow; that’s a reason to get more chefs or a bigger kitchen. Actually, it wouldn’t hurt to have another waitress either, too.
Overall, people were friendly and music was great. I’d give the food 0 stars and this music venue 5 stars. Don’t go for the food.

Sick music, good food, only giving it two stars because the service is soooooo slow, even when you’re just chilling and not in a rush to get anywhere. Understandable because there was only ONE waitress… but still ridiculous. Hire more wait staff!!!

I absolutely loved this venue although I wish it was located a little bit closer to where I lived. I came to Shrine for the HONK festival and heard some amazing big brass bands play. The music was incredible and the space allowed for an intimate experience. The whole venue is covered floor to ceiling with old records which provides a nice touch.
I came on a Friday night at around 9pm and was easily able to get a table for the evening. There was no cover at the door if you arrived before 10pm. The service was ample and once the bands started playing and the crowds arrived it was rather difficult for our server to do his job. Drinks are a fair price but the food is pricey for Harlem.
I would definitely recommend this bar to see some great and soulful live music.

Pretty good, lively bar on a random Tuesday night. A mix of 30 something year olds supporting talented local musicians, pretty decent drinks, and a very laid back but packed atmosphere.
Unfortunately, I wasn’t into the music being played.(very 70’s type of music), maybe something my parents would’ve appreciated. But the vibe and energy was great especially for weeknight.
I’ll check this spot out again.

So much fun! I always have a great time here. Sad truth is that it gets wayyyyy too crowded. You can barely breathe! I have been trampled on one to many times, but the music is so good that I ALMOST don’t care (note «almost»).
I go on Saturdays when they have african/​caribbean mashups. It’s good fun, but they really should think of expanding the space. jeez!

The drinks are always good here at a great price! I believe they have a DJ every night as well.

Up to five performances a night. Nice club atmosphere once it is crowded.
Listened to some Rock Music and heavy Reggae.
Audience mainly from the hood.
Reasonable prices, no entrance fee.
Check the Website to get an idea about the performing bands of the night.

I really wanted to like this place. It has a lot going for it. Live music every night, a great stage, and a cool vibe. But I just didn’t have a good time at all.
The music, despite the room being half empty (it was mid-​week), was so loud that my chair was vibrating and my ears literally hurt. The service, despite not being busy, was really really slow. And the cocktail I ordered, which should have just been rum, lime and ginger beer, was almost undrinkably sweet. And I normally like sweet. Nor did it seem like it had any alcohol at all in it, as even my lightweight friend didn’t get the slightest of buzzes. And, though it was in the 50s outside, they had the AC blasting really high and I was FREEZING.
I feel like maybe on a packed night all these elements come together (except the sweet drink) and it could work, but on a slow night it was all just unpleasant and uncomfortable. Disappointing. And I didn’t like the music that happened to be up first that night, though that’s not specifically the bar’s fault.

It all started with an invitation to check out a friend’s band, The Pitchblak Playlist. Believe all of thé rumors, because they are certainly true. This place is definitely worth returning to. Staff is pleasant and get thé job done– even thé bouncers.
Since they are tied to thé next door restaurant, Yatenga, there is a kitchen but I didnt see much eating taking place. Precisely because of this be prépared to have a good time dancing, drinking, talking but most importantly listening to thé live music.
The acoustics of thé place are well balanced and thé lighting is just dim enough to create thé proper ambiance. Crowd is laidback, diverse and very friendly. This place could thé Santos party house of Harlem, in a very good way.