Inwood
The Vibe
Manhattan's most genuine secret — a neighbourhood of forest and Caribbean cooking and Dominican music that functions entirely independently of downtown. The hilltop streets with their million-dollar views of the Hudson and the Palisades are inhabited by families who have been here for 40 years, not by wealth migrants. The 1 train is long (40 minutes to Midtown) but the neighbourhood has its own ecosystem.
Description
Manhattan's last forested neighborhood at its northernmost tip, where Inwood Hill Park contains the last remaining old-growth forest in the borough and the cave where Peter Minuit allegedly purchased Manhattan from the Lenape in 1626. The neighborhood's Dominican and Jewish communities have shared its steep, wooded streets for decades, creating a genuine outer-borough feel while technically sitting in Manhattan. The 207th Street and Dyckman Street corridors function as neighborhood high streets divorced from Manhattan's commercial frenzy. The Cloisters Museum of medieval art, sitting above Fort Tryon Park in adjacent Washington Heights, is New York's most serene museum experience.
Neighborhood Stats
Popular With
- Dominican Americans
- Families
- Hikers
- Artists
- Long-term Residents
Key Attributes
- Forest Park
- Dominican
- Manhattan
- Historic
- Affordable
Food Scene
Dyckman Street is one of the city's great Dominican restaurant corridors — La Marina (348 Dyckman St) combines waterfront views with Latin food and music. Tryon Public House (4740 Broadway) is the neighbourhood gastropub standard. El Lina (207 Dyckman St) has served Dominican home cooking to the community since 1985. Indian Road Cafe (600 W 218th St) is a neighbourhood gathering place with local seasonal cooking. Saggio (4753 Broadway) is the Italian-American neighbourhood classic.