I Like It Black

new york has more specialty coffee per square mile than almost anywhere on earth, which means the bar for standing out is genuinely high. i like it black, on west 125th street in harlem, clears it. the crowd that keeps coming back does so with the kind of loyalty that doesn't need explaining, and if you're making your way through harlem on a weekday morning, that says more than any ranking could. 125th street moves fast, it always has, and a place that holds its own on that particular block is doing something right. the regulars aren't quiet about it either. worth arriving before the morning rush if you can manage it.