# Event Details - **Event Name**: Tasting the Schomburg: An Evening with Carla Hall & Alexander Smalls - **Event Start and End Date**: Mon, 08 Dec, 2025 at 06:30 pm – Mon, 08 Dec, 2025 at 08:30 pm - **Event Description**: Taste the stories of the Schomburg as Carla Hall and Alexander Smalls bring Black foodways to life through history, flavor, and storytellingAbout this EventIN PERSONJoin us at the Schomburg Center for an unforgettable evening with acclaimed chefs Carla Hall and Alexander Smalls as they return to the place that inspired their latest culinary explorations. Both chefs spent time researching in the Schomburg’s vast collections—studying rare cookbooks, historic menus, and Arturo Schomburg’s unfinished gastronomica, a remarkable project that blends memoir and food encyclopedia. Together, they will share their discoveries, stories, and reflections on Black foodways, revealing how history, culture, and storytelling come alive through cooking and cuisine. Following the conversation, guests will enjoy tastings and light bites inspired by the chefs’ research—a flavorful journey shaped by the global Black diaspora.Together, we tackle the ultimate question: What’s the best way to eat grits—sweet or savory? Come savor the history, flavors, and joy of storytelling through food as two friends invite you into their conversation.Tasting the Schomburg CollectionsTasting the Schomburg Collections invites guests to explore how food practices, from preparation to consumption to their cultural significance, are represented within the holdings of the Schomburg Center for Research in Black Culture. The series is crafted around rare early 20th‑century manuscripts, cookbooks from across the global Black diaspora, historic menus, and Arturo Schomburg’s unfinished gastronomica—a project from around 1930 that was part memoir, part food encyclopedia. Each event features food and intimate conversations with invited chefs—including Carla Hall, Alexander Smalls, and Rōze Traore—who expand our knowledge of Black foodways. https://cdn-az.allevents.in/events9/banners/263960a0-c6ff-11f0-a58b-5728a583d37c-rimg-w1200-h600-dcc2bba9-gmir.jpg CHEF CARLA HALLChef, best-selling author and television personality Carla Hall has been entertaining audiences with her enthusiasm for life and warm personality for years. She has starred on Food Network shows such as “BakeAway Camp,” “Halloween Baking Championship,” “Holiday Baking Championship” and “Worst Cooks in America.” She also hosted the Emmy-nominated “Chasing Flavor with Carla Hall” (HBO Max) and serves as a judge on “Harry Potter: Wizards of Baking” (HBO Max). She first won over audiences when she competed on Bravo’s “Top Chef” and hosted ABC’s “The Chew” for 7 years. Her product line, Sweet Heritage by Carla Hall (available through QVC), is designed to bring you kitchen items that are useful, reliable, and complete with a dash of joy and soul. Carla’s latest cookbook, Carla Hall’s Soul Food: Everyday and Celebration, was published in 2018, landing on annual "Best Cookbook" lists across the country and receiving an NAACP Image Awards nomination. Her second children’s book, Carla and the Tin Can Cake Party was just published on October 14th.CHEF ALEXANDER SMALLSAlexander Smalls is a James Beard Award winning chef, author and restaurateur. He has owned five critically acclaimed restaurants including co-owner of The Cecil, voted best new restaurant in America by Esquire Magazine, and Minton’s Playhouse, birthplace of Bebop. Smalls restaurant Cafe Beulah, was one of the first contemporary “fine dining restaurants” celebrating African American food in the country. Smalls founded and co-owns Alkebulan, the first African Dining Hall in the World showcasing the food and culture of Africa, opened four years ago for Expo 2020 in Dubai. Alexander was featured in season two of the acclaimed Netflix documentary “High on The Hog.” Smalls is also a renowned opera singer and the winner of both a Grammy and Tony Award for the Houston Grand Opera, RCA Recording of Porgy & Bess. A culinary activist and public speaker, the author of five books include Meals, Music & Muses, Between Harlem & Heaven, Grace the Table, The Contemporary African Kitchen and his new children’s book When Alexander Graced the Table. Alexander received a doctorate degree from his Alma mater Wofford College in 2023. He presently resides in Harlem, New York City.Photo: Carla Hall (right) and Alexander Smalls (left) visit the archives at the Schomburg Center for Research in Black Culture. Carla is pictured in the Photographs and Prints Division and Alexeander is in the Jean Blackwell Hutson Research and Reference Division. Photo credit Khalilah Bates.FREE AND OPEN TO THE PUBLICACCESSIBLILITYAccessibility requests can be made by e-mail accessibility@nypl.org.LEARN MOREThis year, the Schomburg Center for Research in Black Culture is celebrating the 100th anniversary of its founding! Join us all year long for a wide array of special events, exhibitions, and more as we celebrate this milestone and continue the legacy of Arturo Schomburg.Schomburg100 | Exhibition | Special-Edition Library Card | Become a Member#SchomburgLive__________________________FIRST COME, FIRST SEATED Events are free and open to all, but due to space constraints registration is requested. Registered guests are given priority check-in 15 to 30 minutes before start time. After the event starts all registered seats are released regardless of registration, so we recommend that you arrive early. We generally overbook to ensure a full house.GUESTS Please note that holding seats in the Langston Hughes Auditorium is strictly prohibited and there is no food or drinks allowed anywhere in the Schomburg Center.ACCESSIBLILITY Accessibility requests can be made by e-mail accessibility@nypl.org.E-TRANSPORTATION NYPL policy prohibits electric transportation devices (e.g., motorbikes, e-bikes, e-scooters, e-skateboards) from being brought into or stored at library sites for any length of time, as this is the best way to keep our spaces & people safe.AUDIO/VIDEO RECORDING Programs are photographed and recorded by the Schomburg Center. Attending this event indicates your consent to being filmed/photographed and your consent to the use of your recorded image for any all purposes of the New York Public Library.PRESS Please send all press inquiries (photo, video, interviews, audio-recording, etc) at least 24-hours before the day of the program to Leah Drayton at leahdrayton@nypl.org.Please note that personal and professional video recordings are prohibited without expressed consent. https://cdn-az.allevents.in/events5/banners/268054b0-c6ff-11f0-a4e9-c9193a232180-rimg-w1200-h627-dcffffff-gmir.jpg - **Event URL**: https://allevents.in/new-york/tasting-the-schomburg-an-evening-with-carla-hall-and-alexander-smalls/100001970841098780 - **Event Categories**: food-drinks, exhibitions, art, literary-art, sports, storytelling, business, music, parties, entertainment, holiday - **Interested Audience**: - total_interested_count: 0 ## Ticket Details - **Ticket Price Range**: min: 0, max: 0, currency: USD ## Event venue details - **city**: New York - **state**: NY - **country**: United States - **location**: Schomburg Center for Research in Black Culture - **lat**: 40.8145294 - **long**: -73.94086759999999 - **full address**: Schomburg Center for Research in Black Culture, 515 Malcolm X Blvd, New York, United States ## Event gallery - **Alt text**: Tasting the Schomburg: An Evening with Carla Hall & Alexander Smalls - **Image URL**: https://cdn-az.allevents.in/events8/banners/cc0d6e64c3e92a5b4b13b90d05a4191787ff4e4a0f0c149123a565220eb5b32c-rimg-w675-h338-dcf1f2f2-gmir.jpg?v=1763745980 ## FAQs - **Q**: When and where is Tasting the Schomburg: An Evening with Carla Hall & Alexander Smalls being held? - **A:** Tasting the Schomburg: An Evening with Carla Hall & Alexander Smalls takes place on Mon, 08 Dec, 2025 at 06:30 pm to Mon, 08 Dec, 2025 at 08:30 pm at Schomburg Center for Research in Black Culture, 515 Malcolm X Blvd, New York, United States. - **Q**: Who is organizing Tasting the Schomburg: An Evening with Carla Hall & Alexander Smalls? - **A:** Tasting the Schomburg: An Evening with Carla Hall & Alexander Smalls is organized by Schomburg Center for Research in Black Culture. - **Q**: Who is this event for? Is it right for me? - **A:** Tasting the Schomburg: An Evening with Carla Hall & Alexander Smalls is ideal for music lovers, fans of all genres, and anyone who wants to celebrate the power of music - from intimate gigs and live sessions to festivals and cultural performances. Whether you're a first-time attendee or a longtime enthusiast in New York, this event is thoughtfully curated to deliver a standout experience worth every moment. If Tasting the Schomburg: An Evening with Carla Hall & Alexander Smalls sounds like your kind of event, don't wait - spots fill up fast. ## Structured Data (JSON-LD) ```json [ { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@type": "Event", "name": "Tasting the Schomburg: An Evening with Carla Hall & Alexander Smalls", "image": "https://cdn-az.allevents.in/events8/banners/cc0d6e64c3e92a5b4b13b90d05a4191787ff4e4a0f0c149123a565220eb5b32c-rimg-w675-h338-dcf1f2f2-gmir.jpg?v=1763745980", "startDate": "2025-12-08", "endDate": "2025-12-08", "url": "https://allevents.in/new-york/tasting-the-schomburg-an-evening-with-carla-hall-and-alexander-smalls/100001970841098780", "location": { "@type": "Place", "name": "Schomburg Center for Research in Black Culture", "address": { "@type": "PostalAddress", "streetAddress": "515 Malcolm X Blvd", "postalCode": "10030", "addressLocality": "New York", "addressRegion": "NY", "addressCountry": "US" }, "geo": { "@type": "GeoCoordinates", "latitude": "40.8145294", "longitude": "-73.94086759999999" } }, "eventAttendanceMode": "https://schema.org/OfflineEventAttendanceMode", "description": "Taste the stories of the Schomburg as Carla Hall and Alexander Smalls bring Black foodways to life through history, flavor, and storytelling", "offers": [ { "@type": "AggregateOffer", "availability": "https://schema.org/InStock", "priceCurrency": "USD", "availabilityStarts": "2026-04-07", "availabilityEnds": "2025-12-08", "validFrom": "2026-04-07", "lowPrice": "0.00", "highPrice": "0.00", "price": "0.00", "url": "https://allevents.in/new-york/tasting-the-schomburg-an-evening-with-carla-hall-and-alexander-smalls/100001970841098780" }, { "@type": "Offer", "availability": "https://schema.org/InStock", "priceCurrency": "USD", "availabilityStarts": "2026-04-07", "availabilityEnds": "", "validFrom": "2026-04-07", "url": "https://allevents.in/new-york/tasting-the-schomburg-an-evening-with-carla-hall-and-alexander-smalls/100001970841098780", "price": 0, "name": "Registration" }, { "@type": "Offer", "availability": "https://schema.org/InStock", "priceCurrency": "USD", "availabilityStarts": "2026-04-07", "availabilityEnds": "", "validFrom": "2026-04-07", "url": "https://allevents.in/new-york/tasting-the-schomburg-an-evening-with-carla-hall-and-alexander-smalls/100001970841098780", "price": 0, "name": "Donate to the Schomburg" } ], "organizer": [ { "@type": "Organization", "name": "Schomburg Center for Research in Black Culture", "url": "https://allevents.in/org/schomburg-center-for-research-in-black-culture/22630024", "description": "Founded in 1925 and named a National Historic Landmark in 2017, the Schomburg Center for Research in Black Culture is one of the world's leading cultural institutions devoted to the research, preservation, and exhibition of materials focused on African American, African Diaspora, and African experiences. From the original 10,000 items provided by Arturo Alfonso Schomburg to the over 10 million items in the collection today, the Schomburg Center features diverse progamming and lifelong education and exploration that illuminate the richness of global black history, arts and culture.Subscribe to oure-newsletterVisit:schomburgcenter.org/calendarPlease read ourPrivacy Policy" } ] } ] ```