August 1, 2019
You could spend years living up here and never have occasion to walk down Henshaw Street. We know that’s true because we’ve done it. Sure, it’s that sharp left you make off Riverside Drive just after you exit the Henry Hudson at Dykeman Street, but at just a block long it’s easy to overlook from a car. You basically never need to take it to get anywhere on foot up here.
Henshaw’s sandwiched between two other lightly traveled (by pedestrians) blocks – Staff Street to the west, and a standalone stretch of Payson Avenue to the east. Staff Street is notable for a block of 90 degree parking spots that can be a much appreciated last resort late nights when nobody’s going out. Lower Payson is the last mile, so to speak, of Inwood before heading off to the West Side Highway aka Henry Hudson Parkway en route to upstate, downtown or the GWB.
In the anniversary spirit of Apollo 11‘s giant step for mankind we decided to explore this seemingly off the grid section of Inwood recently. We’d like to report back that we identified not only intelligent life and liquid water (as well as liquid beer, wine and soda), but several small businesses that we never even knew were here.
We started our recon mission at the corner of Dykeman and Payson, just west of Inwood’s Restaurant Row. This Grande Dame of a building is now a parking garage, but on the corner there used to be a social club frequented by cops back in the 80s knocking back cold ones and God knows what else in between the nonstop homicides up here. Payson Place may have been the name, if memory serves. It seems to have gone extinct or moved to a new location.
Next stop, walking uphill on Payson towards Riverside Drive is Alberto’s Pet Shop. Dog Grooming and Pet Supplies are what you’ll find here. To our surprise, Alberto told us he’s been here for 15 years and said that his clients come from the neighborhood as well as from New Jersey and Connecticut.
Luis Mendez has been helming glowspa for going on 6 years. Tucked away on this quiet block, the spa offers spa and beauty treatments and hosts classes for aestheticians honing their skills. The space has several rooms and a dimly lit, quiet ambiance that felt perfect for a relaxing spa experience. Next door there’s a print shop.
Around the corner, at 2 Henshaw Street, we found Taller Peralta‘s boldly painted security gate down and unfortunately the taller was closed. We’ll pop by another day and check this one. It looks interesting!
Right next door at 6 Henshaw is…6 Henshaw, a boutique and a brand. Here you’ll find clothes and accessories, paintings and objets d’art created by local artists. Sebastian and Andy have been here for 2 years. Visitors are invited to sign the boutique wall, and a selection of colored markers is provided to do so.
Continuing down the hill you’ll next pass by The Barbershop NYC at 8 Henshaw. The owner was cutting someone’s hair when we visited, but a gentleman named Jose Luis greeted us outside and invited us in. From the street one can see that it’s a brightly lit and clean place to go for a trim or a shave.
Across the street is Cloisters Grill at 7 Henshaw. The proprietor, Christian, told the Gazette that the Grill has been here for awhile but that it’s recently changed owners and is undergoing some changes. Delivery will be available soon and you can order a beer or some wine with your lunch now because they already have the license for that. Hours are Monday through Saturday, 8AM-7PM. We stopped in for lunch and shared a plate of pernil and veggies, with rice and black beans on the side, and a couple of cans of seltzer for $15. It was delicious. There are half a dozen small tables and you can see a lot of the food choices behind a glass counter.
A big TV was broadcasting a station from Dominican Republic. A couple of businessmen were eating and speaking quietly at one table, several women in their 20s were having some drinks at another table, and a group of four guys sat at a table in the corner. Staff scurried in and out of the kitchen, and the young lady who took our order was friendly. The food arrived almost instantly, and it was hot and well prepared. It’s a nice spot to have lunch if you’re up this way.
Rounding out our afternoon outing we passed a skin care shop, another hair place, a parking garage, Manhattan Mini Storage, and a hand car wash. The final small business we saw was an unattended morir soñando cart. Maybe we’ll check that one out next time.
