As Harlem Week 2026 began, it reminded me of the fulfilling time I had as a participating chef in the Black Chef Series at the Victoria on 125th during Harlem Week 2024. Black Chef Series founder Chef Lance Knowling was at the helm of a five-course dinner, along with chefs Chris Scott, Melvin “Boots” Johnson, and Herb Wilson. Chef Chris’s miso-cured scallop and smoked trout salad was a fever dream; Chef Wilson’s Maryland soft-shell crab kept it classic; Chef Boots’s chicory coffee-braised short rib from a Black woman cattle farmer was rich; and Chef Lance’s blackberry mascarpone dessert sent us off into the night. It was a wonderful evening.
(Kysha Harris photos)
Now that Harlem Week has ended, I’m reminded that my [2024 coverage of the Black Chef Series](blank) left you hanging without a recipe I promised for my first course that kicked off the meal. The reason? Just two months later, I was injured in a pickleball accident that sent me into what became nearly two years of surgeries, recovery, and general hard times.
Now I’m getting back to it with aplomb. (Thank you for joining me on this page every week.) To borrow a little from Ashanti, “I’m not always there when you call, but I’m always on time.” Finally, here is the recipe for my first course: watermelon carpaccio.
Thin slices of ripe summer watermelon topped with briny Castelvetrano olives, salty ricotta salata, pungent slivers of shallot, spicy Caribbean jerk candied pecans, and micro arugula, all dressed with bright watermelon-Meyer lemon vinaigrette and fruity olive oil. Yes, it sounds like a lot, but it’s about balancing sweet, salt, acid, spice, texture, and the season.
What I remember most about serving the dish was watching the clean plates come back to the kitchen. That always makes a chef happy. Then, a couple of guests came up to me afterward and told me they never would have thought to put watermelon together with cheese and olives — but they loved it. Swoon! That was exactly the point.
Process: Thin rounds of ripe seedless watermelon form base of carpaccio. 
With Black Chef Series chefs Knowling, Scott, Johnson, and Wilson at Victoria. 
With Live.Loud.Foods owner Chef Keesha O’Galdez, whose jerk nuts are featured in watermelon carpaccio and served as one of the sous chefs for evening. 
Victoria marquee on 125th Street, site of Black Chef Series dinner. 
Process: Straining watermelon juice during prep for watermelon carpaccio. 
In kitchen with Chef Faye McNeil, one of the sous chefs for the evening, preparing watermelon carpaccio. 
Pre-event test of watermelon carpaccio.
Watermelon Carpaccio
Serves 4
SCHOP! Tip: Give strained watermelon juice time to rest before making the vinaigrette. As it sits, the solids separate from the water. Using that clearer liquid gives you all of the watermelon flavor and a clean vinaigrette on the plate.
For the vinaigrette
1 cup fresh watermelon water, preferably from watermelon trimmings (see SCHOP! Tip)
2 tablespoons rice vinegar, plus more to taste
1 tablespoon freshly squeezed Meyer lemon juice, plus more to taste
Pinch of kosher salt
For the carpaccio
12 thin rounds ripe, seedless watermelon, about 4 inches in diameter and 1/4-inch thick
1 small shallot, sliced paper-thin (a mandolin is best for this), placed in ice water until ready to assemble
8 to 12 pitted Castelvetrano olives, quartered
4 ounces ricotta salata, crumbled
1/3 cup Live.Loud.Foods jerk nuts, chopped into small pieces or to taste
2 cups loosely packed micro arugula or microgreens of your choice
Watermelon-Meyer lemon vinaigrette
Fruity extra-virgin olive oil
Flaky sea salt
Make the vinaigrette
Combine the watermelon water, rice vinegar, Meyer lemon juice, and salt. Taste; it should be bright and tart enough to balance the sweetness of the watermelon. Add more vinegar or Meyer lemon juice as desired.
To assemble
Arrange three watermelon rounds, slightly overlapping, on each plate. Remove the shallot from the ice water and drain well.
Top each plate with an equal amount of shallot, Castelvetrano olives, crumbled ricotta salata, jerk nuts, and micro arugula. Spoon the watermelon-Meyer lemon vinaigrette lightly over and around the watermelon. Finish with a drizzle of fruity extra-virgin olive oil and flaky sea salt.
Serve immediately.
Make this while summer watermelon is still at its peak — it’s simple, fresh, and worth putting on the table. If you do, tag me on Instagram, @SCHOPnyc. I want to see your plate.
Two summers later, promise kept.
Thanks for reading, and happy eating!
Kysha Harris is a chef, culinary producer, and food editor for the NY Amsterdam News. As a consultant and owner of SCHOP!, a personalized food service in NYC for over 23 years, she remains on the hunt for the city’s next great bite. Follow her on Instagram and on Facebook, @SCHOPnyc.
Questions, comments, requests, feedback, invitations! Email us at [AmNewsFOOD@SCHOPnyc.com](mailto:AmNewsFOOD@SCHOPnyc.com). Follow us on Instagram and Facebook, @NYAmNewsFOOD.
