10. Smoke Jazz Club
Hailed as “the best jazz club in the world” by pianist Harold Mabern, Smoke Jazz Club located at 106th Street and Duke Ellington Boulevard was originally Augie’s Jazz Bar. Augie’s opened in the 1960s and closed in 1998. Former employee Paul Stache and his business partner at the time Frank Christopher took over the lease. They changed the name to Smoke, after the eponymous movie written by the writer Paul Auster, a regular at the club. In the movie, the character played by Harvey Keitel was largely based on Augie’s owner, Augusto “Gus” Cuartas, Stache told Gothamist.
Smoke opened in 1999 and soon became a world-renowned jazz. institution. The club was closed for two years during the pandemic and the owners used that time to make some major renovations. Smoke reopened in June 2022.
Next, check out The Queens Jazz Trail and Vintage Photos of the Cotton Club
