The most luxurious experience often happens during uninterrupted hours with an old friend who knows your whole story.
A Sunday brunch transformed into a necessary pause button with my friend Khendra. We enjoyed Caribbean food, shared hearty laughs, and filled our hearts. I nearly forgot what unfiltered, unhurried friendship feels like amid travel, motherhood, and endless responsibilities. Mango Bay brought it all back.
When Life Is Moving Too Fast
Picture this: Mary J. Blige concert with my sisters Friday night, Mexico City family trip just days away, daily swimming lessons for my youngest, and mounting work deadlines. My to-do list screamed at me to cancel brunch.
Khendra posted food from another restaurant on her Instagram story. I impulsively replied, “Brunch date?” She agreed, and brunch at Mango Bay landed on my calendar. As Sunday approached, reality hit me hard. My nails needed attention, my hair wasn’t done, and my suitcase remained empty for Mexico City. (You know how that story ended if you read my post Mexico City Family Travel: Finding Balance When Your Prep Time Disappears.)
I almost followed my usual pattern: canceling plans when anxiety takes over. But this year, I promised myself something different. I committed to showing up for friendships with the same intention I bring to travel plans or family calendars. I made the right choice.
Why Digital Connection Isn’t Enough
I call myself a “digital pebbler”; constantly tossing little connection pebbles through Instagram reels and quick texts. My close friends receive countless social media tags from me daily. Khendra and I, along with our two college friends, keep a group chat active even though only two of us live in the same state.
But let’s face facts: laughing emojis can’t replace actual laughter. Heart reactions fall short compared to seeing your friend’s eyes light up during stories. Society normalizes screen relationships, but sitting across from someone who knows your college-era self offers true nourishment.
As a wife and mom with career and family commitments, I understand the scheduling challenges. Yet with age comes wisdom: these in-person moments aren’t luxuries; they fulfill essential needs.
Mango Bay: More Than Just a Meal
Mango Bay blends nostalgia with discovery perfectly. Located in Fort Greene, Brooklyn (our old neighborhood), it sits across from JHS 113, where Khendra and my best friend and sister attended.
My husband and I often visit Evelina across the street. Mango Bay now occupies Imani’s former space, a Caribbean restaurant that closed before I could visit. Mango Bay created the perfect reconnection setting: a cozy corner booth overlooking Edmund’s Park.
With similar tastes, we ordered easily. We shared a mango kale salad (slightly too sweet) and both chose the amazing prawns and grits. The cocktail menu underwent revamping, which meant the original drink we had our hearts set on wasn’t available. We settled for the Calypso Fashioned, which was just okay. It wasn’t memorable enough for an Old Fashioned lover like me.
What made the experience special wasn’t just the food but also the bartender Shamah Levy, who played along as we tried to determine if he was a real Brooklynite or a transplant. After some neighborhood trivia and school Googling, he passed our test with flying colors. We discovered we share the same August 27th birthday (Virgos represent!), and he even joined us for shots. That’s the kind of authentic connection that makes a dining experience memorable.
The prawns and grits alone warrant a return visit, but our day continued. Afterward, we headed to Strange Delight, where I introduced Khendra to my favorite Vieux Carré cocktail.
Why Black Women Need These Moments
Brunches like this provide essential soul fuel for Black women balancing careers, marriages, and motherhood. Creating space for joy with someone who truly sees you isn’t self-indulgent; it sustains us.
When we prioritize connections despite packed calendars, we make powerful statements. Our joy matters. Our friendships matter. The moments that fill our cups deserve equal priority with responsibilities that drain them.
That Sunday reminded me why I created Beauty and the Bump NYC: to document my identity journey through meaningful experiences, whether traveling abroad with family or sharing delicious food with old friends in Brooklyn.
Beauty in the Bump
This brunch embodied everything Beauty and the Bump NYC represents. Here, “the bump” wasn’t a physical journey abroad but an emotional return to myself through friendship. Fitting friend time amid pre-travel chaos became a centering, memorable story.
True beauty emerged in showing up authentically, even when my nails needed attention and my suitcase stood empty. The luxury came from uninterrupted conversation with someone who witnessed my evolution from college student to mother.
As Black women who often put others first, these intentional connections help us reclaim ourselves. They create the soft life with purpose I advocate, where joy doesn’t wait for “someday when things slow down” but exists amid beautiful chaos.
This luxury tops my list, not just passport stamps, but grounding connections wherever life takes me. The journey’s bump? Nearly missing a much-needed connection while focusing on to-do items that could wait.
Your Turn to Pause
When did you last make time for a real catch-up? Not rushed coffee between errands or hurried phone calls during commutes, but quality time with someone who knows the real you.
Text your person now. Make a plan. Guard that time like a coveted dinner reservation or flight booking. The most luxurious experience often happens with someone who knows your whole story during uninterrupted hours.
Where do you enjoy friend dates in your city? Share in the comments below, and tell me if you’ve visited Mango Bay or Strange Delight!
