Hey . . . I'm a Hartford native
Downtown, on the corner of Trumble Street and Pratt street (accross from the Civic Center) there is a black owned establishment called "The Russell". It's a lounge/ cocktail place that serves what I call gourmet West Indian food and offers live jazz on Thursday's. I'm not sure if they still do the live poerty or the wine tasting on the weekends. Overall, it is a sophisticated place for people of color to meet, network and relax. The dress code (there's no official one but unofficially) is dressy casual. Example blazers with jeans and heals, a nice blouse and skirt ect. Can you tell that I just love this place
Here's the website:
http://www.therussell.net/