Friday, March 24, 2017

Angelica Kitchen closing on April 7; friends raising money to pay off expenses


[Photo of Leslie McEachern from 2016 by James Maher]

After 40-plus years of serving vegetarian cuisine in the East Village, Angelica Kitchen is closing its doors after service on April 7.

Owner Leslie McEachern confirmed the news yesterday, saying in a statement that "Making the numbers work week in and week out is just not viable for us anymore."

In September 2014, the restaurant on 12th Street near Second Avenue launched a public awareness campaign to help keep its doors open.

Earlier in 2014, McEachern signed a new 5-year-lease for $21,000-plus a month. As Gothamist pointed out, that rent "doesn't include additional expenses including utilities, taxes, insurance, payroll, etc."

Angelica made some other changes then, including updating "its menu to include iced and hot coffee, as well as natural wines, and brought in an ATM to accommodate an increasingly cashless culture," per Eater.


[EVG photo from 2015]

The restaurant first opened in 1976.

In an interview for EVG in January 2016 for EVG, McEachern talked about how she got involved with Angelica.

I had started a small business representing certain natural foods, but I was going to different health-food stores around the country and trade shows and demonstrating their products. One day in 1981, I was at Greenberg’s. It was a very old school natural food store on First Avenue, between Seventh and St. Mark's Place. I was in there doing a miso demonstration and handing out samples and Frank Simons, the guy who had just bought Angelica Kitchen, walked in. I didn’t know him at the time but I had been a fan of Angelica. He and I caught each other’s eyes, to say it mildly. We got engaged and I moved from the mountains of North Carolina to New York to be with him. That was what got me here – falling in love and doing the right turn so many of us know about.

Angelica was at 42 St. Marks Place at that time. It was a small place and we had very few seats, so we had an open policy about seating. People came in and sat in any empty chair in the restaurant, whether it was a two top or a four top, so lots of connections were made that way. That was very fun. It was very community spirited. Organic wasn’t as much of an issue at that time but there were a lot of products available. That became my mission once I was in charge of the restaurant after Frank died. I really believed in the small, independent organic farmer as stewards of the land, so I was able to get on my soapbox through having Angelica Kitchen and really support the farmers.

She moved to the current location at 300 E. 12th St. in 1987.


[Reader-submitted photo]

Meanwhile, a group calling themselves Friends of Angelica Kitchen have launched a crowdfunding campaign to help pay off remaining expenses.

Sadly, as a result of increased rent and operating costs combined with reduced patronage, the restaurant has been operating at a loss for over two years. Having poured all of her personal resources into the business in an attempt to sustain it, that effort has failed and she's now deeply in debt. Leslie feels a commitment to avoid having her difficulties adversely affect local farmers and small independent businesses, some of whom have been with Angelica Kitchen since the beginning.

Our goal for this fundraiser is $245,000.00. Unfortunately, nothing can be done to resuscitate Angelica Kitchen, but Leslie has many significant financial issues to deal with and would be grateful if Angelica could close with a clean slate, without financially damaging the small businesses who stood by her, some for 40 years.

Details here.

Previously on EV Grieve:
Angelica Kitchen is latest East Village restaurant in danger of closing (35 comments)

More about Angelica Kitchen's uncertain future

Out and About in the East Village with Leslie McEachern

61 comments:

Anonymous said...

This neighborhood is now high end foodie and celebrity chef run tourist magnet restaurants at one end and the other corny themed millennial bar food spots which seem to change with the season. Honest, healthy alternatives are having a hard time of not due to the lack of clients but landlord greed. I know I sound old school and wanting to hold onto the past but seriously which would you prefer paying through the nose or finding a restaurant you really like only to see it close in 6 - 24 months? I will this Angelica's and wish the best for all involved.

Anonymous said...

Wow, I'm of two minds. Sad to see this institution disappear, but to be asked to support a failed business that went into an obviously (in Sept. 2014) outrageous lease seems disingenuous.

sophocles said...

There rent was 20K+/month, which probably means they had to do at least 220K/month in business to survive. The prices were outside of my comfort zone, so I didn't go there much anymore, except for a day-old muffin. The muffins were very good. She had a good run in the E.V. As did I. The times they are a changin'. See you all on the other side.

Anonymous said...

I have lived in the neighborhood for 30 years and feel bad the restaurant has to close but there are better vegetarian/vegan options in the neighborhood now. This place was started back in the era when this food didn't taste great but it was healthy but now there is so much vegetarian/vegan food that is delicious. I wish they had been willing to update the menu a long time ago. I had given up on this place in the late 90s and went again last year with friends who wanted to give it another shot and none of us were happy with our food. Any business has to change with the times. Food tastes change and another point: people also want the convenience of paying with credit cards.

History Underfoot said...

I'm sad to hear this. I have many happy memories of meals at Angelica with family and friends.

Anonymous said...

I don't have much money but I am donating to charitable causes, especially food charities like Bowery Mission, now more than ever because of Trump but I can't see bailing out a business owner who didn't shut down when the writing was on the wall. Bankruptcy protection was made for these situations.

Anonymous said...

Oh my god. This is shocking. It's an institution, and whenever I walked by it seemed to be as popular as ever!

I would contribute money if I weren't broke. I wish I could save it. Maybe some celebrity angel could step in?

Anonymous said...

Sad to say, after a lifetime of living here I never ate here. I still remember this place when I was a child.....Oh well here we go into the future.

Anonymous said...

Crazy lease. Show me a business that can pay 21,000 a month for that location....

Anonymous said...

Sad all the good health food places are disappearing, remember viva herbal pizza around the corner from Angelica? I remember prior to Angelica there was a dry cleaner store in this spot. I think it was called R and S dry cleaners. Yeah I lived in the EV a long time and love it.

DrGecko said...

Prana was Greenberg's?

Anonymous said...

Any business will "fail" when the rent and expenses are unrealistically high. To survive you have to double your prices, which will turn away most if not all of their clients and then close due to a lack of business. They will be replaced by an ambitious new restaurant which will last less then 2 years.

JM said...

Might have gone there once in 30 years before catching a movie across the street. No meat, no interest. Sorry, vegans. Seemed like a mainstay...

Gojira said...

R & S Cleaners was on Second Avenue, between 11th and 12th on the east side of the street closer to 11th; there's an Italian restaurant in the space now. I used to take my leathers there to be repaired and cleaned, since they specialized in leather work, and my Ramones-inspired biker jacket always had to look its best! But I agree with @Anon. 9:03, a 40-year-old menu, in a town like this, is boring and unappealing. And really, in this day and age, what sit-down restaurant doesn't take credit cards, for God's sake?!?

afbp said...

maybe i think very differently--CROWDFUNDING is REALLY being abused--40 years in business and unable to save $500.00/month---WTF??

afbp said...

ps---squirreling away loads of CASH 😎

DrGecko said...

WTF Gojira ... you regularly cleaned a "Ramones-inspired biker jacket"??!! Have you no scruples?

cmarrtyy said...

Sentiments are nice but in business they are dangerous. She should have closed instead of going into debt. I've been in he EV for 45 years just around the block from the restaurant. And have enjoyed many a meal there. You will be missed. Good luck and lots of love.

Anonymous said...

The end of an era :(

Anonymous said...

@Gojira hmmm I remember R&S being on the corner where Hot Pot Central is now with a section where Angelica is. And when R&S down sized they moved more towards 11th street. Perhaps my memory is going too. But do you remember the japanese restaurant called Mee, where the Juke Bar is located now. Another loss from the area is Gothic Cabinets on 13th and 3rd, it is featured in some back ground scene in the movie Taxi Driver.

Anonymous said...

Oh meee oh myyy, what am I to do?

Anonymous said...

Boycott the East Village save places which opened before 2000.

Let's list pre-2000 EV businesses here. I'll start:

Ray's Pizza, Mona's, Trash & Vaudeville, San Loco, Gem Spa, Ray's Candy Store, Pyramid, St.Mark's Comics

Anonymous said...

Greenberg's became Prana.

Anonymous said...

Sorry to see a real ideologist have to go like this. 40 years is a long time. The rent is just too high to have an ideology other than a greedy pure profit motive.

Anonymous said...

@12:22pm: Thank you for mentioning "Mee Restaurant" b/c I was trying to think of the name the other day and couldn't!

Remember when "Mee" was the somewhat-exotic (and pretty much ONLY) Japanese restaurant in the area?

Yes, I have lived here that long - before Angelica, and when R&S was still on that corner, and, for that matter, when what's now "12th St. Ale House" was still Slugger Ann's!

And I still miss Jade Mountain Restaurant - RIP, Reggie Chan, who always had a smile for everyone. His warmth & cheerful attitude were wonderful and set the tone for feeling very welcomed in his restaurant, whether you were there to eat-in or to get take-out.

deva said...

@Dr. Gecko You're right, she must mean Prana! (aka Greenberg's?) That was truly an old-school health food store. Tofu in water, dusty bins and a worn-out wood floor. Real neighborhood. I remember Angelica from the original spot on St. Marks. Cheap, filling health food and it had that little desk chair for singles LOL. You will be missed, Angelica. You were one of the originators from this neighborhood.

Anonymous said...

This is a really sad day. For those who think that Angelica's didn't change, you are wrong. They started taking credit cards since at least last year as well as doing deliveries. There were daily different specials everyday. A few months ago they stopped having muffins and the wrap

There are far fewer vegan and vegetarian restaurants in the neighborhood than a few years ago. Gone is Pukk, Lan, Viva and the Madras Café which were all reasonable priced with good food.

Anonymous said...

Wasn't the 12th Ale House one a gay bar called Dicks?

Anonymous said...

@ Gojira and everyone else criticizing Leslie, why do you have to be so downright cruel? Leslie founded a business dedicated to providing healthy food and supporting small farms. She created a business from scratch, fed thousands of people good food, that was beautifully presented and it was her life for many years. So you rip her for trying to keep it alive, you rip her for hanging in there too long and incurring debt. Perhaps she reads this blog, but hopefully she doesn't because you all spout off ignorant comments and don't even know your facts, like she started taking credit cards, she started delivery, she offered a brunch menu, she secured a beer and wine license. At least she tried to do something, and the best you can do is criticize her. Oh and Gojira by the way the world doesn't care about your biker jacket and it doesn't revolve around you.
I will miss this fine place and wish Leslie the best with whatever she decides to dedicate the next chapter of her life to.

Anonymous said...

@4:34pm: Yes, 12th Ale House was previously Dick's, but BEFORE that it was Slugger Ann's. Way back when.

Gojira said...

DrGecko - Mille pardons, I miswrote. My Ramones jacket was taken to R&S twice, once to replace the lining, which had shredded so badly I could no longer get my arms into the sleeves, and once to put in a new inner pocket, that's all! My other, non-Ramones leather jacket once had a gallon of Coke (the soda) fall on it, so yes, it did need cleaning. But I assure you, I am not the Hottentot I made myself out to be! (And I still have the jacket, much worse for wear but no less beloved.)

@Anon. 12;22 et al, I do remember the wonderful sushi downstairs at Mee, when yes, it was the only Japanese place around. I also remember Slugger Ann's, later Dick's, but do not remember R&S on 12th St. perhaps that was before I moved here in 1978. Anyone remember Pete's Spice, the storefront on the other side of DiRoberti's? Penny's Spice on 7th? The neon Jade Mountain sign - I have my photos, wish we still had the restaurant. Greasiest shrimp toast I ever had! And my first futon frame (when my back could still take sleeping on one) came from Gothic Cabinets. Yep, I sure do miss the East Village of yore.

Anonymous said...

@2:45pm maybe less quantity, but with Superiority and Avant Garden quality is higher. Nix and Dirt Candy are two of the best in the city and just outside of the EV borders.

There is barely such a thing as cheap restaurant in the EV anymore, which is understandable because of rents, but businesses agree to them. And one this business owner foolishly agreed to with the lease she signed, she decided to put herself in this debt situation. Yes, it was around a long time, but that doesn't mean it deserves to stay around. Old doesn't mean good. And yes, there are lots of new places with chefs who went to culinary school and have worked at top restaurants in the city, people think this is a bad thing? Oh, I guess because they aren't at the McDonald's price point they want.

Unknown said...

About Greenberg's and Prana: Greenberg's was around in the late 1960s, early 1970s, an old-line health food store. They got into trouble when it was discovered that they were going up to the Hunts Point Market in the Bronx, buying conventional (i.e., pesticide-laden) food but selling it as "organic" (this was long before there were any organic standards), at markups befitting organic produce (back then, organic fruits and veggies were way, way more expensive than conventional foods; the price gap has dropped considerably). After going out of business, the store remained vacant for some time until the Integral Yoga store on West 13 Street rented it and opened up an east side branch of that store. Eventually, the two parted company and the east side store was renamed Prana.

blue glass said...

R&S moved from one building to another
they owned at least one where the tenants went on rent strike
i think it was the one in the center of the block, not sure

i think the one on the corner of 12th was their second site
so many changes, so long ago

blue glass said...

does anybody remember george and tillie on east 7th street (2-3)
only there friday and saturday - organic chicken by pre-order and some fruit and vegetables - expensive wormless apples and cheap ones with worm holes. great folks, always arguing, fabulous chicken
and pier nine, i think the first real restaurant
and who can forget the original bini bon that had wednesday old seriel movies and home-made chocolate cake - that i think became pier nine and then that became telephone
and 104 (2nd ave) bakery, yum, and something sweet
too many to count
this neighborhood had some wonderful stores



sophocles said...

I never heard that story about Greenberg's. Damn them if it's true. It's odd that some people miss the old Polish and Ukrainian places, and some complain about the 40-year old menu at Angelica's. I don't know if it's the same people. It's not as if Veselka is serving haute cuisine, but they do very well from all appearances. (Ultimate shock will be if they ever close.) For me, a good soup or chili with homemade corn bread is always good, but only at a certain price. Speaking of Veselka, why did you remove the salad from your combination plates, the only thing I ever ordered there?

BagelGuy said...

I'm surprised no one has mentioned how hard the city has made it for small indi businesses to survive. I'm all for paid sick leave and minimum wage increases but people should understand that while politicians may smile take the credit, those expenses fall squarely on the backs of the small biz. You're talking about tens of thousands of dollars per year. Add to that higher payroll taxes, bootleg fees and fines, meaningless license renewals, phantom real estate taxes , and ever increasing rents and it's no wonder why places are going down left and right of 8th street. Angelica is a great place and it was busy more often than not. This place would be thriving in any other city today. Yes, it may be a bit dated or behind the trend, but it had its following and there are many places like it around the country that do fine because those locations son't pull mafia style shake downs on their mom and pops.

Anonymous said...

Reading this article and comments, reminds me of the old neighborhood. Remember Woolworth, Paladium, Julian's billards, Luchow's, May's, McCory, Rego's Roost, Blimpee on 14th and 1st. i still remember around the corner of the movie theater on 12th there was a small cafe/ coffee shop. And I do miss Jade Mountain and Reggie...good man. RIP

Anonymous said...

Any thing other than behemoth mega chains like target, 7-11 etc will soon find it tough to live here. Small shoe repairs, dry cleaners, groceries and all the many great vintage clothes places face a mountain of rent. I went to a mtg to save Angelicas back in 2014 and I knew then the policy of not taking debit or credit cards and choosing not to advertise would make this place go out of business.
Unlike many here- I liked the menu as is, but have stopped ordering out from ANYWHERE due to cost. Couldnt even order Neptune Diner delivery anymore before that , very regrettably, closed too. Lower East Side has become the Upper East Side down here- but w/out any of the Up side. Just a generic strip mall w/ more congestion. Interestingly, apt rents are often LOWER now on the UPPER E Side.

Scuba Diva said...

At 6:57 PM, blue glass said:

and who can forget the original bini bon that had wednesday old seriel movies and home-made chocolate cake - that i think became pier nine and then that became telephone

BiniBon was located at 5th street and 2nd avenue; I had their chocolate cake the one and only time I went there in 1980 because the waitress raved about it. She wasn't lyin'.

Of course, BiniBon just couldn't survive the bad publicity that came out of the Jack Henry Abbott (In the Belly of the Beast) murder—who could?

Telephone (on 2nd avenue between 9th and 10th) was owned by a Swiss baker named Rudy Bader, who had the bakery called Encore in the 80s on 2nd between St. Mark's and 9th.

Anonymous said...

Correction: It was "Mie Restaurant", not "Mee".

Yes, tiny diner/coffee shop (somewhat like Stage Restaurant, but smaller) in the corner of the 12th St. movie theater building (the NE corner of the building, but on the SW corner of the intersection) - run by a young Asian couple, if I remember correctly.

Pier Nine... yep, had dinner there just before I got married. They were the "good" restaurant in the neighborhood. (Looking back, maybe they were one of the first indicators of gentrification.)

Retail: Kassvan (tchotchkes, as I remember it) and Ruzi (jewelry) - both just south of the movie theater at 12th & 2nd. I remember Kassvan closing, and Ruzi moved around the corner onto 11th just east of 2nd Ave., but I imagine it (and he) are long gone. Someone correct me if I'm wrong.

The "eggs store" that only sold fresh eggs (can that be right? My memory is going!) on 9th St. near 1st Ave.

There used to be a shoe repair place on the west side of 2nd Ave, between 12th/13th Streets - tiny place with an old-fashioned shoemaker. Where Pastel Nail Salon is, was (back then) a laundromat on the corner of 12th/2nd (NW corner), and a bit west on 12th Street was a dressmaker's shop - I can't remember her name, but she was an incredible seamstress for *anything* - whether alterations or making an entire outfit from her (or your) concept.

Where Pourhouse now is, formerly was Rolling Roaster, but before THAT, it was a pawn shop for ages.

I'm having a wave of longing for a neighborhood that had Jade Mountain restaurant, Slugger Ann's tavern, shoe repair, a laundromat, a dressmaker, a tiny diner, a movie theater, a jeweler, a dry cleaner, and a locksmith (A-Art, which is still there) - all within a 1-block walk. All of that made possible by affordable commercial rents!

Anonymous said...

Well if you read the text you would understand that she tried to hold on after accepting an untenable rent hike and poured all her personal savings into to the business ...this money is to pay off her creditors as she wants to honour all the small companies she owes money to. I consider this a non selfish route to take ......tell me what steps would you take if you had tried to hold on to a 40 year old business and failed ? Or are you just the perfect business person ?

Anonymous said...

@10:24 you may be correct on the spelling of the japanese restaurant it has been a very long time...memory is not what it used to be. Do any of you remember Revelations the antique store where Little Poland is now? Also where the drop off laundromat is now used to be that pakastani deli but it used to be an orange colored? Shop that sold african items. How about on 14th and 2nd where the eye glass shop is, it used to be a burger joint, called white tower? Twin tower? Can not remember what used to be at where KFC is now. Miss the old stores, you could actually have real conversation with the owners who remember your name....unlike a starbucks who asked for my name everytime I buy a coffee and I go there every weekday. Times have changed, sadly sometimes too fast paced.

DrGecko said...

@anon 8:32 - since you're anon, perhaps I can indulge in a personal comment without it actually being personal.

Some people would say that if you go to Starbucks every weekday, you're part of the problem.

My addition: If you have to give your name every time you go, how can you resist giving a different one each time?

Anonymous said...

Avant Garden,Dirt Candy and Nix are overpriced foodie restaurants. I especially like the potato gnocchi,celery root&truffle butter-$30. I tried Superiority Burger several times and it's lousy, the burnt broccoli is just that-burnt. Angelica's had a wide verity of vegan food and beverages, it was open for lunch, used filtered water and foods from local farmers. Angelica's is legendary. What a shame.

Anonymous said...

Will miss the whole crew, Malin McGowan and everybody. Will miss the cornbread, still special, soups, juices, kanten parfait-I will miss bumping into my neighbors and miss the unique decor and hip staff.

All the best to Leslie.

cmarrtyy said...

10:24
Job Ruzi lived in my building. What a wonderful character and talented jewlery designer. Born in the US. Turkish by heritage. A track star in high school. Funny considering how over-wieght he was. About 20 years ago, he took sick, stomach problems, and didn't survive.

Anonymous said...

The same person comments on every post and writes a book so long hijacking the whole blog. Must have a lot of time on their hands. Has a primary narcissism and obvious binary disposition and symptomatic infantile outbursts.


We love you and will miss you Leslie.

Anonymous said...

@1:04pm: Why do you assume "the same person" is commenting, given that MANY people comment, and most commenters here - including YOU - are "anonymous"?

Also, not clear why you don't understand that the closing of a long-time mainstay like Angelica Kitchen would make many locals think about other places that were also part of the neighborhood back then? It takes nothing away from Leslie's current situation. It's only "hijacking" in your head!



IzF said...

Superiority Burger is not lousy. I think it's one of the most delicious and best burgers out there.

Anonymous said...

Adding an ATM doesn't solve the "cashless" problem. It just creates another unnecessary expense for those of us that don't want to carry a bunch of money in our wallet.

Anonymous said...

@9:28am: As opposed to carrying access to your *entire* bank account on your phone (or planning ahead, as some people have been known to do).

Anonymous said...

@ 5:13 Thank you for putting my thoughts and feelings into words. I couldn't have said it better.
It's a sad situation and I have a family member who LOVES this place.

Scuba Diva said...

At 10:24, cmarrtyy said...

Job [sic] Ruzi lived in my building. What a wonderful character and talented jewlery designer. Born in the US. Turkish by heritage. A track star in high school. Funny considering how over-wieght he was. About 20 years ago, he took sick, stomach problems, and didn't survive.

Joeb Ruzi was Yemenite, and the store "Ruzi" was started by his father, also a jeweler; the three offspring—Shirley, Avi, and Joeb, who was the youngest of the three—went on to to continue the jewelry store, and Avi eventually left. Shirley stayed and helped in the store—she was also a competent jeweler—but eventually became ill with cirrhosis, believed to be caused by a medication.

[Shirley was great; I once said to Ruzi, "People say you're a womanizer."

He looked at me and said, "Ask Shirley if I'm a womanizer." I looked at him, and he said, "Go on, ask her."

So I said, "Shirley, is Ruzi a womanizer?"

She replied, "If he is, he's the worst excuse for a womanizer ever; the women take advantage of
him."

Oh, okay.]


His store was in the space where A-Art locksmith is now for over 25 years; when the theater renovated, Ruzi was displaced and moved to the space on 11th street where Insomnia Cookies is now; he didn't do nearly as well there. His store was still a hangout, but many fewer people came and congregated there.

Although Ruzi had been raised from about the age of one in Brooklyn, he went out to California in his 20s and had an extremely successful store called "Suppressed Desires." As far as I know, he met his wife in California and they eloped in Las Vegas.

All Yemenites are related, apparently; actually, the A-Art people are family to Ruzi, and he also had a cousin David who lived in the same building where Ruzi's wife lived. Although the two had rarely if ever lived together, he refused to divorce her and continued supporting her. She eventually started working in the store when he moved to the space on 11th street.

Ruzi had an ongoing problem with duodenal ulcers, and that landed him in the hospital; a WWII vet, he first went to Beth Israel, but for later hospitalizations chose to go to the VA hospital. He ended up in a VA nursing home, where he died.

EV Grieve said...

A group called Friends of Angelica Kitchen started the crowdfunding campaign, not Leslie the owner — there seems to be some confusion about that.

Charlie said...

Few people make the connection that natural selection is a real in business as it is in evolution. If the environment changes and you fail to adapt or find a new food source, you will die.

Take DeRobertis, for example. They failed to keep up with the times, while across the street. Venario's flourished. They essentially sold the same product. Why did the one with the better (more visible) location fail, but the other did not? Because when Italians moved out of the East Village and to places like Staten Island, both had a changing food source (customers), but only Venario's adapted to new customers (hipsters, tourists).

Tastes change. Cronuts may have been super popular at one time, but now no one cares. That's all part of natural selection.

Scuba Diva said...

At 10:24 PM, Anonymous said:

The "eggs store" that only sold fresh eggs (can that be right? My memory is going!) on 9th St. near 1st Ave.

That was on 7th street, and it was Tuesday only. Originally it was only eggs, but then they began selling other farm products and started opening other days as well.

The space was eventually rented to a gift store called "No More Eggs," and oddly, I heard of other stores in Staten Island and New Jersey also called "No More Eggs," but I don't think they were replacing egg stores.

Anonymous said...

Charlie I think your analysis is simplistic or inaccurate. Veniero's didn't change to appeal to "hipsters and tourists." They might have introduced some new items over the years, but their cookies and cakes have been much the same for decades. They simply put out a consistently excellent product so the customers keep coming. I don't think DeRobertis could compete on a product level, though admittedly I only went there a few times over the years. It seems to me that neither place adapted much, but one was superior.

Anonymous said...

@Scuba Diva: Thank you for the information about Joeb Ruzi. I did not know his background, nor what had happened to him, but it sounds like he lived a full and interesting life, and I appreciate that you took the time to write about him.

Anonymous said...

I still miss Pieces on 7th and A

Dina La Sirena said...

Dear Angelicas, Leslie ~ will miss you, have had many amazing meals in your old and new space. Was sad when you stopped delivery back in the day, happy you started again. Sent customers to you the other day , they wanted E.V. vegetarian, described the food as good and clean, an EV landmark.

Happy to hear about your flower garden, beaches and more peaceful times too.

Not able to donate to your fundraiser.
For today my donations go to help children of undocumented immigrants who go to school not knowing if their parents will be deported while they are in class.

& barley making it under the(told 2 week, now over 2 month scaffolding, customers say they cant find us between the screaming men from the shelter on one side(new challenge, was not allowed before) and looming scaffolding blocking view and sunshine) If you hear a bit of resentment, yup....And know only good will prevail
& the taxes the management started charging the businesses over a year ago So they wouldn't have to raise the tenants maintenance, who bought their apartments for $250 from the city, last year. They are poor and we are?? Abundant in joy, folk art and culture Yeah !! makes my corazon sing. Feeling a major positive shift happening.
Yo, known to be Srita optimist & Yes my story went into another tree branch .

Back to point, in the past few years we barely went, there where strange seating rules, didnt like the adding wine and coffee, changed the vibe, loved having a "legal drug" free restaurant and mainly the staff was hit or miss, hipster, something types, missed the warmth. Was was happy when delivery started again.
You will be missed and wish you the best in all your ventures, I know you know,when one door closes....
Paz y luz always.