Here's a quick follow-up to yesterday's post about Le Fournil, the French bakery that opened yesterday in the former Moishe's space at 115 Second Ave. between Sixth Street and Seventh Street.
EVG contributor Steven took these photos, showing the gut-renovated interior... gone is the wood paneling and stuck-in-time homey vibe that Moishe's offered ...
[Photo by Derek Berg]
We're still waiting to find out more about the operators here (and if they will put up their own exterior signage) ...
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Updated 1/6
Per Gothamist, the owner is Jean-Francois Hebert, a third-generation baker from Normandy, France, who's been living in New York for eight years and working at places like Felix in SoHo and Cafe du Soleil on the Upper West Side.
Gothamist has more on the tiles that they unearthed here too.
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A quick take based on reader comments here and on social media — overall people seem to be happy that there's a new bakery that actually sells bread (and not more cookies and other sweets) ... there were a few grumbles about prices. Early taste tests were all positive.
... and an upclose shot of the menu via Eden...
Moishe's bake Shop closed back on March 5 after 40-plus years in business. In December, investor Jay Schwimmer picked up a 21-year lease for the entire three-story building with the option to buy it from Moishe Perl, who has been the owner since the mid-1970s. There's still nothing in public records indicating a sale — just a memorandum of lease.
No one seemed to know exactly what was going to happen with the space (including Mr. Perl, whose narrative changed in various media interviews), though EVG commenter GadgetFreak nailed it with news of a French bakery in a comment on March 25.
Previously on EV Grieve:
Claim: After 40-plus years, Moishe's Bake Shop has closed on 2nd Avenue
The mystery of Moishe's
An update on the former Moishe's Bake Shop
45 comments:
Prices are ok if you look at them right. The regular baguette is $3.75. This has, presumably, 1 grain. The 7-grain baguette is $4.00. So, it's only $0.04 for each additional grain.
Kosher?
Oy vey......
Is it kosher?
> "there were a few grumbles about prices."
$3.25 for a croissant is about the same as both now closed croissant shops. While I agree it's a bit much, I'm happy to have a place with croissants again!
Would be much happier with the place if they had hired back the lovely ladies who made visiting Moishe's such a pleasure. And where can I get decent pumpernickel bread in the neighborhood? Hard to believe I can't find a decent loaf anywhere.
And hamentashen? Nothing compares to Mosihe's hamentashen and pumpernickel. Oh the humanity!
$3.50 for a Regular Coffee? TOO EXPENSIVE!!!
Congratulations and good luck!(figured if the owners are reading they could use a break from all of the whining)
NOT humbug :)---there is a 80/20 thingy---my 2 cents---let's assume (EV population)---sample is of 10 people (assume they ALL love food/coffee)---2 don't care what the price is---love/convenience trumps all---8 do care what the price is---this is the BASE that ALMOST all NEW business seem to IGNORE---is it NOT better to price a cookie for $2.00 or a cup of coffee for $2.00---attract customers that will tell their friends/neighbors---seems that owners price their menus to 'pay salaries/rent/expenses' rather than to build a business---one of the MANY tenets of a NEW venture---expect NO profit for 2-3 years---sad---they don't last that long .....
For those of us who still eat bread and like it fresh this is great news. I agree with previous sentiments about not another cupcake or cookie place but an actual bakery, wow this IS progress.
Forgot to mention, the wall tiles (lovely) appear to be a old as the building (1890-1900) and what a shock it has been hiding behind that 70's era paneling.
They've done a good job with this - and prices seem fair except for coffee - I know the Puerto Rican place up the street is getting $3.25 - in all fairness starbucks is up to $2.50 for a small cup so it is not that much of a difference all told.
When you complain about pricing you are complaining about paying a living wage and paying paid sick and paid family leave to the people who serve you. Simple as that. Because yes , that cup of coffee does not cost $2.50 to prepare. You’re paying for the rent , those beautiful tiles , the rising cost of goods that the near doubling of min wage since 2015 has caused , and the fact that the guy pouring that coffee makes $18 an hour. And that’s great. He should. But it falls on all of us as a society to make that happen not just the small biz owner. And complaining about it is a slap in the face to a group ( the small biz owner ) that already takes its fair share of slaps from landlords , the city , the state, and a federal government that is out to have us replaced by Amazon and Starbucks.
rye bread--yea! I too would also like pumpernickel. The things we took for granted.
Can hardly wait to try their baked goods. No, it ain't Moishe's. No they won't have fresh black and white cookies; or Hamentashen at Purim; or fresh baked Challah at Rosh Hashonah....but if they have great croissants then they will be a favorite place of mine in no time.
@BagelGuy -
Any idea what percentage of monthly expenses the average bakery or bagel shop in the neighborhood would be paying in rent?
The reason I'm asking is that the landlords mostly just skim money. All your other expenses you get something for, but the landlords are by-and-large parasites, yet they control so much of the city's agenda.
Love the old tile walls,so special!..that alone makes me want to go there
I hope they are open Sundays for a pre- or post-church coffee and croissant! And appreciate BagelGuy’s point of view.
So, the operator/owner of Moishe's decided to cash out and this is what resulted? I guess time will tell and the commenters seem happy with the new place. It is always sad when a routine is changed and something familiar is replaced with something else but itis what the market will bear.
Baking bread for a living is a tough job. I’m happy to have a place making fresh baguettes and croissants in the neighborhood. Welcome and good luck, I’ll be by soon!
Dunkin has more warmth than this place. Plus from 2pm-6pm medium lattes are $2
I too look forward to more bread selections---but I agree that it looks like a nice place.
Sigh. Unsophisticated people always think "French" will make them more upscale. If I want a baguette, I can get one anywhere in New York. It’s the white bread of food culture.
Nobody seems to have much to say about their pastries, which us where a bakery's real art is demonstrated.
Bonjour à tous j habite à Saint Barthélémy FWI et je trouve que c'est très appréciable de voir une boulangerie pâtisserie comme on aime lorsque j'irais à NW j't passerai bravo pour la rénovation du magasin
If you complain about coffee pricing, you can just make coffee at home for a small fraction of the cost. You can carry a thermos around. Same with simple baked goods, no knead bread is quick and easy to make at home. This place needs to pay rent, presumably to Moishe or whoever owns the building, in turn, they pay property tax and sales tax that keeps NYC running. Buy your coffee from one of the sidewalk carts, it costs half as much and you get what you pay for, plus the carts cheat on paying sales and property tax. So stop complaining, coffee in a retail shop all costs about the same. Just about every food establishment sells coffee. This small business will be extremely lucky to make any money, please stop grouchung about normal simple pricing that seems totally reasonable. Or do you want 7/11 everywhere? Coffee is self serve for $1.09 with the 7/11 app, plus you get a free cup every once in a while plus you can buy a cheap roll or donut. Is that what you want? Except be careful with all the preservatives and chemicals in many 7/11 products.
hey @Bagelguy did it ever occur to you that the people complaining about the prices, are complaining because they are not in a position to see to it that the bread baker earns a living wage, because they are not earning a living wage themselves? Not because they begrudge the fact that someone should earn a living wage. Just in case you are not aware of what's outside of the Bagel success bubble, you know, all the NYU students lining up on the weekend for bagels, but that's not representative of everyone who lives in the east village.
I’ll only be happy about this when they come up with a hybrid between a croissant and a hamantashen and call it a cromantaschen.
No it's not Moishe'sj. No pumpernickel, no hamentashen, no black & white cookies. I was sad when Moishe's closed, another East Village institution gone but did you really expect a re-created Moishe's to open up? i love the beautiful tile work here and am thrilled at a place where I can get a good croissant. Let's celebrate this place for what it is and be happy it's not another bubble tea shop, CVS or bro bar.
@ ANON December 26, 2019 at 12:02 AM 1) Anonymity = Cowardice. 2) Complaining doesn't solve problems. 3) If you don't have anything nice to say keep your mouth closed. All three points taught by my first generation Italian American grandparents.
@Dr Gecko: It depends on the space and the rent. Every space is different. It's up to the biz owner to figure out what kind of rent his or her biz can sustain and also to hustle for the best rent he can get. I always think 'worst case scenario what can I handle.' Like suppose we have another Sandy? Do I want a $20,000 rent hanging over my head if I have to shut down for 2 months? How many places that do what I do are in a 5 block radius? What is the median income of the area? All that factors into the equation. After that, if the biz isn't there you have to go generate it elsewhere. AT this point TSB does far more biz outside the EV than inside. We had to go make that happen or we wouldn't be around. It's a day in day out slugfest for owners. I only commented here because a fella shouldn't have to read negative comments out of the gate. I'm sure these guys are priced fairly. Goods have skyrocketed since the M W went up. It isn't easy.
I think prices are fair game for criticism as is the quality of the product. I don't make purchases thinking who can I help with their exhorbitant rent today. I am not paying $3.50 for a basic cup of joe unless you pry the money out of my hands. But I have not been there so I don't know that it is basic. Maybe they serve it in a melior...
Moishe's was old school. You won't find anyone opening another Moishe's until after the apocalypse.
As for Bagel Guy's three rules--they made more sense before circa 1995.
Anonymity is smart if you don't want people stalking you on the Internet or using your social media history against you in some negative way, and to protect yourself from people who are always talking like they are looking for a fight. Nobody here is posing their real name with their picture and home address, so that doesn't make their comments any less valid than yours. Sophocles is right, after 1995 everything changed. Some people are still known as 20947469@compuserve.com. Even EV Grieve himself was anonymous until someone decided to out him years ago.
As for the prices, if the product is good enough then people will pay it, otherwise they will go bust. In Canada the minimum wage has always been higher than the US, but in Montreal you can buy a bag of a dozen croissants for $12, or a croissant sandwich for $5, which is about what most places here sell a chocolate croissant for. The difference is the rent.
Also, our health care costs are more than double of Canada and the EU, with half a million people a year filing for bankruptcy due to medical bills. Two thirds of all bankruptcies in the US are caused by medical bills. Do you know how many people file for bankruptcy in other first world countries due to medical issues? Zero. US workers are getting screwed coming and going by lower wages and higher healthcare costs, a system that favors billionaires and big corporations. That’s the real issue.
@sophocles. You just proved the whole point. You want pricing from 25 years ago. The world has changed. 25 years ago I made 6 dollars an hour at the bagel shop where I worked . Today people make 18 minimum. Rents are higher. Food costs are higher. And on and on ... This guys prices are pretty standard for NYC. And I believe his coffee is $2.50 not $3.50. In any case complaining never solves anything. Most of my twenties I lived in frozen vegetables and cans of tuna. I rarely went to a bakery for breakfast or a restaurant for dinner. If I did , it was because I saved my money and considered it a treat. Never , did I ream an owner for his prices. Never , would I hop on line and trash an establishment. Mostly because I knew enough to know I knew nothing about what the owners were dealing with. I’ll repeat this fellows pricing is pretty fair and I’m sure a good portion of it is going towards payroll , paid sick , paid family leave and NYC rent.
@anon 9:30. Thank you for proving my original point. Next time you take a trip to Canada , take a glance at your receipt after you make a purchase. Note the double taxation. You’re spending more to support a cause for the greater good. Prices have increased over the past 7 years to help support a cause for the greater good. As for anonymity , if you don’t have to courage to stand behind what you say , don’t say it. This is a forum for adult thought and discussion. Nobody here is stalking anyone or getting into fist fights over points of view. Too many folks on this site and other make outrageous ass backwards inflammatory comments and hide behind anonymity.
@BagelGuy---as a fellow (BagelNosh 1977/1989) owner---i respect/understand your point-of-view---your thoughts/opinions are 100% valid---the CONUNDRUM---for the sake of the back/forth---let's separate owners of small business from patrons of small business--- for ANY of this to seem rational---We (for me now) patrons of the EV do not live in a vacuum and want our businesses to survive---having-said-that---WE have proven ad nauseum that 'price gouging'---be it $60 for a wholesale bottle of $10 wine at a NEW restaurant or $32 for a wholesale $8 chicken or $4 for a $1 cup of coffee---does not make 'sense' to US---trying to 'force feed' a VERY VALID cost analysis to a group of unwilling participants (who are bombarded by NEWS about ICON REALTY/JARED KUSHNER/STEVE CROMAN/MARIA HRYNENKO) seems a bit fanciful at best :)
Good luck to the new coffee bar...glad it's not a Starbucks :)
@afbp. Point taken. My point is , there is no such thing as a ‘dollar cup of coffee’ anymore. Not because of price gauging but rather because the small biz guy is now paying $18 an hour to the guy who pours that coffee and a $20 fuel surcharge to the company that delivers the beans. Said company also raised the price of said beans to cover his increase in labor costs. Whether people want to believe it or not , commercial rents have dropped dramatically over the past 3-4 years. Yet places are folding left and right and product prices have climbed. The reason why is the ripple effect the min wage increase has had . Again , great cause and I am all for it. But that’s why folks pay $2.50 for a croissant instead of $1 Not rents. Again , if we are as for this cause as we say then we all need to contribute and stop griping over a few extra cents. Otherwise shop Amazon and Trader Joe’s . As an owner , I find complaining and griping hurtful. And I’m sure most owners do as we are all people pleasers by nature. We do the best we can.
Esteemed Dear Sir Gentleman of the Bagels:
I, too, and I suspect many of your customers as well, do not begrudge your workers a living wage, but I (and, I suspect, many others) do begrudge the landlords their unearned booty, which is why I'm wondering what percentage of the prices we pay would be going to rent, and therefore how much we should be complaining. If you're in a position to give a range, that would be useful information.
I absolutely do not understand your complaint about complaining. Complaining is every New Yorker's birthright, a custom eagerly adopted by those whom New York adopts. It is one of the glories of the city. We get it from our mothers.
A bakery’s art starts with bread. If it wants to expand its wares and also be a pastry shop, that’s fine but great bread is rare and can be its own reward.
I have to go to the other Moishe’s on Grand Street to get a decent Jewish Rye or Pumpernickel, black and white cookie or sugary bow-ties.
Can get croissants and baguettes anywhere. Too bad.
I passed by on Sunday to have a look and a coffee & croissant. Closed! I would recommend not being closed on Sunday if you want to stay open! many visitors and locals alike having a wander.
The family who owns the bakery is actually French. (Full disclosure, I’ve obviously met them myself.)
Nice tiles. But yes this was the place for hamentaschen and pumpernickel alright. Can Moishe sell them online? Or can the new store sell them? That might be a nice gesture. Meanwhile tourists, and millennial yuppies won't have a clue what they are missing. They will ride the Bulldozer of capitalism until that day they find themselves under it
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