Gov. Cuomo's moratorium on commercial evictions expired on Jan. 31 The posted eviction notice is dated Feb. 4...
Cuomo is advancing legislation to extend the statewide moratorium to May 1.
News of the closure prompted conversations about the dwindling number of diners left in the neighborhood. While the Lower East Side Coffee Shop was on the new-ish side, it had an old-school vibe, thanks in part to the neon signage that was a welcome sight alongside the Domino's, Trader Joe's and Target.
Elsewhere: Little Poland, which opened in 1985 at 200 Second Ave. between 12th Street and 13th Street, has been closed since last March.
At the start of the year, the diner's Instagram account posted a New Year's wish... with a note saying: "We ... hope we get to see all your beautiful faces soon!"
The storefront remains frozen in March 2020 time...
Closer to the last day, however, co-owner Steve Helios told Gothamist that Odessa was only closing temporarily, that the space would be renovated. (The building's landlord is Odessa partner Mike Skulikidis.)
To date, seven months later, no work has been done on the space... here's a look from this past weekend...
Kitchen Sink, a (slightly) more upscale diner, remains open at 88 Second Ave. at Fifth Street...
And not too far away, there's the Famous Cozy Soup 'n' Burger at 739 Broadway near Astor Place... (this photo is from last summer when they reopened after a five-month hiatus) ...
The diner is struggling to afloat with the downturn in activity (students, tourists, office workers) along this corridor. Manager John Stratidis, who has worked here since age 9, was featured on NY1 back in the fall. His father and uncle opened the diner in 1972.
The former Moonstruck Diner (as of October 2015) turned off a few die-hards with the arrival at the time of flat-screen TVs and drinks served in mason jars. (Pandemic aside, operating a diner in NYC is always a tough business with rising costs and changing tastes.)
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Updated: Adding Remedy (b. 2007) here over at 245 E. Houston St. at Norfolk.
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Cozy fan Adam Sandler gave them a nice shout-out on Instagram in late December, but the hits keep on coming. Last week, the blizzard wiped out their outdoor dining section.
Their crowdfunding campaign continues.
shout out to the waverly diner in the west village, still at it thank god!
ReplyDeleteRemedy, Joe Junior and Peter Cooper all still hanging in but it's bleak right now for all of them.
ReplyDeleteThe way restaurants have been treated during the shut-down has been very unfair. This is terrible.
ReplyDeleteEveryone who's still open is hanging on by a thread. Government does not care. You could even make the argument that they want us gone to clear the way for Uber, DD, and Amazon who are all building huge commissary kitchens in the city as I write. PPP was BS. Never was it going to help a restaurant by forcing us to bring back full staff when biz wasn't there.
ReplyDeleteOld school diners might be losing out given the current trends of the younger demographic not patronizing them. Menu items that can be replicated at home or not palatable with younger people.
ReplyDeleteI can a buy a frozen spinach pie at Trader Joe's and heat them up with a home made side dish of french fries, a common menu item found in most NYC diners.
Great point! Diners are often just as expensive as going out to eat at other establishments. I also think that the previous demise of lunch counters/quick luncheon places also contributed to the now dearth of affordable quick sit-down meals. These places allowed a quick turnaround without the need of a waitstaff, just countermen and women (who uses that term anymore, bar myself!). This reminds me of the great grill on Church Street and Chambers, if I recall. As much as I don't like frequenting chains, this day and age, it is often the most affordable way to grab food for a family. The affordable diner is sadly gone, Brooklyn and her mega 24 hour diners are dwindling as well. Rising costs and demographic changes have seen to that. I think the H&H Automats are ripe for a comeback, contactless service, lower overhead, variety for everyone!
DeleteYes, don't forget about the Neptune on 1st b/w 11th & 12th streets. Once they folded the chain reaction started :(
ReplyDeleteDiners were getting priced out before the pandemic, their menus becoming too expensive to provide the affordable dining experience of yesteryear because of standard Manhattan real estate greed. To this old timer Veselka has had wicked sticker shock for a while. Odessa's quality had declined precipitously by Obama's second term. And now I'm hungry and missing Theresa's.
ReplyDeleteDiners have become as experienced as other restaurants, which was not the case ever before. Why would I buy a meh diner burger for same price of a good quality one? Why would I pay more for chicken parm in a dinner, than in an Italian eatery?
ReplyDeleteAgreed with @11:46AM that diners have become more and more expensive. I feel as if too much of Manhattan is being pushed into this "it's like a regular business but it's now boutique mini-version because they couldn't afford anything bigger than a small hallway a landlord converted into a storefront" mentality. Ah well maybe a bunch more ramen chains will open up? That seems to be all that ever opens up once a business is pushed out for rent.
ReplyDeleteCozy Burger should have expanded its delivery area long ago and at least have gone on seamless, I live 9 blocks north and couldn't get them to deliver to Granercy. Joe Junior on 16th and Third is the best!
ReplyDeleteI like Gramercy Kitchen on 17th & Third although I guess it is more of a restaurant than a diner.
DeleteMaybe not for the old-timers, but the pandemic (and the nation's response to it) might be beneficial to small businesses started in 2021-2022. With all the "For Rent" signs out there, one would hope some of the sky-high rents have dropped down low enough for a new crop of small businesses to open and flourish once this is behind us.
ReplyDeleteStill, it's not a good situation for anybody in a customer-facing business right now, and it's not a good situation for customers looking to patronize their favorite businesses, either. Get those vaccines out, and hope they work well enough to keep the South African variant at bay, too...
Slightly west of your normal coverage area but I’m most heartbroken by the permanent closing of Good Stuff Diner next to the McBurney Y on 14th Street just past Sixth Ave, an always busy 24-hour joint that had the best burger and fries in town and did a great job on everything from breakfast to Italian classics to fresh salads and veggie options. They reopened briefly for outdoor dining but were gone by Labor Day. Also gone is the retro Big Daddy’s Diner at Park Ave South/19th Street where I used to get breakfast-for-lunch; this chain of three also closed its UES and UWS locations. Closer to home longstanding local favorite Knickerbocker Bar and Grill on University at 9th Street has been silent since March 15 tho I don’t think they’ve officially closed for good...yet.
ReplyDeleteThe loss of Good Stuff was hard. They were always bustling. Also more west, I really hope Washington Square Diner hangs on. They were my second kitchen for a while.
ReplyDelete@3:08PM. Your post reminded me of the many diners that have come and gone in recent years, with Goodstuff and Neptune Diners being two of the biggest losses. Goodstuff Diner had some of the best quality dishes, and the retro dining room was always a great place to eat. Neptune Diner had a nice back yard dining area, and a great vegetarian combo plate which paired well with a cold bottle of Zywiec. Big Daddy on Park Avenue was at first a fun place to get anything with a shake and tater tots, but it was at times very loud, turned into a bit of a tourist trap, and their service went out the window years ago. Still, they are missed. And Little Poland on 2nd Avenue had better reopen, I miss their pierogies and potato pancakes.
ReplyDeleteNew York Diners have been a dying breed for years, so any that survive the pandemic we should be thankful for, and patronize more often. The old Gramercy Diner on 3rd and 17th was replaced by a stripped down version of its former self called Gramercy Kitchen, while Joe Jr’s still has that old timey burger joint feel. Further up 3rd Avenue the former Lyric Diner, now Tivoli, has recently reopened, but so far it looks like it has few customers. Moonstruck Diner on 31st St., which used to have those giant fish tanks next to the booths, has shifted into a bar that happens to sell food.
There were two East Side Diners, the original on 3rd and 24th which was actually pretty great at times, especially their brunch in the dining room in the back, and one owned by a guy named Spiro (of course) on 23rd St. near 1st Avenue, with a neon sign that said "World’s Best Coffee." That was sold to another owner who did a garish renovation job and couldn’t keep it open for long, and it closed before the pandemic. Orion Diner (formerly Cosmos) on 23rd and 2nd is still open, and looks like it will survive.
Chelsea has somehow always supported a bunch of diners, but the Venus Diner on 8th Avenue near 23rd, an institution which was a great spot after seeing a movie, closed a few years ago. There are still two battling diners on opposite corners on 9th Avenue and 23rd Street: Chelsea Square and The Rail Line. Of course the most classic diner in Chelsea, Malibu Diner on 23rd St. near 7th Ave. is still open, with the worlds biggest cookies and pastries in the window display case.
Somehow I’ve never been to Knickerbocker Grill on University Place but have always wanted to go there. Hopefully they will return.
Giovanni—3:08PM here. Nice detail. I still miss the joint that was one of the first to go, on Broadway around 12th Street, that had been there years and years and had the best omelettes. Ditto Silver Spurs on Broadway at 9th Street, later a Starbucks before The Bean took the space. Silver Spurs also had a location on La Guardia Place at Houston, also gone, and owned the bodega that burned down in the fire that took out multiple businesses on the west side of Broadway from the 8th Street corner about five years ago. Definitely try Knickerbocker if they do make it back...great extensive menu of what I guess you’d call upscale but non fussy American fare for lunch or dinner admittedly at a higher price point than diner fare but serene ambience, largely local customer base, and as I understand it a long time late night journalist drinking spot in the bar area with occasional live piano.
ReplyDeleteIt's over. Long ago.
ReplyDeleteBring back Jones St. and The Cheyenne.
Or at least Theresa's
Last time I went to a diner I had scrambled eggs with home fries and a toasted ("griddled") corn muffin w/ coffee. $18
Amen, like someone else posted on here earlier, you can simply make your own breakfast and save a considerable amount of money. I think we can also say goodbye to the bottomless cup of coffee, that encourages people to hang around... kind of defeats the whole concept of the coffee house, but this is today's harsh reality.
DeleteHoping Eisenberg’s Sandwich Shop, opposite the Flatiron Building, reopens. They’re been around since the 1920s.
ReplyDeleteAt 10:39 PM, Anonymous said:
ReplyDeleteIt's over. Long ago.
Bring back Jones St. and The Cheyenne.
Or at least [sic] Theresa's
Last time I went to a diner I had scrambled eggs with home fries and a toasted ("griddled") corn muffin w/ coffee. $18
It seems Teresa's is still feeding the locals on Montague Street in Brooklyn Heights.
It's not far away; take the R train one stop into Brooklyn, to Court Street.