Tuesday, December 21, 2021

Cornerstone Cafe calls it quits

The East Village has lost a solid breakfast spot. 

Yesterday, the owners of Cornerstone Cafe on the NE corner of Avenue B and Second Street announced its closure after 10-plus years in business. 

In an Instagram post, the Cornerstone cited the ongoing pandemic and the city's related mandates and restrictions for the closure...
The restaurant opened in the early summer of 2011

Cornerstone Cafe made headlines in August 2017 after a member of the waitstaff used an Asian slur about a customer on a printed receipt. Management fired the employee and issued an apology.

H/T Salim!

11 comments:

Neighbor said...

Noooooo! Surprised to hear it how busy they seem for most breakfasts. Never figured a good evening menu, I guess.

Anonymous said...

That was 4 years ago one asshole employee did something stupid and you're dragging that up. DiBlasio and the City Council killed this business.

Anonymous said...

Dinner menu was great, especially the chicken parm and a decent affordable steak. Pity.

Anonymous said...

I am sorry to read about Cornerstone's closing they had good food I especially liked their spaghetti and meatballs which I used to have there for dinner. They will be missed.

Anonymous said...

A nice, NORMAL place, the antithesis to the disgusting bullshit going on on the corner on 3rd and B. We need a normal regular diner-like spot. RIP Cornerstone. Hope it gets resurrected.

Xeo said...

This is a major shame. But sadly not a huge surprise :(... They've clearly been struggling during the past year. For a while there when things were a bit more normal in the city they still hadn't returned to normal hours. I know that I wanted to grab dinner there a few times and each time they were closed.

I hope we get a cornerstone clone to replace this place - but we probably will just get another empty storefront.

Anonymous said...

I hope to get the chance to thank Rocco for bringing something so good and reliable to the neighborhood. He’s a great neighbor. Good luck with your next chapter, Rocco!

Anonymous said...

Between the pandemic and struggling with outdoor dining due to the scaffolding from the renovation next door, they were dealt an unfortunate, unfair hand. Truly saddened to see it go I will miss their wonderful breakfast.

Unknown said...

Best eggs Benedict around. Perfect bloody Mary's. Really friendly staff. My go to place when I lived in the hood. Even when I moved I came back for lunch as often as possible. You'll be terribly missed.

Anonymous said...

It’s newsworthy when something like that happens, newsworthy (and very positive) that management did the right thing, and fair to mention things people might remember about a restaurant when writing about it.

Anonymous said...

I really appreciated them keeping it real in the hood. Sad to see them go and what bs trendy whatever cones to take over for a few months.