Say cheese: S'MAC celebrates 19 years in business

Photos and reporting by Stacie Joy

S'MAC (aka Sarita's Macaroni & Cheese) celebrated its 19th birthday over the weekend at its NW corner space on First Avenue and 12th Street. 

Owners — and longtime East Village residents — Sarita and Caesar Ekya, both trained engineers, opened the restaurant in the summer of 2006 with a creative twist on the classic comfort food. 

Originally located at 345 E. 12th St., S'MAC moved to its current spot in 2017. 

In addition to serving up cheesy concoctions (we mean that in a good way), S'MAC has also been a generous neighbor. For several years, the Ekyas partnered with East Village Neighbors, a local volunteer group, to provide meals for community members in need through a fridge and pantry outside the restaurant. (The initiative ended after tenant complaints led the landlord to ask for its removal.) 

Nearly two decades in, S'MAC remains a comforting constant in a neighborhood that seems to be constantly changing.

That's all for the East Village Neighbors Community Fridge on 12th Street and 1st Avenue

Photos and reporting by Stacie Joy 

The East Village Neighbors Community Fridge and Pantry, located at the NW corner of 12th Street and First Avenue, was removed from service yesterday.

For the past four years, the fridge and pantry have been stationed outside S'MAC, where owners Sarita and Caesar Ekya, along with East Village Neighbors, a local volunteer group, helped provide food for people in need. 

However, as we first reported on Friday, the landlord had been fielding calls and complaints from tenants and neighboring businesses about the fridge and pantry for months. (Complaints range from people blocking the street to fighting among those seeking food.) 

Sarita made it clear that her landlord was not to blame, that he was "one of the good guys." However, given the number of complaints, he had no choice but to ask for the fridge's removal. 

The damaged fridge, placed on the curb, was being recycled.

For now, donations can go to the Chelsea Fridge on Sixth Avenue and 15th Street or the Loisaida Community Fridge on Ninth Street and Avenue B. 

Sarita and Caesar hoped to find a new home for the East Village Neighbors Community Fridge. Sarita told us yesterday, "Things are moving, but there have been no commitments from places as of yet." 

Previously on EV Grieve: 

• The 4-year-old East Village Neighbors Community Fridge will no longer be in service on 12th Street and 1st Avenue

The 4-year-old East Village Neighbors Community Fridge will no longer be in service on 12th Street and 1st Avenue

Photo and reporting by Stacie Joy 

Sunday is the last day for the East Village Neighbors Community Fridge and Pantry on the NW corner of 12th Street and First Avenue. 

For the past four years, the fridge and pantry have been stationed outside S'MAC, where owners Sarita and Caesar Ekya, along with East Village Neighbors, a local volunteer group, helped provide food for people in need. 

Sarita said that her landlord, with whom she has a great relationship — she says he's "one of the good guys" — has been fielding calls and complaints from tenants and neighboring businesses about the fridge and pantry for months. (Complaints range from people blocking the street to fighting among those seeking food.)

 

During a phone call, Sarita said that she has been unable to secure another business to take this operation over and was hoping to find a religious or community-based spot, but that has also been proving difficult. So Sunday is the last day for the fridge and pantry; on Monday morning, both will be recycled.

In the interim, starting Monday, donated food will be brought to the Chelsea Fridge or the Loisaida Community Fridge on Ninth Street and Avenue B. 

"Hosting the East Village Neighbors Fridge at S’MAC the last four years has made us feel all the feels. We've met so many incredible people and have had a village help keep it going this entire time," Sarita said. "The amount of food being rescued daily and the amount of meals provided to our neighbors by such a strong community who cares has been heartwarming. We know the fridge will be a loss to the community, but we hope to find a new home soon." 

She expressed concern for all the daily regulars who depend on the food, meals and supplies.

The fridge debuted on Oct. 7, 2020. Their first attempt was knocked over and KO’d after only three days. The refrigerator was vandalized again in August 2021. 

Previously on EV Grieve: 

• A Visit to the East Village Community Fridge and Food Pantry (October 2020) 

• East Village Community Fridge providing free food outside S'MAC on 1st Avenue; donations welcome (October 2020) 

• A Thanksgiving feast for neighbors in need at the East Village Community Fridge (November 2020) 

• A new look (and name!) for the East Village Neighbors Fridge (December 2020) 

• The East Village Neighbors Community Fridge is up and running again after vandal strikes (August 2021)

City removes tree said to have been tangled up with a sanitation truck on 1st Avenue

The tree on the northwest corner of First Avenue at 12th Street was spotted on the ground yesterday morning. (Thanks to William Klayer for the photos.)

We asked Caesar Ekya, the co-owner of S'MAC on that corner, about what transpired.

According to Ekya, a sanitation truck was traveling north in the bike lane, emptying the garbage cans along the west side of First Avenue on Tuesday night around 11. 

"It must have got tangled in the branches because as it drove off it pulled the tree along with it," Ekya said. "That was a gorgeous tree and we're hoping the city can put it back and not have to tear it out." 

Unfortunately, before the day really got started yesterday and Ekya arrived at the restaurant, the city already had the tree removed.

Neighborhood Food Swap in action

Several community leaders recently launched the Neighborhood Food Swap to help feed families in need on the Lower East Side during the COVID-19 crisis.

To date, the group, which includes John M. Blasio, Alana Sivin and Aura Olavarria, have identified 31 multi-person families who could use a meal. They've also collaborated with two East Village restaurants, S'MAC on First Avenue at 12th Street, and Khiladi on Avenue B at 11th Street, to serve as partners and deliver the meals.

Thanks to $500 in donations to the Food Swap website, S'MAC owners Sarita and Caesar Ekya delivered meals for 90 NYCHA residents living in the Baruch Houses on Houston and Columbia Street this past Thursday evening. EVG contributor Stacie Joy was there as the volunteers distributed the meals ...








[Sarita and Caesar Ekya]

You can learn more about the Neighborhood Food Swap here.

S'MAC's curbside service

Sarita and Caesar Ekya, owners of S'MAC on the northwest corner of First Avenue and 12th Street, have reorganized the storesfront to make curbside ordering and pickup easier. (They are delivering as well.)

Meanwhile, we're continuing to try to update our list of East Village cafes-restaurants that are currently open for takeout and delivery. The list remains incomplete for now.

In case you were craving mac-n-cheese late nights or early mornings on the weekend

Staring tonight, S'MAC (aka Sarita's Mac & Cheese) is expanding its hours over at First Avenue and 12th Street.

Moving forward, they'll be open until 5 a.m. on weekends. Dine-in, takeout and delivery will all be available.

S'MAC moved to this corner space in the summer of 2017 after 11 years at 345 E. 12th St.

Former S'MAC space for lease on 12th Street

Earlier this month, S'MAC (aka Sarita's Mac & Cheese) moved from their 11-year-old home on 12th Street several storefronts away to the northwest corner at First Avenue.

And now that former 12th Street storefront is on the rental market. The listing hasn't made its way online yet. Per the signage, the landlord is looking for a restaurant tenant.

The other restaurants right along here are Pata Negra, Motorino, Thai Terminal, Ducks Eatery and, soon, Saltwater NYC, an Australian coffee shop.

Previously on EV Grieve:
S'MAC is open in new home on 1st Avenue and 12th Street

S'MAC is open in new home on 1st Avenue and 12th Street

[The former S'MAC space at 345 E. 12th St.]

As noted earlier last week, S'MAC (aka Sarita's Mac & Cheese) was moving from their 11-year-old home on 12th Street several storefronts away to the northwest corner at First Avenue...

That move is now complete. (Friday was the last day for S'MAC at 345 E. 12th St.)



Several readers noted that S'MAC was open for awhile in the new space on Monday...


[Photo by Lola Sáenz]

They are expected to be back open after the July Fourth holiday...



The corner space was previously East 12th Osteria, the Italian restaurant that left at the beginning of the year.

A new home for S'MAC on 1st Avenue and 12th Street

It looks as if S'MAC will have a new, more high-profile home... several storefronts away from their current location on 12th Street between First Avenue and Second Avenue.

EVG regular dwg shared these photos showing the transformed space on the northwest corner of First Avenue and 12th Street...



There's also a sign on the door for the UPS/FedEx folks...



Caesar Ekya, who owns and operates S'MAC with his wife Sarita, told me that they hoped to have the new location open the weekend after the Fourth of July holiday.

The macaroni-and-cheese specialists opened on June 24, 2006.

The corner space previously housed East 12th Osteria, the Italian restaurant that closed and moved back in January.

This holiday season, Turkey Mac is back at S'MAC

As we were first to report, Thanksgiving is coming up on Dec. 3 next Thursday, Nov. 26.

We mentioned the Thanksgiving arepa at Arepa Factory the other day…

And now at S'MAC over on East 12th Street between First Avenue and Second Avenue, you can, again, order the Thanksgiving Turkey MAC …



What is it? "Juicy turkey and swiss cheese topped off with herbed stuffing (our 'in-house' recipe!). Served with a side of homemade gravy and cranberry jelly." (It is available as gluten-free too…)

Find the details here.

S'MAC turns 9, and celebrating with a $1 deal

Via the EVG inbox…

Happy Birthday! That's right, S'MAC is nine years old!

In celebration of our 9th birthday, on Tuesday July 21st we will be offering the All-American Nosh for $1.00 (Regular, Gluten-Free or Vegan).

Available at both the East Village and Murray Hill locations.

Limit one All-American nosh per person.

Valid for takeout only, not for deliveries.

Find more details here.

S'MAC is located at 345 E. 12th St. between First Avenue and Second Avenue.

Today in posts about turkey mac-n-cheese

Via the EVG inbox from S'MAC on East 12th Street...

Our Thanksgiving Turkey MAC is back on the menu and you can find details on our website ...

It will stay on the menu through Christmas.

More about S'MAC's decision to leave First Park

[January 2012]

News came down last week that S'MAC had closed its satellite operation at First Park after nearly 18 months at the location off of East Houston and East First Street. S'MAC took over for Veselka at the kiosk in January 2012.

We reached out to Caesar Ekya, who owns and operates S'MAC with his wife Sarita, for more details about the decision and the future at First Park.

On running the kiosk:

"We had high hopes for it. It is such a lovely park and neighborhood, and we felt that it would be great to be part of it and help develop it into something better.

But the sales didn't materialize and we ended up losing money there every week that we were open. We tried different formats, timings, product mix, even started delivering, but were not able to raise sales to a break-even number.

We still have more ideas for it and more things on our list to try but then, in the past few months, two things happened that made us decide to give it up. One was the opening of the Murray Hill location and the other was the Health Department mandated closure of the East Village original.

With those two events we realized that we needed to bring our focus back to the two locations that we know work and are profitable, and so the decision to close became inevitable."

On the future at First Park:

"We still feel very sad having to close the kiosk. We feel it has a lot of potential for the right vendor and are working with the Parks Department to find someone who can turn into the neighbor it can be.

If we terminate our lease and walk away, then it will go back to a bidding process and will remain closed for the next 6-9 months. So our preference is to try and find someone to assign the lease to. We have talked to a lot of the neighborhood businesses already, especially coffee shops, and there are some potentials in the pipeline. Hopefully, we will know for sure in the next 2-3 weeks."

The S'MAC locations on East 12th Street and in Murray Hill remain open.

S'MAC has closed its kiosk in First Park

[January 2012]

S'MAC opened a satellite location in the First Avenue/Houston kiosk back in January 2012.

However, as of July 5, S'MAC has vacated the premises. Here's their official word:

Dear Customers and Neighbors,

The First Park location of S’MAC is now closed. We are sad to see it go and enjoyed our time there but we can still satisfy your mac & cheese cravings at our two other locations that are going strong!

East Village
345 East 12th Street (btw 1st and 2nd Ave)

Murray Hill
157 East 33rd Street (btw 3rd Ave and Lexington)

Thanks so much for your patronage over the past 1.5 years!

The S'MAC Team

S'MAC took over for Veselka at the First Avenue/Houston kiosk.

Meanwhile, a reader has already noted the following in the Park:

With S'Mac closed, the part of First Park that housed it — along with all the benches where regular people hung out — is now chained shut. I hope this isn't going to last until a new business takes over — it's a PARK & should be a public space!

[Updated] S'MAC seeking help

From the EV Grieve inbox... via S'MAC at 345 E. 12th Street just west of First Avenue...

In the aftermath of Hurricane Sandy, like all downtown restaurants, we sustained heavy losses due to spoiled inventory and loss of business, and are working with our insurance carriers to see how much we can recover.

In the meantime we have decided to carry a full payroll for our staff for the week that we were forced to shutdown, but in order to do this we need your help.

If you intend to eat at S'MAC at any time in the next year, we ask that you consider putting that amount on a S'MAC gift card and use that card when you come in to eat in the future.

Please consider using S'MAC gift cards to fulfill a part of your Holiday gift-giving this year. And please buy that gift card now rather than wait until later in the year.

Either of these ideas will allow us to collect cash, that you had intended to spend at S'MAC, up front and use it for employee payroll now.

To purchase a S'MAC gift card, please go here.

Updated 9:27

DNAinfo has a piece on S'MAC's gift-card campaign tonight... Per the article by Serena Solomon, owner Sarita Ekya estimated that her Sandy-related losses were $90,000.

S'MAC, which first opened in 2006, has three locations — East 12th Street, East 33rd Street and a small kiosk on First Avenue and 1st Street — that were not damaged in the storm but were all forced to close. The East Village and Murray Hill locations were shut for eight days and the kiosk for 11 days.

S'MAC also decided to pay workers for the time the restaurants were closed during the hurricane.

However, now the bills have started arriving and rent on the shops is overdue by more than 10 days, she said.

Free iced things tomorrow

From the EV Grieve inbox... from S'MAC

Since Wednesday, June 20th, is the first day of summer, we decided to ring in the hot weather with free iced coffee or iced tea at our First Park location. Come swing by our kiosk to get a refreshing iced drink!

P.S. - this offer is available only at the First Park Cafe (which opens at 7 a.m.) and not at our 12th Street restaurant.

Oh: S'MAC now open at First Park

Last June, news broke, via DNAinfo, that S'MAC was taking over for Veselka at the First Avenue/Houston kiosk.

In July, we asked Sarita Ekya, who runs the popular East 12th Street macaroniship with her husband Caesar, when they might open. At the time they were aiming for a fall opening...

Hey, anyway. Only yesterday did we notice that they are up and running here... The S'MAC Facebook page notes that they opened on Dec. 20. Currently just serving the cheese from noon to five, but extended hours are coming soon...

East Village residents apparently really like having macaroni and cheese delivered

[EVG file photo]

Delivery.com has named S'MAC, the mac-and-cheese empire on East 12th Street, the city's busiest delivery service in the city. (This only takes in account deliveries made via Delivery.com from 2011; S'MAC took in more orders than any other restaurant that delivers, the Post reported.)

Co-owner Sarita Ekya told the Post that they make upwards of 50 deliveries an hour on Saturdays.

And as the Post points out, S'MAC (short for Sarita's Macaroni & Cheese) "the restaurant's name is a play on words that harks back to the bad old days when junkies lined up on East Village streets looking for a different kind of fix."

"East Villagers get it," said Ekya, a Nova Scotia native. "Other people will think it's just an abbreviated form of the whole name."

S'MAC planning on an early fall opening at the First Avenue/Houston kiosk

We first heard that S'MAC will be taking over for Veselka at the First Avenue/Houston kiosk back on June 4, as reported by Patrick Hedlund at DNAinfo.

Little Veselka cleared out as expected at the end of June.

So when will S'MAC take over the space? We asked Sarita Ekya, who runs the popular East 12th Street macaroniship with her husband Caesar.

"We just finalized our agreement and picked up keys for the space," she said. "There is work to be done before we open so it looks like early fall at this point."

So, will there be S'MAC samplers for breakfast? Or where there be more traditional items for sale at that hour?

"We plan on being open the morning hours for coffee, pastries and the like," she said.

Previously.