Restaurant space at 88 2nd Ave. hits the market after 4 years of turnover

The restaurant space on the NE corner of Second Avenue and Fifth Street is now on the rental market, ending a four-year run of sometimes-open concepts since the fall of 2021. The for-lease sign via Compass arrived yesterday. (We didn't spot the listing online.)

At 88 Second Ave, the diner Kitchen Sink went dark in the summer of 2021... and ownership later transformed the space into a Greek restaurant called Eros... which quietly closed in August 2022 ... to later emerge as Sunflower East Village, which closed for a "restructure" four months later. This sister cafe to the one on Third Avenue in Gramercy Park never reopened. 

Now someone else will have a shot of making something work in this prime EV space...

Openings: Sunflower Cafe on 2nd Avenue

Photo by Stacie Joy 

Sunflower debuted last week at 88 Second Ave. at Fifth Street. 

This is a sibling to the cafe of the same name on Third Avenue in Gramercy Park with the Instagram slogan "Let’s Brunch baby!" 

They serve some breakfast staples, lunch, and various coffee and drinks (menu here). 

Daily hours for now: 8 a.m. to 8 p.m.

Sunflower is owned and operated by the same folks as the previous tenant here, Eros, the Greek restaurant that quietly closed in August 2022. Eros took over for their diner concept, The Kitchen Sink, in September 2021.

Previously

A sign of the Sunflower (and brunch) on 2nd Avenue

Renovations continue inside 88 Second Ave. at Fifth Street. 

As we've been reporting, this will be a second outpost of Sunflower, the cafe serving breakfast-brunch on Third Avenue between 24th Street and 25th Street.

There's some Sunflower neon signage up in the back and this very visible "You had me at... Brunch!" sign...

We didn't spot any signs reading "It's Brunch O'Clock" or "Go Ahead, Mimosa My Day!" or "What Happens at Brunch Stays at Brunch."

Sunflower is owned and operated by the same folks as the previous tenant here, Eros, the Greek restaurant that quietly closed in August 2022 when a "temporarily closed" sign arrived on the front door and stayed for 16 months. Eros took over for their diner concept, The Kitchen Sink, in September 2021

Thanks to Eden and Steven for sharing photos from here!

Eros is still 'temporarily closed,' and now fully empty

The curious saga of Eros continues... the Greek restaurant has been closed since early last August on the NE corner of Second Avenue and Fifth Street.

That's when a "temporarily closed" sign has been on the front door. The Greek restaurant's website still notes that this location is "closed for renovations. Reopening TBA."

The city removed the lengthy curbside dining structure from Fifth Street — after multiple warnings — in January.

Most everything from the interior has either been removed (as of last week) or shoved against the windows along the Fifth Street side of the space... 

Eros took over for the diner the Kitchen Sink in September 2021 (same owners) ... management previously changed names from Moonstruck to the Kitchen Sink in the fall of 2015. 

We've talked to several nearby residents who said they'd welcome the return of a more diner-y-type establishment like the Kitchen Sink.

City removes the curbside dining space at Eros on 2nd Avenue and 5th Street

This a follow-up to a post from Jan. 15... on Friday morning, the city removed the curbside dining structure from the Fifth Street side of Eros on the NE corner of Second Avenue. (Thank you, Eden, for the tip!) 

On Jan. 10, the Department of Transportation issued a "Termination" notice for the curbside space that ran the length of the Greek restaurant, which hasn't been open in more than five months.

Meanwhile, the indoor space remains dark. 

Eros took over for the diner the Kitchen Sink in September 2021 (same owners) ... management previously changed names from Moonstruck to the Kitchen Sink in the fall of 2015. 

The Eros website still notes that this location is "closed for renovations. Reopening TBA." We had not seen anyone inside the space since the restaurant closed in August. The "temporarily closed" sign is still on the front entrance.

City issues removal notice for the curbside dining structure at the currently-closed Eros

Photos by Steven

An item from earlier this week... Eros, the Greek restaurant on the NE corner of Fifth Street and Second Avenue, is entering its fifth month of what is billed as a temporary closure. 

Meanwhile, the Department of Transportation has noticed... and issued a "Termination" notice for the restaurant's lengthy curbside dining structure...

The DOT notice is dated Tuesday (Jan. 10). Eros had 24 hours to remove it from the Fifth Street side before the city did ... (it remains in place as of this morning, Jan. 15) ... 

We previously spotted a letter here from the DOT dated Sept. 6 requesting that ownership correct some deficiencies in the curbside dining structure.

Eros took over for the diner the Kitchen Sink in September 2021 (same owners) ... management previously changed names from Moonstruck to the Kitchen Sink in the fall of 2015. 

The Eros website still notes that this location is "closed for renovations. Reopening TBA." We had not seen anyone inside the space since the restaurant went dark in August. 

Eros remains closed on 2nd Avenue

Eros has been dark since early August on the NE corner of Second Avenue and Fifth Street.

A "temporarily closed" sign has been on the front door. The Greek restaurant's website notes that this location is "closed for renovations. Reopening TBA."

We have not spotted anyone inside the space during this time either.

Through the months, various notices have been spotted inside the front door, like this letter from the DOT dated Sept. 6 requesting that ownership correct some deficiencies in the curbside dining structure on Fifth Street ...

And in October, someone smashed the front door, which remains this way today...

Eros took over for the diner the Kitchen Sink in September 2021 (same owners) ... management previously changed names from Moonstruck to the Kitchen Sink in the fall of 2015. 

Several Kitchen Sink fans have emailed us about the current state of the space, with the feeling that it won't return. There was a general consensus that people preferred the Kitchen Sink's reliable diner staples instead of more upscale Greek dishes.

H/T Steven!

Kitchen Sink removes part of its roof to accommodate more outdoor dining

Back on Friday, workers removed the glass-enclosed front section of Kitchen Sink, the diner on Second Avenue at Fifth Street ... opening up space for a few more outdoor tables...



...to go with the curbside seats on the Fifth Street side...



Local restaurants are doing what they can to safely increase the number of patrons as there aren't plans for indoor dining in the city anytime soon.

Kitchen Sink is at 88 Second Ave. at Fifth St. (212) 420-8050.

P.S.

The old-look Kitchen Sink with a helpful arrow showing what workers took out...

On 2nd Avenue, Moonstruck Diner is now The Kitchen Sink

So we're told the sign/name switcheroo happened in the middle of last week here on Second Avenue at East Fifth Street ... goodbye Moonstruck Diner, hello The Kitchen Sink...



As we understand it, the ownership is the same... and while the diner standbys (burgers, omelettes, sandwiches, etc.) remain, the menu has been glammed up a bit, which would explain the cringeworthy arrival of Punk Rock Shrimp...



The owners revamped the space back in January ... this was on top of the fall 2014 revamp that ushered in the arrival of a new bar, draft beer and multiple flat-screen TVs ... (and — mason jars!)... running a diner in NYC is a tough business these days with rising costs and changing tastes.

Anyway, we've stopped by several times in recent months for dinner ... and the food was always solid, and the service friendly… we'll give The Kitchen Sink a whirl one of these days too, though the thought of saying We're going to eat at The Kitchen Sink doesn't sound so appealing…