Ben’s Deli moving on without Ben on Avenue B

Text and photos by Stacie Joy

There’s an upbeat atmosphere at Ben’s Deli on Avenue B this Thursday night. 

Local tall man Bobby is playing a DJ set from atop a stack of milk crates and plywood as curious passersby duck into the store and dance to his synth-driven set of house and disco.

Driving this festive mood: it’s being announced that Ben Gibran has sold his eponymous deli and is retiring after almost 50 years in the business.

At one point, Ben, his wife, and five sons: Mo, Ahmed, Haas, Gamal, and Ali owned six delis (plus a pizza shop) in the East Village. The last of the storefronts at 32 Avenue B between Second Street and Third Street is in contract to be sold, and Ben’s keeping it in the family, selling it to a cousin, Sammy Ksem, who is present tonight...

... along with Haas (below) behind the counter ...

... and Mo...

... and Glenn, a longtime employee...

Also on hand: the new in-store vendor Los Tacos Poca Madre, which serves housemade potato chips, a tasty fruit salad with hot sauce — not to mention traditional Mexican food.

Meanwhile, people come into the store to celebrate Ben’s long tenure as a local business owner.

As much as I am happy about Ben’s retirement, I can’t help but also be a bit sad. I’ve known Ben since I was a teenager and knowing I won’t see him and his kids and grandkids here gives me a pang of sadness. 

Ben’s Deli has been a meeting place, a shelter in the storm (literally – Ben fed the neighborhood during the dark aftermath of Superstorm Sandy in 2012), a place to grab a frosty drink, some munchies, a travel-size bottle of mouthwash/toothbrush/toothpaste combo pack, and back in the day: loosies, lotto tix, rolling papers. 

It’s had a starring role in the Netflix series “Russian Doll” and my heart. It always smells faintly of smoke; some products don’t have any business in a bodega — or do they? — and a revolving cast of characters who can explore EBT fraud, middle-of-the-night Maalox purchases, and a mix-and-match 6-pack of beer.

However, best of all is catching Ben “in the office” — his maroon Chevy Astro van parked out front. He’ll most likely be reading an expired Jetro Restaurant Supply Store brochure, chain-smoking and talking on his ancient flip phone.

While Sammy reports he has no plans to change the name, Ben’s kids won’t be working there anymore — and neither will Ben. Another familiar face, Uncle, a longtime employee, recently had a serious medical setback and hasn’t been able to get back behind the register. 

When I ask why now, Ben tells me he’s tired and old and just ready to stop working. “I can’t do it anymore, Stacie; it’s time,” he says, offering a comforting pat on my shoulder. He smiles.

An official retirement party is in the works. Stay tuned for details.

Find previous coverage here.

Updated: Stromboli Pizza worker killed cycling home from work

EVG reader Aizaz shares this sad news from Stromboli Pizza on First Avenue and St. Mark's Place. Cesar, a familiar face behind the counter, was recently involved in a fatal bicycling accident. (Here is a news report of the accident.)

"Apparently he was on a bicycle going home to Brooklyn after work and was hit by a truck and died from his injuries in the hospital after being in a coma for a few days," Aizaz says.

He leaves behind a wife and three children.

Stromboli has a donation can out on its counter to help his family pay for various expenses resulting from the tragedy.



Says Aizaz, "Cesar had a lot of charm and a very positive attitude about everything we ever chatted about."

Updated 2:30:

A resident who has lived near Stromboli since 1985 has set up a crowdfunding campaign:

Cesar was always a smiling, sunny face behind the counter at Stromboli's Pizza, where he worked for 17 years. While biking home to Brooklyn after a shift on Oct. 21, he was struck by a delivery truck and sustained multiple injuries. He lapsed into a coma at Bellevue hospital and succumbed to his injuries on Oct. 30. This fund is to help with hospital expenses and funeral costs. Cesar was 34 years old and leaves behind a wife and three small children. Stromboli's owner, Joezef, will accompany the body back to Mexico for burial.

Find the GiveForward link here.

Sad saga of Nino's Pizza 2.0 comes to an end

Yesterday morning, we noted that the new Nino's Pizza on St. Mark's Place and Avenue A had been closed (again) of late... this after extensive renovations...

And just like that ... Later yesterday, workers cleaned out the space...

...and a For Rent sign went up.

I miss the old Nino's. I liked their pizza and corny year-round Christmas decorations and fountain drinks. And it was one of my favorite spots for sitting and staring out the window, watching the East Village go by...

We didn't spot the listing online just yet...

-----

Also. After a really, really long time, workers finally removed the sidewalk bridge here...

Photos by Bobby Williams.

The Post discovers 2 Bros. Pizza on St. Mark's Place; and what eatery generates more litter?

Odd little story in the Post yesterday.

Two new $1 pizza joints on St. Mark’s Place are fueling a greasy scourge on the dense East Village street, according to fed-up locals.

Drunken patrons of twin 2 Bros. Pizza places have left a sad trail of paper plates, crusts and soda cans across sidewalks and stoops in the last year, disgusted residents said.

OK. It can be messy out front of the two 2 Bros. So why an odd story? Well, because the first 2 Bros. Pizza opened here in 2008. Not really new. The second 2 Bros. opened a few doors away in January.

And I'd argue that 16 Handles generates more litter ... at least in front of St. Mark's Church in-the-Bowery...



More on this here. ... and here ...

No. 2 to go

Back on June 1 (or 47 inches of rain ago), I mentioned that a new thai place was coming to 347 E. 14th St. (near First Avenue), the site of the former Mambo Italiano Pizzeria (AKA, the sad pizza place). Well, work continues there...



I just hope that they move the restroom — or at least invest in a bathroom door.

Thai coming to former sad pizza place

The former Mambo Italiano Pizzeria (AKA, the sad pizza place) at 347 E. 14th St. near First Avenue closed late last year...



... will become a thai restaurant... (not sure how long the signs have been up, to be honest...)



And a reader comment from the sad pizza post:

My friend and I used to eat at Mambo from time to time a few years ago, but we stopped for a couple of reasons. First of all, the pizza wasn't great. Probably not even good. But what really turned was off was the dough-tossing incident, which still makes us laugh when we talk about it. The last time we went there, two little boys (they were kids of someone who worked there because they kept going into the back of the pizza shop) were running around playing with the pizza dough, literally throwing it around like it was a football as we sat there wondering if they had gotten their hands on the dough that our pizza had been made with... It was funny but a little scary!

Sad pizza place on 14th Street closes

To be honest, I'm not sure exactly when Mambo Italiano Pizzeria at 347 E. 14th St. near First Avenue closed. In the last six weeks or so. I never paid much attention to it...until the crowds starting forming across the street at Artichoke. That's when the Mambo folks apparently started a little different tact. Their sidewalk sign said, "Try our Artichoke pizza," perhaps in hopes of picking off someone who didn't know which place was which. I'm not sure it worked: I swear I never saw one person in Mambo. The workers would just be in there, standing around, looking hopeful as people walked by... staring across the street at the big line at Artichoke.

In any event, I almost popped in a few times for a pity purchase. Which is really lame. I did that years ago when I lived on Clinton Street. Some new Moroccan place opened (Sago?). Never saw one person in there for the first few months. I wanted to be supportive. I went there twice. Once for something to go. They had a little bar. I ordered a bottle of beer, which came to like $6.92. Fuck me. Then I dragged Mrs. Grieve in there once for brunch or some shit. It was awful. Both times. We still make jokes about the eggs Tagine. They eventually got a little crowd. Then it closed. Then the building got torn down to make way for a condo.

Anyway, I stopped walking by Mambo. Which is why I don't know exactly when it closed.