A Double Loss

Two Yorkville businesses with a classic New York look to them are gone.

I don't know when Charlie Mom Restaurant and Gold Star Deli, neighbors on First Avenue at 78th, bit the dust, but I imagine it must be recently, based on postings of various food sites (Charlie Mom was inspected by the DOH as recently as Feb. 17). I have no experience with either place, but I love the storefronts. Charlie Mom resembles a classic circa-1950s Chinese joint. Gold Star appears to be from the same era. Many fantastic old fixture have been abandoned inside the old deli. Imagine how the star must have looked at night when it was fully equipped with bulbs.

My preservationists' instinct tells me the the double closure means the building they were part of is coming down, no doubt to make room for an apartment tower.