So Where Is It?

Last November, the folks who bought Gertel's Bakery on Hester Street went at the classic Lower East Side staple with hammer and tong, turning it into rubble in no times. Their aim: to erect a new 12-story, 27-unit condo tower.

So where's the building? All that's there is the gaping hole they left, and one of the old walls. It might have something to do with two open ECB "Work Without a Permit" violations against the site, according to the DOB website. Apparently, it was a pretty ugly scene on Hester Street last fall.
A hearing regarding the matter was scheduled on July 24. I assume the developers didn't show up, since the hearing status is listed as "default." A fine of $2,500 was also imposed.

A complaint filed on July 25 states: "CONSTRUCTION SITE HAS BEEN LEFT IDLE FOR THE PAST 8 MONTHS DUE TO A DOB S/W/O, SITE IS HAS EXCESSIVE DEBRIS SUCH AS PLYWOOD, SHEETROCK, STOVE, BUCKETS, BRICKS & METAL." The people involved appear to be Chen Engineering Service, AMG Pacific Construction and Michael Kang Architect. Yom Kippur's coming up soon. I think they've all got some things to atone for.

Gertel's of Brooklyn?

From the Knock-me-over-with-a-feather department: The fine folks at Clinton Hill Blog gave me heads up that the classic Gertel's Bakery sign, which hung on Hester Street for 93 years until the business closed last June, has been spotted in Brooklyn, north of Myrtle Street, possibly on Steuben. (The specifics were uncertain.)

Above is the picture. That's the Gertel's sign all right. Which leads to the inevitable question: WTF? I was searching my brain for a reason for this neon relocation, when a commenter reminded me of a past post of my own. On my final visit to the baker, I asked what would become of the iconic sign. The answer came that the owner was going to keep the sign at his home.

But, judging from the roller shutter, this doesn't look like anybody's home. But then I remembered another bit of important information. The owner planned to move his wholesale operation to a factory on—yes—Steuben St. in Williamsburg, Brooklyn. So this must be the sign's new home. Hooray! Good job, sign. Glad you made it home safe.

Too Late

I do appreciate my friends at Curbed warning me to avert my eyes from their pictorial coverage of the destruction of Gertel's Bakery. But, alas, by the time I read that line I had already seen the picture of the Lower East Side landmark's pummeled roof. It ain't pretty. But, just to show I can be a man about it, I reprint the photo here.

A warning to the people who choose to live in the eight-story condo building that will take the bakery's place: if you feel like you're being haunted every Friday night and if kosher wine bleeds from your walls during the High Holy Days, it's your own damn fault.

Kosher Bakery Solidarity on LES

A reader writes to tell Lost City that the late lamented Gertel's kosher bakery lives on on the Lower East Side.

Moishe's bakery on Grand Street, a surviving LES kosher bakery, has a sign in the window indicating it will carry Gertel's products in the future (Gertel's still does wholesale work out of Williamsburg). For this I say: Way to go, Moishe's. I would imagine that these two bakeries were competitors to the teeth in the past. It's nice of Moishe's to show support for its fallen comrade, and to give Lower East Siders an easy outlet for Gertel's goodies.

The Gertel's Round the Corner

This is a very sweet story. Though Gertel's kosher bakery is gone, in the retail sense, you can still buy their pastries in the same nabe, at a little place around the corner called Flicker's Coffee and Tea Shop.

Reminds me of the way the Eighth Avenue restaurant Rendezvous hired about McHale's cook after that bar closed, and began serving McHale's type burgers.

More About Gertel's; Guss's in Danger?

An article in the New York Sun provide a wealth of interesting information about Gertel's Bakery (RIP), the great kosher bake shop which closed its Lower East Side retail branch today.

Abe Stern, the owner, owned the building, it turns out. So he was in not danger from some greedy landlord. He chose to sell the building to a developer, netting $2.9 million.

Stern is not a descendant of the original owners. It was founded by Izzy Gerber. Gerber, not Gertel. The shop was named after his son-in-law. (That was some loving father-in-law.) It then changed hands twice. Then there was this horrifying tidbit:

Last month, the building where Guss's is located was purchased for $16.5 million, according to PropertyShark.com, though plans for the property, at the corner of Orchard and Broome streets, are not yet known.

Yikes! Russ and Daughters, on the other hand, owns its building and seems to want to stay.

I ate my final Gertel's challah tonight. It was yummy.

Gertel's Bakery: Final Visit

Figuring that Gertel's Bakery would be mobbed tomorrow—the Lower East Side kosher shop's last day in retail business and last pre-Shabbat customer rush—I decided to make my final visit to the 93-year-old business in the early hours of Thursday.

Word has gotten out that the end is near. There was a sizable line, and businessmen in yarmulkes were taking pictures of themselves outside the store. Boxes of challah were stacked high and labeled for recipients such as Central Synagogue and H & H (bagels, I assume). The item most frequently being ordered was Gertel's famous rugelach—chocolate, raspberry and apricot. Some orders sandwiches, but it appears Gertel's ability to deliver on lunch has all but ceased. (Goodbye, egg and tuna roll.)



As ever, the Gertel's staff was sullenly bemused that anyone should take any interest whatsoever in their iconic business. The counter women patiently answered my questions with a half smile. As has been reported, the business will remain as a wholesale affair located in Williamsburg. My main concern was what was going to happen to the absolutely great neon sign. (I say neon, even though I have never seen it lit, Gertel's being a daytime operation.) They didn't know, so they went in the back to ask the owner. The answer came that the owner was going to keep the sign at his home. Must be a big home.



I ordered a half a pound of rugelach, assorted; a challah; and a bag of challah rolls. Then I discovered that the Gertel's baseball caps the servers and bakers were wearing were being sold off, and for the cheapo price of $5! I asked for one. Again, the countergirl was amused that I should care. A thin, bearded, dyspeptic young man came out from the kitchen, hat in hand. "Is it one size fits all?" I asked. "I could take your head measurement if you like?" he answered.



One more day. The sun goes down late this time of year, so it could be a late one. I wouldn't be surprised if they sold out of everything at an early hour, though.

Gertel's Finally Posts Its Notice

We've covered what we've heard of Gertel's imminent demise on this blog since last fall. It's been disheartening work, and confusing work, too, since the owner of one of the last great Lower East Side kosher bakeries kept denying that the shop would make way for a developer who wanted to put a condo on that spot.

Well, the other shoe finally dropped today. Racked reports the findings of a reader who said, "Gertel's posted a sign yesterday saying that the store is closing for good as of June 22. And, significantly, the two-lots-wide one-story tile warehouse right next door has recently vacated the premises as well. That's a big footprint to build on. Neighborhood character gives way to eight-story condo development."

As reported before, the owner says the business will continue as a wholesale affair. It's small comfort for seeing a visible, visitable piece of LES history fall to the market. Three more days of fine challah and rugelach. I'll find a way to get there before Friday.