A Good Sign: York Deli

Just the Pepsi sign, I mean, not the awning. Bold. Simple. In Yorkville.

A Perfect Storefront: 3 Star Deli & Grocery

I haven't done one of these features in a while, but I couldn't pass up the chance to showcase this little York Avenue gem of a storefront. It's the old-school signage that primarily makes it, of course. (That sort of sign that lists exciting attractions found inside like "Newspapers, Hot Coffee..," etc., never gets old.) The seven-digit phone number, hanging sign and happy riot of color (blue facade, red awning, yellow sign) all contribute to the charm. The cryptic "Peaceful Deli" written on the awning adds a bit of mystery. And the name's not to be discounted. 3 Star Deli & Grocery. I guess that's according to a three-star rating system, right?

Here are some previous "Perfect Storefront" features. Looking back, I've posted more than I thought.

Orwasher's, Yorkville's New-Old Bakery

Orwasher's Bakery is one of those old New York institutions with a tricky history. It was founded at 308 E. 78th Street in 1916, and the owners would like you to think nothing's changed since then. That's true, but only in part, and in a rather cosmetic way.

The shop was founded by Abraham Orwasher, who made eastern European and Jewish styles of bread in the coal-fired brick oven in the basement, servicing the kosher and Hungarian communities in the area. Abraham's son Louis inherited the business, and is said to have invented raisin pumpernickel bread. Louis' son Abram took over from there. All three generations used the same sourdough starter. The family owned the building that housed the bakery.

In 2007, Keith Cohen, who had worked at Tribeca Oven, entered the picture. He bought the business and fancified the offerings, adding Italian and French artisanal breads. His line of artisan "wine breads" were launched in 2009. In a nod to history and tradition, he still makes the old challah and other rustic breads in the original oven every week.

Read more »

Hungarian Meat Market Closes for Good

On June 17, 2011, the wonderful Hungarian Meat Market in Yorkville was ravaged by fire. The institution, which traces its history back to the 1950s, when the area was still a Hungarian stronghold and Second Avenue was called "Goulash Avenue," said at the time that the closure was temporary. "Due to an unfortunate fire accident, our store on 2nd Avenue is temporary closed!," read the store's website. "We are going to reopen after the remodeling of the store, probably around September."

A year after that scheduled September reopening, the market is still shuttered. The website says the reopening is "currently unforeseen." But it's not going rise from those ashes. The inside has been gutted, and a sign in the window says that space is for lease. The Hungarian Meat Market, home Tirol salami, Csabai smoked sausage, Szekely Goulash and authentic Hungarian paprika, is no more. It was the area's last Hungarian butcher. 

Memories of Hav-A-Pizza

Some posts can surprise you. For instance, when I posted this picture of Hav-a-Pizza in June 2011, I didn't expect that many people remember the old hole-in-the-wall pizzeria on E. 86th Street. But people did. Fondly. Here are the comments, which nicely fill in the Hav-a-Pizza story. The second one is from Frank Brevetti, the grandson of the store's owner. (Guess what? The shop closed because the landlords raised the rent. Same old story.) The fourth is from the son of a man who worked there.

"I remember when pizza was 25c a slice.About the mid 60s. And everytime the subway fare went up right away the price of a slice went up too."

"My grandpa owed hav a pizza. It was the landlords that forced him out both in Ny and again in NJ. They kept raiseing the rent to the point they couldent stay. In 1972 THEY WANTED 100grand a yr for that 20 by 20 store. Just rent. Try to pay that at 25c a slice."

"I remember Hav-A-Pizza from the late 50's. It was the first place I ever had pizza. As I remember it, pizza, then, was kind of new as a fast food. I don't think my parents had ever had it. It was fantastic pizza. There was much more sauce and cheese on it than today's slices in similar joints. It had a distinctive, rich, aromatic flavor that I occasionally get a whiff of in a slice today that instantly takes me back to 86th and Lex. A girl I knew who went to an exclusive East Side private school, Nightingale Bamford, told me years later that the school decreed Hav-A-Pizza off-limits. I'm not sure why, but I think it had to do with the school's (mis)percetion that unsavory, Fonzie-character types hung out there. I remember the clientele as non-descript, average people, maybe mostly young people. I remember Tony who was always there flinging the dough in the air. He wasn't friendly, at least to us, but he wasn't unfriendly either. When I first went there a slice was not 25 cents, it was 15 cents, and this was not The Depression. This was 1957-196?. A soda was 10 cents. So 2 slices and a Coke cost 40 cents. Even back then, this was just pocket change even for a school kid with a modest allowance."

"My dad Ernie used to work there making pizzas with Tony. We have a picture still today through the front window, of my dad flinging the dough in the air. It so nice to see this pic. It brought back many memories for my dad when he saw the pic, My dad and tony still talk everday."

My dad Erniused to work there making pizzas with Tony. We have a picture still today through the front window, of my dad flinging the dough in the air. It so nice to see this pic. It brought back many memories for my dad when he saw the pic, My dad and tony still talk everday =)My dad Ernie used to work there making pizzas with Tony. We have a picture still today through the front window, of my dad flinging the dough in the air. It so nice to see this pic. It brought back many memories for my dad when he saw the pic, My dad and tony still talk everday =)

A Memory of Hav-a-Pizza

From a reader, a memory of Yorkville's long-gone Hav-a-Pizza:

I remember Hav-A-Pizza from the late 50's. It was the first place I ever had pizza. As I remember it, pizza, then, was kind of new as a fast food. I don't think my parents had ever had it. It was fantastic pizza. There was much more sauce and cheese on it than today's slices in similar joints. It had a distinctive, rich, aromatic flavor that I occasionally get a whiff of in a slice today that instantly takes me back to 86th and Lex. A girl I knew who went to an exclusive East Side private school, Nightingale Bamford, told me years later that the school decreed Hav-A-Pizza off-limits. I'm not sure why, but I think it had to do with the school's (mis)percetion that unsavory, Fonzie-character types hung out there. I remember the clientele as non-descript, average people, maybe mostly young people. I remember Tony who was always there flinging the dough in the air. He wasn't friendly, at least to us, but he wasn't unfriendly either. When I first went there a slice was not 25 cents, it was 15 cents, and this was not The Depression. This was 1957-196?. A soda was 10 cents. So 2 slices and a Coke cost 40 cents. Even back then, this was just pocket change even for a school kid with a modest allowance.

Hey, Windows: Why So Round?

Walking down E. 85th Street between Second and Third Avenue, I was struck by the unusual roundness of these ground floor buildings. They're not only arches, which is fairly common in older building, but they bulge out at the sides and are abnormally side. The same is true of the doorways at 222 and 220 E. 85th.

The AIA Guide noticed the windows, too: "Bold, sensuous arches and their batterned bases form, seemingly, keyholes that ground these unusual tenements." The buildings were built in the 1890s, not 1910, as City records erroneously state.

Glaser's Still Going

Glaser's Bake Shop, the 109-year-old Yorkville institution on First Avenue, and perhaps the oldest continually operating business from the Little Germany days, is still going. Just saying, in case anyone was wondering. I don't get up there very often. But I was in the area this past weekend and made sure to swing by for a pastry. They have started making cherry turnovers, for all who are interested.

A Good Sign: J. Braun Liquors

I found this wonderful old liquor store sign over the weekend, at Lexington and 90th. Judging by the name, a remnant of the area's German past.

UPDATE: Additional info sent by a reader in the know: "The proprietor was Julius Braun (1914-1995), a Jewish immigrant from Poland who arrived in NY in 1921 with his family. I don't know when Julius opened the store on Lexington Avenue, but it has been there since at least 1971."

There aren't enough people named Julius anymore, in my opinion.

Yorkville's Hungarian Meat Market Felled by Fire

Just found out that Yorkville's wonderful Hungarian Meat Market has shut down, victim of a fire that broke out on June 17. Didn't see much about this in the news. "Due to an unfortunate fire accident, our store on 2nd Avenue is temporary closed!," reads the store's website. "We are going to reopen after the remodeling of the store, probably around September."

The store is on 81st and First, a living reminder of the big Hungarian population that used to crowd Yorkville around 79th Street. It traces its history back to the 1950s, though it doesn’t look very old. You can get your Tirol salami, Csabai smoked sausage, and Szekely Goulash here, as well as authentic Hungarian paprika.

A Good Sign: Cork & Bottle Wine & Liquors

On the Upper East Side.

Hav-A-Pizza

While we're on a Yorkville nostalgia spree, let's post this picture. It's from a site that lists the names and addresses of many of the old Yorkville businesses. According to the site, the pizzeria was on E. 86th Street. A man named Tony made the pizzas. Aside from the great name, and great slogan ("Pizza With That Real Italian Taste"), note the newsstand out front, what looks like a shoeshine stand, and the price! 25 cents a slice.

Yesteryear's Yorkville

A photographic gaze in Yorkville's Germanic-Czech-Hungarian past. The above is of a southern stretch of 86th Street, long ago supplanted by a glass skyscraper. You can see more pictures here.

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Yorkville's Darling, if Un-P.C., Cabinet Shop

The Little Wolf Cabinet Shop on the First Avenue in Yorkville has been in business since 1956. It was started by John Wolf, Sr., a member of a family who has been doing cabinetry since the early 1800s, first around Munich, and now in New York.

The name partly explains the shop's name. Or all of it, if you think the "Little" refers to John Wolf's son, John Wolf, Jr., who began working alongside his son early on. It does not, however, explain the illustration of the cute, but stereotypical Native American lass on that sign.

I'm guessing that the cartoon gets equal shares of smiles and grimaces from passersby. It's less than politically correct at this point. However, when the shop was created—a time when sones like "Running Bear" were big hits on the chart—it must have seemed pretty innocent. Come to think of it, it still seems pretty innocent. And, for history's sake, I'm glad they never changed the sign.

For the record, Little Wolf was actually a rather famous Native American. But not a little girl. Little Wolf  was a chief of the Northern Cheyenne in the late 1800s.

Second Avenue Deli Knows What Time It Is

I recently got my first glimpse of the new Yorkville Second Avenue Deli branch that's it the works. It looks good so far. Should be a handsome addition to the neighborhood. (I understand its opening has been delayed for various reasons.)

I particularly like the clock, with the Hebrew figures, instead of Arabic or Roman numerals. Nice touch. I don't recall the other branches of the famous deli having such a clock, but I may be wrong on that.

The Gold Star Deli Two Years Later

Two years ago, I came up this old Yorkville deli on First Avenue and 78th. It had just closed. I loved the name and the sign and mourned the loss.

By accident, I passed by the same corner the other day. My Spidey sense was tingling. I knew I knew the crossroads somehow. Sure enough, the former home of Gold Star Deli. And no new tenant in two years time.

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Old Yorkville Memory

I've been getting some wonderful comments about life in Old New York lately. Here's one of the Bavarian Inn, a former German restaurant in formerly German Yorkville:

I was present on the last night the Bavarian Inn was open for business in 1983. I was introduced to the place by my father, who first encountered it as a serviceman during WW2. At that time, Yorkville was still going strong, despite the fact that we were engaged in a world war with the Nazis! He related that he an his buddies went up and down the street, having beers at the B.I. and other german joints - everything was on the house. Not a single bartender would charge a G.I. in uniform for a beer. I used to visit the place often myself when I moved to manhattan, and even turned on an intern at my ad aency from Austria to the B.I. - he thought is was a blast. The Cafe Geiger, and Kleine Kondittorei were two other authentic german spots that are now history as well.

Elk Candy Lives!—It Sells, It Ships, It Twitters

Bygone Yorkville icon, the Elk Candy Company, has long taunted us with the prospect that it would one day reopen and sell again to the marzipan starved.

Now, that day has arrived!

Tells the company:

Many people have been looking forward to this day and now, we take great pride in announcing Elk Candy Company is now open and ready for your marzipan orders at www.elkcandy.com. We are proud to be able to share our world class marzipan with you.

We accept Visa, MasterCard, American Express, Discover and PayPal on our secure website.

We offer a variety of shipping methods through FedEx and UPS. To celebrate our online opening we are offering free ground shipping on orders of 1 pound or more now thru December 31, 2009.

Those of you who were familiar with the store will remember our complimentary gift wrapping, we will continue to offer free gift wrapping to our online customers. We ask that if you would like your purchase gift wrapped please state so in the special instructions portion during the checkout process,.

Keep up with our updates through our blog, email, Twitter, and Facebook.

Shop at: http://www.elkcandy.com

Keep up with us on our blog, Sweet Talk: http://blog.elkcandy.com

Follow us on Twitter: http://twitter.com/ElkCandy

Checking for availability of this username ...Become a fan on Facebook: http://www.facebook.com/pages/Elk-Candy-Company/156612677005

Just in time for Christmas, too! I'm placing my order....now!

Elk Candy to Dispense Marzipan Anew By Thanksgiving

Some years ago, Elk Candy, one of the last holdouts of Olde German Yorkville, closed its little palace of marzipan on E. 86th Street.

From time to time since them, this blog has gotten little hints here and there that the owners would be starting Elk up again, but in the Hudson Valley. Today, this note arrived in the mailbox: "For those who haven't seen our blog entry here is some good news. We are looking to open (online for now) in time for Thanksgiving. We'll be preparing and gathering what we need over the summer. It will be just Marzipan in the beginning and hopefully expanding the selection in early 2010 to satisfy everyone's sweet tooth."

The website is www.elkcandy.com, if you want to look for yourself.

Some Stuff That's Interesting

Forgotten New York has posted a survey of Brooklyn's Court Street which cites yours truly not once, but twice. (Not that that's the reason we love it; we love it anyway.)

The New York Times' incomparable Christopher Gray finds some "automobile houses" of New York's bygone millionaires hiding in plain sight. [NY Times]

Christian Albin, the executive chef of the timeless Four Seasons restaurant, died on Saturday at a Manhattan hospital. He was 61, and had worked at the Four Seasons since 1973. [NY Times]

Another Virgin Megastore dies in Manhattan. [EV Grieve]

A long-gone Bavarian restaurant in Yorkville that I never heard of before. [Ephemeral New York]

Freaky images of building facades. Cooooool. [Restless]