Vanishing New York Backup

At the end of each year, since 2007, I offer a list of places that vanished during the year. These are the ones I covered on the blog, but there were many more (and I've been blogging much less lately). Please add those not included here in the comments. Click the highlighted name to go to the post for more info. And for previous years' vanishings, just scroll down to the bottom. Greek Corner Coffee Shop , since 1980. Reason for closure unknown--possible sale of building to new owner Le Train Bleu , since 1980. Closed by Bloomingdale's. Fong Inn Too , in Chinatown since 1933. Family couldn't keep it going, sold the building. Leo Design , since 1995 on Bleecker, kicked out, then another 7 years on Hudson, where the rent was too high. The Waldorf-Astoria Hotel , since 1931. Sold to a Chinese corporation, closed for a renovation into luxury condos. Chez Jacqueline , since 1982. Reason unknown. Lenox Lounge , since 1939. Closed by rent hike in 2012, this yea...

So that big penis mural (or is it a dildo?) on Broome Street doesn't have much longer. Workers are preparing to paint it over today. The ropes and ladders are already in place. It was painted earlier this week by Swedish artist Carolina Falkholt, as part of the New Allen project (which seems to have something to do with artwashing the Lower East Side for more gentrification). Today, onlookers gathered in the freezing cold to gaze upon the mural. Many took selfies with it. News crews interviewed the onlookers, asking their thoughts. When asked about the negative local response to the mural, one guy answered, "If people can't appreciate the penis, they can't appreciate life." Another reporter said he could see a face in the network of veins. "See it? Right there? You can see a guy's face. It looks kind of like a clown." Down the block, guys on the corner were talking. One said, "It's just the same old neighborhood shit....

VANISHING I never went to Vynl , but it's been around for 23 years, it's a gay place, and people will miss it. Vynl was part of a restaurant mini empire by John Dempsey. No reason for the closure is given on the goodbye note. They only say the place is "retiring." It will close this Saturday. Thanks to Ben for the tip

A rumor is floating around (again) that the great Neptune Diner of Astoria is closing. This photo of a supposed shutter note showed up on Twitter with an Astoria hashtag: But a call to the diner confirmed they are not closing. And a Reddit reader says the sign is a hoax. UPDATE: A Facebook commenter say, "It's the Neptune Diner in Newburgh, NY that's closing, and that shutter note is from their menu. I know this because I ate there a few days ago. It's a shame... I really liked that place." The same rumor went floating around a year ago . Is this an annual, end-of-year occurrence? Anyway. The woman who answered the phone at Neptune tells me the menu for their Christmas dinner is wonderful.

On Friday, Deadline Hollywood broke the news that the art house Lincoln Plaza Cinemas will be forced to close in January. It opened in 1981. Operator Toby Talbot said that she and her husband, Dan, “did everything we could to ask for the lease to be extended.” But the building owner “is looking to get everything he can. He’s looking to make money.” On Saturday, the theater’s regular customers were all talking about the news. Ivan, the young assistant manager, stood in the doorway of the small office across from the concession stand and commiserated. The clientele of Lincoln Plaza is made up mostly of local senior citizens--people on fixed incomes--and mostly women. It is, in many ways, a gathering place for midtown and uptown women over 65. All day Saturday, they gathered around Ivan. Interior. Movie theater lobby. Day. The lobby is busy but not overcrowded. People sit on benches and stand in line. They read the paper and do the Times crossword puzzle. Some buy popcorn and r...

VANISHING Terrible news this morning from Deadline : "The Lincoln Plaza Cinemas, a temple of the art house movie scene in New York for 30 years, is at the end of its lease and is scheduled to close in January." photo: Z-Mation Co-owner Toby Talbot said "word of the January end date has started to circulate among industry execs and filmmakers, but no notices have been posted alerting customers. She said plans are being made for a formal sendoff on January 21." Deadline further notes that the Talbots "maintained an old-fashioned zeal for cinema, which governed many of their choices." "We had the luxury of choosing films that we knew were not going to be successful commercially, and we could put them on our screens,” said Toby. “We were able to do what we wanted to do."

VANISHING The Grassroots Tavern will close on New Year's Eve. It's been a favorite dive on St. Mark's Place for 42 years and many will miss it (especially this guy ). Last week, Grieve reported that the Grassroots had a new owner --and it didn't look good. Richard Precious has a chain of bars called Ginger Man. As Grieve pointed out, New York magazine said Ginger Man "feels like Euro Disney's vision of the classic Irish watering hole." Now Grassroots is closing for the same reasons pretty much everything is closing. “All the sudden, overnight, the rent skyrocketed, so we were put out of business,” one bartender told Bedford & Bowery . And, of course, the building was sold in 2015--ironically to a company called Klosed Properties. Steven Kachanian, Principal of Klosed, said at the time, "We are thrilled about the long term potential of this asset. The retail rents on this stretch are on the rise." So St. Mark's is dead -- a...