Closing Time on 5th Avenue
Over the past few days several businesses on 5th Avenue in the Slope have announced that they’re calling it quits. It doesn’t appear that rent hikes are the sole cause of the pileup of shutterings, though they may have contributed to a couple of these closings: Biscuit BBQ: The restaurant, which relocated from Flatbush Ave.,…
Over the past few days several businesses on 5th Avenue in the Slope have announced that they’re calling it quits. It doesn’t appear that rent hikes are the sole cause of the pileup of shutterings, though they may have contributed to a couple of these closings:
Biscuit BBQ: The restaurant, which relocated from Flatbush Ave., took the place of the former Night & Day diner on President Street. No word on why the restaurant has decided to close. Will the back room jazz venue live on?
Nancy Nancy: The card/knick-knack store has been open for nearly 10 years. According to the shop’s blog, the landlord pulled the lease, but NN’s stuff will still be on sale at NancyNancy.com.
Cocotte: The French restaurant, which opened in 2002, in saying goodbye because of “rising rent and an inability to make a go of it financially,” according to Gowanus Lounge.
Hollywood Video: The large video rental store closed last weekend. The chain movie-rental biz is in the process of closing hundreds of stores nationwide. With the vacated Eckerd space only a block away, that means there’s two pretty large retail locations now available on 5th.
5th Ave between 1st and 9th needs a GREAT wine and liquor store. I don’t want to haul ass up to overpriced Red, White and Bubbly and I’m tired of giving money to DaSilva’s bulletproof glass shitshop when I’m not up to hoofing up to 7th Ave.
Someone please open something, PLEASE! I’m thirsty!
“Do you know why these and other stores are closing?”
Yes. Because they suck. Like 12:49 said.
Guess it’s time to admit that Park Slope is dudsville. Boring, mediocre, and just plain depressing — who wants to walk down the street and see a bunch of yapping yuppie moms? This is NYC land of the extremes. Where’s the gay, the black, the freak, the poor, the glamorous? Not in park slope.
Biscuit was truly awful. Something happened when they moved to 5th avenue from Flatbush. I assumed it wasn’t the same owner b/c the food was so bad. When I was there, the place was filled with smoke and the waitress was annoyed that patrons were concerned. The ribs were horrendous! Good riddens!
But Park Slope is better than every neighborhood in Brooklyn accept Carroll Gardens, which is even better. How can Park Slope ask for rents that are lower than Fort Green rents. That would mean they would have to admit that Park Slope is on its way out.
Biscuit had huge crowds when it opened at this location – but it had lousy food and poor service.
While higher rent may be a factor in the closings of certain stores (like a card store) at a restaurant a few thousand (a month) shouldn’t make or break you, which is why busy restaurants (generally) can absorb tremendous rents but empty ones can’t support any rent level at all.
5th Ave could use a high end grocer – with a focus on fish/seafood.
In the past 12 months the following have opened on 5th avenue (or are about to open)…I consider this list an improvment over those places which have closed:
1. Flight001
2. Teddy
3. Maria’s Restaurant
4. Oko
5. Soula Shoes
6. GetFreshNYC
7. Brooklyn Bakery and Cafe
8. Fatoosh
9. FIT gym
10. Canaille French Bistro
11. A.O.C. Bistro
12. Earth Tonez Vegetarian Cafe
13. ‘Snice
I’m sure I’m forgetting some. I think nearly everything on that list is a step up from the crap that closed.
too bad, notwithstanding the above comments, i always liked biscuit and thought it offered good food in a good atmosphere. the food at the smoke joint in fort greene is better than biscuit, but the smoke joint just ain’t the best place to eat — and I always enjoyed having some bbq and watching a game at biscuit. any other alternatives for bbq around?
for what its worth, biscuit didn’t really just relocate from flatbush ave. it went broke at flatbush, and then reopened with new investors on fifth ave. but i guess it didn’t really work out for them either.
I live on 2nd St. off of 7th Avenue and that stretch of 7th Ave. is becoming a ghost town — Tempo Presto, the bookstore, 2nd St Cafe — all boarded up. Not to mention the stretch of abandoned storefronts on 7th btwn Union and Berkeley (the ones that suspiciously caught fire about 3 years ago and have never been renovated since.) Simply put, rents are too high in Park Slope. Yes, the food is bad to mediocre and great food would make some difference, but there are enough people in the nabe who will eat anywhere if it’s child friendly and convenient, it’s still not enough (see 2nd Street Cafe.) Landlords have to stop being stubborn and greedy. It’s ridiculous to see prime commercial real estate sit unused.