It’s been more than a year since 90′ Nuts, the candy store on Broadway between 90th and 91st streets, shut its doors. About two months ago, a bodega opened there, but closed after about a week. Now the space may be getting a more permanent tenant. A new ice cream store called Scoop is on its way, and it plans to serve organic ice cream. As tipster Ken said: “Thank God I won’t have to walk more than 25 yards in any direction for a frozen treat.”

The store is set to open on June 1 and they’re looking for employees. See the flyer below. Thanks to Ken, David and Michael for the tips.

There’s finally some action in the old Georgia’s Cafe & Bakery space at 89th street and Broadway, which closed last year after a fire. A restaurant tentatively called Cibo e Vino is seeking a liquor license there. The LLC that owns Cibo e Vino, called Bukefal LLC,  is owned by Marjanne Motamedi, who once co-owned a West Village Italian restaurant called I Tre Merli Bistro. Thanks to Ken for the tip.

Boozy Australian brunch spot and bar The Sunburnt Calf on 79th street has closed, and will make way for new owners and a “brand new concept” after Memorial Day, the restaurant said on twitter. Thanks to Gavan for the tip.

A company called Treathouse that makes gourmet treats is planning to open this summer at 82nd and Amsterdam, the former home of Cardeology (which has moved). The company was apparently inspired by a very successful bake sale, according  to their about page.

Sol y Sombra on 82nd and Amsterdam closed temporarily and will reopen Tuesday under new ownership, with an expanded tapas and wine list. They’re also planning to add a rum bar, an employee told us. Thanks to Gavan and Rebecca for the tips.

John Fraser of Dovetail (77th off Columbus) is into mixed martial arts. Who knew? “When much-lauded chef John Fraser isn’t tending the pass at Dovetail, the acclaimed Upper West Side restaurant he opened in late 2007, he’s living a lifestyle that includes vegetable-forward eating and practicing Muay Thai, a form of Mixed Martial Arts known also as Thai boxing.,” the Village Voice reported.

Pinkberry is opening another location next month on 80th street and Amsterdam. Thanks to Angie for the tip.

Good Enough to Eat, the beloved longtime restaurant on Amsterdam between 83rd and 84th, was close to being forced to leave the neighborhood as its lease is set to end shortly and it wasn’t getting another one. But the restaurant just announced an exciting development: it will be moving to 85th street and Columbus Avenue, probably in mid-June.

Good Enough to Eat has been on the UWS since 1981, and at its current location since 1989. Its classic American food, including big turkey and meatloaf dinners and heaping brunches, have made it a local favorite. Owner Carrie Levin, however, has had an uneasy relationship with her landlord and her lease was set to end for good on June 30, she told us. She had said she might have to leave the neighborhood, and even asked the local Community Board for help in finding her a new space.

The new Good Enough to Eat will go into the space of AG Bistro, the restaurant that just replaced Nonna a few months ago, according to Good Enough to Eat’s Facebook page. An employee at AG Bistro confirmed they would be closing, and a spokesman for AG Bistro had no comment.

Penang, a Malaysian restaurant on 72nd street between Columbus and Broadway that has been on the Upper West Side for decades, just closed to make way for Legend Chinese restaurant.

Penang’s demise was unexpected (I just got take-out from there three days ago) and it’s a sad day for the neighborhood. Penang has served very good Malaysian food since at least the 1990′s; it used to be on 71st and Columbus in the space currently occupied by Cafe Tallulah. Penang always had a nice relaxed bar scene up front at the 72nd street location; everyone there seemed to be a local.

But a Legend manager we spoke to says that Legend intends to keep serving Penang dishes for the time being, and they are keeping the current chef. In the coming weeks, they’ll also be adding other Asian dishes from the Legend repertoire. Legend, which started in Chelsea, is known for authentic spicy Sichuan food. A few months ago, Legend Upper West opened at 258 West 109th street. Food writer Marisa Olsen reviewed the food for us here.

By Meredith Popolo

Lettuce, and Turnips, and Beets, oh my! Join a CSA this summer and receive a weekly basket of all those and more.

Community-Supported Agriculture (CSA) is a method of food distribution that supports local farms. Members pay for a share of a harvest from a specific farm upfront and pick up deliveries weekly at a designated location. The model benefits farmers because they can better predict income, grow with more security, and build stronger relationships with customers. CSA members profit by gaining regular access to local and seasonal produce, supporting the regional economy, and developing a closer connection to their food. Buying into a CSA is also a great way to discover new foods and recipes—can you say Kohl Rabi? In exchange for joining a CSA, members often are asked to volunteer to help with set up or distribution a few times throughout the season.

There are a lot of decisions that go into selecting a CSA. Firstly, you should choose one that offers a convenient pickup location and time for you because you won’t want to miss out on your weekly share. You should also consider how many people you expect the share to feed. A full share generally feeds a family of four but many CSAs offer half shares fit for one or two. In addition to fresh vegetables, some CSAs also distribute optional fruits, dairy, flowers, and meat shares.

Below we’ve listed 10 Upper West Side CSAs that will supply you (and whomever you wish to share with) with fresh produce all season long. For more CSA specifics, click on over to www.justfood.org.

CSA at MSC

csaatmsc.com

Pickup location: Manhattan School for Children – 154 West 93rd Street (between Amsterdam and Columbus)

Pickup time: Every Monday for full shares from 3:00 p.m. to 6:00 p.m.; every other week for half shares

Farm: Angel Family Farm in Goshen, NY

Season begins: June 3

Season length: 26 weeks

Cost: $624 for full shares, $312 for half shares

B’Nai Jeshurun Hazorim CSA

www.bj.org/social-justice/taking-action-through-direct-service/csa

Pickup location: B’nai Jeshurun – 257 West 88th Street (between Broadway & West End Avenue)

Pickup time: Tuesdays from 4:30 p.m. to 7:30 p.m.

Farm: Free Bird Farm in Mohawk Valley, NY

Season begins: June 4

Season length: 22 weeks for vegetables; 20-21 weeks for fruits

Cost: $510 for full vegetable share, $375 for partial vegetable share, $255 for half vegetable share; $95 for full egg share (one dozen eggs), $50 for half egg share; $160 for fruit share, $360 for double fruit share

Roxbury CSA

www.roxburyfarm.com/content/5952

Pickup location: Church of St. Paul and Andrew – 540 West End Avenue (at 86th Street)

Pickup time: Thursdays from 4:00 p.m. to 7:00 p.m.

Farm: Roxbury Farm in Kinderhook, NY

Season begins: June 13

Season length: 23 weeks

Cost: $612 for 23 weeks of vegetables; $70 for 20 weeks of fruit (starting July 11); $125 for a winter vegetable share (three deliveries of 30 pounds each); $145 for beef share; $150 for lamb share; $135 for pork share

Cream of the Crop CSA (Formerly Chubby Bunny CSA)

creamofthecropcsa.org

Pickup location: Church of St. Paul and Andrew – 540 West End Avenue (at 86th Street)

Pickup time: Tuesdays from 4:30 p.m. to 7:00 p.m.

Farm: Hepworth Farms in Milton, NY

Season begins: Early June, TBA

Season length: 24 weeks

Cost: $662.40 for large vegetable share; $438 for a small share

Central Park West CSA

www.centralparkwestcsa.org

Pickup location: St. Matthew/St. Timothy’s Church – 26 West 84th Street (between Central Park West and Columbus Avenue)

Pickup time: Wednesdays from 4:00 p.m. to 7:00 p.m.

Farm: Vegetables from Angel Family Farm in Goshen, NY; fruits from Breezy Hill Orchard in Hudson Valley, NY

Season begins: June 5

Season length: 22 weeks

Cost: $536 for full vegetable share with optional $274 full fruit add-on, $283 for half vegetable share with optional $142 half fruit add-on

Kitchen Table/Project Harmony CSA

thekitchentablenyc.wordpress.com

Pickup location: Project Harmony Garden – 122nd Street (between 7th and 8th Avenues)

Pickup time: Thursdays from 5:00 p.m. to 7:00 p.m.

Farm: Gonzalez Farm in Middletown, NY

Season begins: June 6

Season length: 22 weeks

Cost: Sliding scale based on income; ranges from $440 to $340

Morningside Heights CSA

morningsideheightscsa.wordpress.com

Pickup location: 3009 Broadway (between 117th and 118th Streets), outside of Barnard Library on Barnard College’s campus

Pickup time: Sundays from 10:30 a.m. to 12:30 p.m.

Farm: La Baraja Farm in Goshen, NY

Season begins: September 8

Season length: 10 weeks

Cost: $235

West Harlem CSA

westharlemcsa.wordpress.com

Pickup location: Broadway Community Inc. at the Broadway Presbyterian Church – 601 West 114th St. (corner of Broadway)

Pickup time: Every Tuesday from 5:30 p.m. to 7:30 p.m. for full shares; every other week for half shares

Farm: Windflower Farm in Taconic Hill, NY

Season begins: June 12

Season length: 22 weeks

Cost: Sliding scale based on income; ranges from $522 to $314 for full share, $258 to $157 for half share

Farm to City CSA

www.jewishhome.org/news/news-archive/announcing-farm-to-city-csa

Pickup location: Jewish Home Lifecare’s Manhattan’s lobby – 120 West 106th Street (between Columbus and Amsterdam Avenues), on the patio outside

Pickup time: Wednesdays from 3:00 p.m. to 7:00 p.m.

Farm: Angel Family Farm in Goshen, NY

Season begins: June 5

Season length: 20 weeks

Cost: $440 for full share, $320 for partial share

CSA at Ansche Chesed

www.tuvharetzcsa.com

Pickup location: UWS Manhattan Ansche Chesed – 251 West 100th Street (between Broadway and West End Avenue)

Pickup time: Wednesdays from 5:30 p.m. to 7:30 p.m.

Farm: The Garden of Eve in Riverhead, NY

Season begins: June 5

Season length: 24 weeks

Cost: $595.20 for full vegetable share, $315 for half vegetable share; $275.04 for full fruit share, $150 for half fruit share; $155 for full flower share, $79.50 for half flower share; $33 for half egg share; $570 for Variety Pak (half shares of everything); $1,050 for Mega-Combo (full shares of everything)

The space at the corner of 102nd street and Broadway has been on an unlucky streak: First, Mama Mexico closed about a year ago, and now its replacement Maria Bonita has folded — it “never caught on,” said our tipster David.

“We went a few times, most recently last weekend,” wrote Steve. “Food was decent, if a bit pricey, but the crowd was sparse. The place never seemed to draw the audience that jammed Mama Mexico.”

The place is still advertising a Cinco de Mayo bash on its website — alas, it never made it tot he 5th. The phone is out of service. Thanks to David, Sean and Steve for the tips and Sean for the photo.

Gotham Burger at 726 Amsterdam Avenue (between 95th and 96th), which we wrote about in March, is getting closer to opening. In fact, the owner now says it should open this month: “The food, including the namesake Gotham Burger, will mostly be the same, [owner Avi] Roth said, but the New York location will feel more like a sports bar, with a liquor license and TVs,” NJ.com reported.

“Roth, a former education consultant, has described his restaurant concept as a Kosher Shake Shack,” Patch reported.

Emerald Inn has already set up its signs at its new location on 72nd between Broadway and West End Avenue. The community board will vote on its liquor license application this month. Thanks to Chris for the tip and photo. It’s expected to open by June 1.

Despite a push by politicians to keep Food City on 94th street and Columbus Avenue open, the market has closed and one of the owners tells us there’s little chance that it will move or reopen. Food City is a lifeline for many middle-class, poor, and elderly residents in the neighborhood, and we’ve heard from many of them that they’re devastated that it won’t be there anymore.

Councilwoman Gale Brewer had said a few days ago that she was working on keeping the store open. LeFrak Organization owns the building, and has said that it wanted to work with the city to improve the space, but it’s plans were somewhat vague (backstory here). We’ve reached out to LeFrak and will update this post if we hear back.

Barbara, one of our frequent tipsters on this story, sent the following note today:

“This has an enormous effect on people who formerly shopped there. My friends and I have tried D’Agostino, where I never shopped before, because that is the closest, and on a level path. But differences in prices can be shocking. Ex: Green grapes 3.99 a pound, that are 1.29 on Broadway—and not the freshest.

Funky old Associated, about 98th/Amsterdam, would work except that it is a long way back, and much uphill, for heavy items like milk, canned goods, chicken. We have always done some selective shopping at Whole Foods and the beloved Mani Market, but neither will do for big basics shopping.

And this is in good weather. Imagine winter. You would think Lefrak and other owners would put their heads together and realize that a supermarket right there is a big draw for people renting or buying.”

As the store emptied out, a writer from Epicurious said she kept stopping by to see what was still available: “Recipe Starters” from Progresso apparently weren’t selling well. Also: “There were single bottles of bad sauces and single boxes of scary cookies and a few clusters of products overpriced even at 50 percent off.”

Big Nick’s Burger & Pizza Joint has been in limbo for months, as its landlord has said he will hike the restaurant’s rent by about $20,000 a month, but hasn’t done so yet. The beloved 51-year-old restaurant is still hanging on, but not by much. And Big Nick himself is feeling pretty awful about it.

“It’s some kind of torture,” owner Nick Imirziades said when we talked to him this week. “I can’t sleep at night.”

The owner of the building is a company called Lophijo Realty, but the lease is controlled by Shimmie Horn, the owner of the Triumph Hotel chain. Triumph Hotels runs the Hotel Belleclaire (pictured at right), which is located in the same building on the corner of 77th and Broadway as Big Nick’s, along with Bra Smyth and News Inc. Horn recently renovated the hotel, and the real estate taxes went up, the New York Times reported earlier this year. Under the lease, Big Nick’s and the other tenants are responsible for paying additional rent to make up for the higher taxes. That means his rent would be $60,000 a month instead of $40,000, a 50% jump. He can’t afford that “selling burgers and pizza.”

Starting last October, realtors had been advertising the Big Nick’s space as being available for rent, saying it was available as of April 1. The listing now says it is available “immediately.”

Nick said that he’s worried for his 45 employees and doesn’t know how to operate when he has no idea what the landlord plans to do. Horn appears to be actively looking for other tenants, Nick said, but apparently hasn’t found one yet. Shimmie Horn did not respond to a request for comment.

Politicians have offered to help, but nothing has come of it yet, Nick said. Meanwhile, he doesn’t know what to do if he has to replace equipment or make other investments, because he could be kicked out at any moment.

“If the refrigerator breaks, should I replace it? That’s thousands of dollars,” he said. “I can’t plan.”

Big Nick used to own more restaurants but has since sold them all. The one on 71st street called Big Nick’s is no longer owned by him. It’s not clear what he’ll do if he’s forced to leave.

In the meantime, send us an email at info@westsiderag.com with your favorite Big Nick’s memory, or just a description of why you like the burgers or pizza and don’t want it to close. Make the subject line “Save Big Nick’s.” We’ll publish them (we don’t have to use your name if you don’t want) and get them to Nick, and maybe it will brighten his day. And then we can drop a copy off with Shimmie Horn. Who knows, maybe he could be swayed to make a deal.

Two local supermarkets are on the brink of closing, and some people are mad as hell. But is there anything that can be done about it?

At Food Emporium on 68th and Broadway, the end is approaching quickly (May 4), and the store is now offering up to 80% off on certain items. But liquidation sales can be tricky, and we’ve already heard from a reader that the “discounts” don’t really seem like deals. Liquidation sales often take advantage of our desire for deals, even as the prices are not much lower than normal, as ABC News found out a few years ago.

At Food City on 94th and Columbus, the outlook is murkier. The market still plans to close at the end of this month, but there’s been growing political pressure on The Lefrak Organization, the owner of the building, to sign a new lease. Food City is the go-to supermarket for many elderly and low-income residents in the area. A rep for LeFrak sent us a statement earlier today (we had been attempting to get a response from them for the past few weeks). The statement reads:

“Food City has been our tenant at 705 Columbus Avenue for many years and has not been asked to leave.  We have been in conversations with the City on plans to improve the physical and retail facilities at this location.  The existing 50 year old facilities are outmoded and in nearly irreparable condition.  We have no plans for condominium development or other residential uses, nor have we increased Food City’s rent since 2005.  We await further feedback from the City on how we can work together to transform this important retail property into a vibrant asset that will serve this community for decades to come. Until that time, we cannot make multi-year commitments with our tenants.”

We asked the LeFrak rep if that means that Food City doesn’t have to leave, and why then would Food City be getting ready to close. The response was unclear: “Food City is under a month-to-month lease.  Our statement speaks for itself, and, as regards your last question, we do not speak for Food City.”

Food City apparently hasn’t had a long-term lease since 2004.

We’ve reached out to Gale Brewer’s office to find out the implications of the statement and what the city can do in this case. We’ll update this post if we hear back.

Food City’s owners certainly seem to think they’re being evicted, as you can see in the interview below between Food City owner Adam Katz and City Council candidate Ken Biberaj.

Two small eateries were closed this week by the city.

Simit & Smith, the new Turkish baked goods and coffee shop, was closed on Wednesday by the Department of Health for “operating without a permit.”

Primo Pizza on 84th just East of Columbus was closed by the health department for health violations on Monday. Here are the violations that were cited:

Sanitary Violations
1) Evidence of mice or live mice present in facility’s food and/or non-food areas.
2) Sewage disposal system improper or unapproved.
3) Food contact surface not properly washed, rinsed and sanitized after each use and following any activity when contamination may have occurred.
4) Facility not vermin proof. Harborage or conditions conducive to attracting vermin to the premises and/or allowing vermin to exist.
5) Pesticide use not in accordance with label or applicable laws. Prohibited chemical used/stored. Open bait station used.
6) Toilet facility not maintained and provided with toilet paper, waste receptacle and self-closing door.
7) Non-food contact surface improperly constructed. Unacceptable material used. Non-food contact surface or equipment improperly maintained and/or not properly sealed, raised, spaced or movable to allow accessibility for cleaning on all sides, above and underneath the unit.