The new year has brought lots of new stores and restaurants to the Upper West Side, as well as news about what could come in the next few months. New indulgences abound, including grilled cheese, chocolate, a trendy coffee spot, and an upcoming vegan-juice bar for you healthy people. Check out our map of local openings and closings — the numbers in the map correspond to the descriptions below.
1. Quick and Quality Sandwich is the first (that I know of) shop serving Vietnamese Banh Mi sandwiches on the Upper West Side. The also serve all sorts of other food, including onion rings and sardine sandwiches, neither of which you should eat before a date. It opened earlier this year on 108th Street and Broadway.
2. Broadway Professional Services, a bookkeeping, accounting and tax preparation business, opened on 104th and Broadway, on the second floor of the old Automat building.
3. Mama Mexico, a popular eatery on 102nd Street and Broadway that had been around for more than 15 years, closed suddenly at the beginning of the year. It’s being replaced by a new restaurant called Maria Bonita.
4. Frozen yogurt hotspot 16 Handles could open its new 98th Street location as soon as this week.
5. Payless Shoes on 93rd and Broadway is closed.
6. Chocolate Works, a candy store, opened recently on 91st and Amsterdam, and gave away free chocolate truffles to celebrate.
7. Candy store 90′ Nuts on 90th Street closed a couple of months ago. The punctuation mark after the “90” is still a mystery.
8. Candle Cafe West, a Vegan restaurant and juice bar, is planning to open in the old spot of Trattoria Di Vino on 89th and Broadway.
9. Turin Wines & Liquors closed its store on 90th and Columbus to make way for a new laundromat.
10. 7-Eleven opened its second Upper West Side location on the corner of 89th Street and Columbus Avenue.
11. A new Wild Bird Sanctuary, where birds will be rehabilitated, is scheduled to open in April on 87th Street and Columbus.
12. Another branch of Manhattan Valley pet store Little Creatures opened on Amsterdam between 85th and 86th.
13. Hanssem Intelligent Kitchen on 72nd between Columbus and Amsterdam has moved to 85th Street and Amsterdam Avenue.
14. Boutique clothing and jewelry store Roam on 83rd and Amsterdam closed recently after a liquidation sale.
15. Cleanse yourself at the new Organic Avenue on 82nd Street and Amsterdam Avenue. Your intestines will thank you.
16. Scoozi Events, a local caterer, just opened a “farm-to-table” take-out-only spot called Say Cheese on 83rd Street that specializes in grilled cheese sandwiches, sno-cones and s’mores. Check out our full preview story on it here.
17. Restaurant Spring Natural Kitchen opened earlier this year on Columbus between 82nd and 83rd.
18. West Lake Palace, the all-you-can-drink Chinese restaurant on 81st and Amsterdam, is being replaced by a hair salon.
19. Rubicon Property, a residential brokerage, is opening a new storefront on Columbus between 81st and 82nd Street.
20. A La Mode Oriental, a chain with a location in midtown, is taking the place of short-lived Thai Nam on Amsterdam between 80th and 81st Street.
21. Oz Moving & Storage on Broadway between 79th and 80th Streets has closed. That will likely allow the landlord to combine the vacant H&H Bagels, Magic Smile and moving stores together and lease them out as one space.
22. Discount store chain DSW is expected to move into the massive Filene’s Basement space by this June.
23. Coffee Bean & Tea Leaf opened a new location on 79th Street and Columbus Avenue; it ‘s expected to have a 40-seat outdoor cafe when the weather gets warmer.
24. A new bar and live music venue called 78 Below is slated for the old (second) home of P&G Bar on 78th Street and Columbus, according to a recent liquor license application. For more on recent liquor licenses, check here.
25. Italian restaurant Serafina and Japanese restaurant Geisha both opened last week in the ground floor of On the Avenue Hotel on 77th and Broadway.
26. An unnamed upscale restaurant has applied for a liquor license to open in the long-vacant Time Out sports bar space on Amsterdam between 76th and 77th.
27. The Duane Reade on 76th Street and Broadway is open.
28. The Chase Bank on the corner of 75th and Broadway has closed.
29. Boutique jewelry store Michal Golan on 75th and Columbus has closed.
30. After a liquidation sale, the charming gift and cosmetics store Therapie on Columbus between 74th and 75th closed its doors for good last week.
31. Kids club Apple Seeds is opening on 70th Street and West End, right next to Bin 70 Wine. Isn’t there a law against that sort of thing.
32. Bin 70 Wine is opening on 70th Street and West End Avenue, but will not be serving the children who attend Apple Seeds next door (we hope).
If you missed it, check out our last map, of 25 local openings and closings. Thank you to everyone who sent in tips. Please keep them coming!
You can get an excellent Banh Mi at Epicure Boulud in Lincoln Center as well!
You’re doing a great job, is it possible to be sent an email if and when you find stores that are closing.