WEEKEND HISTORY: A DELICIOUS SIGN EMERGES ON BROADWAY
Posted on June 29, 2014 at 11:04 pm by West Sider
A grocery store on Broadway between 103rd and 104th street in front of a subway entrance closed recently, and construction workers stripped off the sign in front to reveal the name of a bygone delicatessen and sandwich shop. At first glance, it looks like it was called “Bruder’s,” but the B is actually from another sign underneath the sandwich shop’s. The “ders” or “des” appears to be intact, but the first letter in the name is tough to decipher. An H? A U?
A brief Internet search revealed very little. Does anyone know anything about this store? Let us know in the comments.
Thanks to several tipsters who sent in photos, including Clifford, Stephen and Claudia.
Yes! The name of the store and family that owned the store
is Hudes. They were there in the late l930’s into the 50’s when they opened the Carnegie Delicatessen on 56th street
and 7th avenue. It was one of the three Jewish deli’s on the
upper wet side that everyone loved, Rosenblum’s on 100th &
B’way, Hudes and Engles on 111th & B’way.Whenever I was with my mother at Hudes, mrs Hudes made me a salami sandwich on a 1/2 slice of rye for free, the mustard was wrapped in a cone shaped piece of brown wax paper. The sons opened the Carnegie in the 1950’s. It was the quintessential Mom & Pop neighborhood store, with wonderful owners. more memories to come….
Thank you for sharing this delightful memory…
Cool story … Thanks mark!
Thanks for making known what is unknown to most of us who live on the west side and have seen the mom and pop stores disappear.Do you remember the name of the shared fish and butcher shop on Broadway maybe near 100th street?
The store next to Hudes were the Indian restaurant is was Hanscom’s bakery. They had a great Maple-Walnut cake which I can still taste in my memories.
Thanks for the info/history.
I grew up down the block from there on RSD and don’t recall the sign so it’s older than me…
It was a real kick to see it the other day. I love it when these layers of NYC get peeled back.
P.S. I do remember the bright neon sign of Rosenblum’s…
The closed store is not on the northwest corner (where another grocery is still in business), but in the middle of the block.
Thanks. Fixed. WSR
Love it!
Wish it would stay – maybe it rents to a restaurant user that keeps the sign. not likely, but would be great.
Also, don’t forget Ellman’s Tea Room , a neighborhood favorite next to the New Yorker Theater.
When I moved up to W. 95th St., I recall there was a cafeteria on the east side of B’way., at about 103rd-104th St’s. Does anyone recall its name, or have a photo reference?
The cafeteria was Stanley’s and it was between 104th & 105th
streets on the east side of B’way and was owned by a Greek
American family. I ate there many times …the food was very
good. One of my Booker T Washington JHS co -graduates,
Stella Stylianou, was , I believe, a member of the family that
owned Stanley’s.
The cafeteria scenes in the film Mister Buddwing (1966) with James Garner may have been filmed there.
Truly a beautiful relic — and thanks, Manhattan Mark, for sharing your memories.
In reply to Peter of comment No. 7 — the 104 & Bway building was an historic Horn & Hardart cafeteria/automat.
Signs like this are so cool. I remember when they were renovating Picnic cafe and the sign underneath indicated that site used to sell corsets. Did you know the UWS back in the 1940s and 1950s was known mainly for its medical supply stores?
Back in the 90s, when one of the Millienium buildings went up, I think the one with Century 21, a giant Wall sign was uncovered on the back the existing building – I think it was from long gone Liquor company.
I took a picture, but don’t have it anymore.
I recall in the 1960s as a child being taken to a diner/restaurant typeof place I feel sure was called The Red Chimney. I think it was around 103rd and Broadway, on SW the corner. But I could be wrong about the exact location. I have never found anyone who remembers this – does anyone have any knowledge of it?
Kathy, I have a faint memory of the restaurant, however, I
never ate there. I think it was Afgahn serving shish kabob.
It did not last a long time. Unlike my other posts this memory is not absolute.
Regarding the Red Chimney and some other stores close by, see http://nycprodigal.blogspot.com/2008/08/william-burroughs-and-semi-lost-new.html
Robert S., Thanks for adding to the memories of 103rd St.
Your’s and Burroughs are enlightening . The Automat was
such a unique restaurant that it was not referred to as a
cafeteria, but always as the AUTOMAT. The Edison theater
was were I saw my first movie, Wilson, with Alexander Knox.
I also shined shoes in front of the Automat when I was about
10 years old. The Maraeilles was hotel that started taking in
refugees from Europe right after WW2, before it turned into a
an SRO. Thanks for adding to this story.
I hit town permanently in 1993, which is supposed to be the year the Edison Theater/Columbia Cinema closed for good. I have no memory of the building being there at all, which is odd given how many movies I used to see at the theaters back then. I can distinctly seeing movies a couple blocks down the street at the Metro that summer. Did they yank the awning etc. off it as soon as it closed?
I ran across info about the Marseilles when I was researching history of another neighborhood building and saw that it had been an unpleasant SRO for a time. But well before that, it was known for the ballroom on its lower floor, which would explain the odd two-level layout of the stores that have occupied that location (now the Bellmarc realty and an urgent care facility soon to open).
Yes, thank you. I have wondered for years whether I dreamed up The Red Chimney. So glad to have verification.
The Red Chimney was on the corner of 103rd street and Broadway under the Marseilles hotel it had some great charcoal broiled Hamburgers i remember that as a kid…also on that same block The Great Shanghai Restaurant great memories as a kid growing up in that neighborhood
Not Brudes. those are two signs. The BR is under the torn away top sign which says HUDES, as in Max Hudes, who sold this place and bought (from founders in 1939) and owned Carnegie Deli from 1942 to 1976. The BR likely stands for Broadway deli. After Max sold it was Olympia Superette for many years.
Hudes is 1930s style letters, BR is 1920s style.
Actually, there was a deli on virtually every other block. My favorite was the Hole in the Wall between 90th and 91st. Sid and Nat not only made great sandwiches. They hired the neighborhood kids to make deliveries and bring case of beer and soda and sauerkraut/pickles/cole slaw/potato salad up from the cellar.
My remembrances of this deli was that ( at least the workers were Afro-American ) this was in the early 1970’s They made some great sandwiches and one of the employee was a guy by the name of Tommy Lewis,,who when you gave him a $20.00 to pay he would snap-it between his fingers to make sure it wasn’t two $20.00’s stuck together…I still do it to this day.
My great-grandfather was the owner, Benjamin Hudes. My grandfather was Max Hudes who went on to buy the Carnegie Deli.
I see this article is a year old. I wonder where the sign is today. I would be great to have in the family!
I grew up on West End Avenue & 103rd. Street,
and I very fondly remember The Great Shanghi,
the wonderful tossed salads and charcole broiled
hambergers at the Red Chimminey. Rosemblum’s
Deli was wonderful, rude waiters and great
deli – true old NY. Does anyone remember
the Broadmore Drug Store? Augie’s Dounuts? That small bookstore on the corner or broadway & 102nd. street. How about The Harbin Inn, Yum. The upper west side has gentrified, but it has lost that wonderful old haymish feeling that made it so special.