By Scott Etkin and Lisa Kava
Richard Corman, the photographer’s gallery at 473 Amsterdam Avenue (83rd Street), showcasing portraits of famous actors, athletes, and politicians, closed on January 15th. The shop started as a pop-up in 2019, with Coman having “no intention of being in the retail business,” but it ended up being extended into a four-year run. “Thank you neighbors and friends for your remarkable support. It is because of You that I have remained this long!” he wrote on Instagram. Corman has traveled the world to photograph iconic figures, such as Michael Jordan, Nelson Mandela, Mohammad Ali, Madonna, Jean-Michel Basquiat, and many others. Corman posted that a documentary, book, and exhibit featuring his work will be released over the next two years.
Van Leeuwen Ice Cream is opening at 2578 Broadway on the corner of 97th Street this spring, a company representative confirmed with West Side Rag. It is replacing another ice cream shop, Blue Marble, which closed its retail locations last year to focus on its wholesale business. Van Leeuwen started as an ice cream truck in 2008 in New York City and has since expanded to dozens of stores across several major US cities. It already has two locations on the Upper West Side at 73rd Street and Columbus and at 81st Street and Amsterdam. (Thanks to Jeff, Anya, and Robert for the tips.)
The CVS Pharmacy inside the Target at 795 Columbus (98th Street) is closing on March 12th. “Maintaining access to pharmacy services in the communities we serve is an important factor we consider when making store closure decisions,” a CVS representative wrote to WSR. “Other factors include local market dynamics, population shifts, a community’s store density, and ensuring there are other geographic access points to meet the needs of the community.” West Side Rag recently reported that the CVS location at Broadway and West 93rd Streetvwill also be closing, on February 21st. The closest remaining CVS is at 743 Amsterdam between 96th and 97th streets. (Thanks to Emily for the tip.)
Slate Cafe, a restaurant and coffee bar, is coming in early February to 2109 Broadway (West 74th Street between Broadway and West End Avenue), in the Ansonia building, at space previously occupied by Margot Patisserie, which closed in the spring of 2022 after nearly 30 years. This will be the third location in NYC (others are in Nomad and Midtown) for Slate, which serves breakfast, salads, sandwiches, and small plates in addition to artisan coffee and tea. They will also serve beer and wine. Slate is the brainchild of husband-and-wife team Zach Israel and Ashley Jaffe. “A slate, blank or otherwise, offers an opportunity for inspiration, ideation and growth,” Jaffe wrote to WSR in an email. The cafe will offer a variety of gluten-free, vegetarian, and vegan options. They will be open seven days a week from 7:30 a.m. to 5 p.m. on weekdays, and 8 a.m. to 5 p.m. on weekends. Israel and Jaffe are former Upper West Siders. “We are longtime fans of the Upper West Side. Zach and I lived there for years,” Jaffe wrote. (Thanks to Steve for the tip.)
Stretchlab, a one-on-one assisted stretching studio, is opening at 2551 Broadway at 96th Street. The opening will happen in phases, Colleen, a manager, said on a call with WSR. Starting on February 4th, for about a month, Stretchlab will offer free, 15-minute demos to show what a session entails. A soft- opening phase with half-hour and full-hour sessions will begin in March, followed by a full opening on April 4th. Once it is fully up and running, this location will have about 10 tables. It will be Stretchlab’s second location on the UWS – the existing one at Columbus and West 75th Street opened in October 2022, and is under the same franchise ownership. The 96th Street location will occupy a storefront in the new building that is opening there.
Chanel, the luxury clothes and accessories brand, has signage up at 199 Columbus Avenue on the corner of West 69th Street. While some Chanel products, like makeup and eyewear, are available at existing stores on the Upper West Side, this will be the first stand-alone Chanel boutique in the neighborhood. (The company has not responded to WSR’s outreach so far.) The space used to be Reiss, a high-end European clothing store that closed in the summer of 2022. (Thanks to Jack for the tip.)
Mimi’s Pizza opened on January 19th at 2393 Broadway between West 87th and 88th streets. A representative told WSR that they will be open from 10 a.m. to 10 p.m., seven days a week to start (hours may change), and that they also serve pasta, heroes, salads, and appetizers. They started doing takeout and delivery on January 22nd, he said. This is the second location for Mimi’s, which is also on the Upper East Side. In addition to pizzas with different toppings, Mimi’s also has grandma pizza (rectangular) and cauliflower crust pizza. (Thanks to Irene for the tip.)
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Is CVS following the tried and true MO of saturate a neighborhood, maximize the customer base, then cut the numbers as long as another outlet is within easy distance? Banks have been doing this frequently.
Closing at 93/Bway and 98/Columbus when a large store exists at 96/Amsterdam just seems like common sense.
Banks like everyone else is retrenching thanks in good part to changes brought on by technology.
Many persons have moved to online banking in various forms. This has made physical branches often redundant. This or banks just don’t require huge spaces any longer and are downsizing.
It’s not just in NYC or even NYS, this is happening all over USA.
https://en.as.com/latest_news/full-list-of-jp-morgan-chase-branches-that-have-and-will-closed-in-2023-n/
Other issue is simply corporate. When a bank overall is doing badly one thing that happens is it sheds physical locations.
Not at all a saturation issue. It’s a 100% crime issue. Target does not report and/or actively go after theft. This location has had a major theft issue and CVS mentioned this in their press release a few weeks ago. The one on 93rd was deemed too small to make a profit vs shrinkage vs the high rent.
Insurance companies require police reports for theft claims so unless Target is not recouping the revenue lost from theft, they would report it. The police are almost always stationed right outside.
Target is one of those places that lets you steal with impunity so having a business inside Target with its no security policy is a sketchy proposition.
There’s also a big CVS at West End and 70th Street.
There’s also a CVS with 24 hr pharmacy at 86th and Amsterdam.
Also crime/shoplifting.
The CVS pharmacy location at 96/Amsterdam is a MESS. The line at the pharmacy counter is always a mile long, and they are often out of stock on needed drugs. I really hope these location closures allow for additional resources to be applied to the 96/Amsterdam location, if this will be the primary CVS in the area. Otherwise, I will be looking to take my prescriptions elsewhere.
I just went through hell switching Rx’s from CVS Brdwy/93rd St – which was always a nightmare! – to CVS @Target – which was nice, quiet, empty and clean. Now have to go through it all again for CVS 96/Amst?? That pharmacy is as cramped and nasty as 93rd/Brdwy, and will now be serving at least DOUBLE the number of customers! Can’t switch to independent pharmacies, as their prices are much higher. Always more aggravation with our healthcare systemic disfunction!
Try a local independent pharmacist like Broadway Chemists or Ivan’s for your prescriptions. The difference in service and civility is amazing.
TRULY AMAZING! THANK GOODNESS FOR BROADWAY CHEMISTS!!!!!!
Mimi’s says right on the awning “Fresh From The Oven” but that is definitely not true. They have old pies sitting out on the counter and when I ordered two slices they reheated a couple of cold ones that looked like they were made the day before. Very average and frankly dishonest really. What does “Fresh From The Oven” mean anyway?
They reheated it in the oven, so it is fresh from the oven for you 😉
That is what pizza places do. Do you want them to start making a pie from scratch when you walk in? You would be waiting for ages. They make them ahead of time then re-heat the slices.
Everyone needs something to complain about…
Every pizza place in the universe does this.
There are plenty of places that don’t reheat slices. Not on the UWS though.
They only sell whole pies. You have to be really hungry.
Chanel might not be the right fit for the neighborhood but I hope im wrong! they better have security…don’t mean to be negative, but it’s rough out there!!
That’s exactly what I thought – they better have good security.
I assume the other commenters don’t work in retail, they just pop into shops now and then and assume that because nothing happened while they were there, it’s always incident-free. The rest of us know it isn’t, sadly.
If you don’t mean to be negative, then simply don’t — and more importantly, don’t be inaccurate as part of your negativity. I live near that corner and it most certainly is not “rough.” It’s actually part of a wonderful stretch of the UWS, and I assume that an established company like Chanel has prepared itself to succeed with market research and security.
Chanel certainly has security, and this stretch of Columbus is far from rough — it’s brimming with high-end shops and often feels pretty idyllic, e.g., when live jazz bands are playing outside Manny’s Bistro and people are brunching outdoors (in warm weather).
I think you might want to speak to the employees at Lululemon on Columbus Avenue about how “far from rough” this neighborhood is. Or the multitude of restaurants that have had their front doors smashed and money stolen out of registers. If this CHANEL store will carry handbags, Get Ready because it won’t be pretty based on what has happened to their store not only in Soho but in their stores across the country.
Chanel is in Williamsburg (never thought I’d see THAT-my 92 yr old mother is floored.) but it’s mostly a beauty store. Considering there’s no Chanel beauty at any of the Sephora’s on the UWS-this could work. Fingers crossed. It’ll be nice.
The Broadway Sephora carries Chanel.
I wish it’d be an Atelier Beaute Chanel like the one in Soho!
I literally cannot think of anything we need LESS than a Chanel boutique on the corner of 69th and Columbus. I find it discouraging that after 18 months dark, that corner is going to this type of extremely high end business, useful to so few. I remember years ago when the opposite corner went to an Olive Oil store and I thought THAT was the end of the neighborhood. I was so naive.
What is it that you want to see? There are plenty of empty storefronts – it isn’t as though Chanel is blocking the stores you want.
I would rather have a Chanel boutique than another (illegal) smoke shop.
Agree that a Chanel boutique is better than a smoke shop. Is that what it has come to on this section of the UWS? A choice between those 2 types of businesses? Things might be worse than I had imagined.
Lauren, despite your assertion that Chanel, as an “extremely high end business” is “useful to so few”, a destination, high end shop also brings people to the area. Personally, although I will not likely ever buy anything at Chanel, I am thrilled it is coming to that location — bringing volume to other stores and restaurants in the area.
I think it’s sad that a clothing shop with a local owner and a distinctive local identity like CPW has been priced out of the neighborhood, while a multi-national like Chanel, financed by a billionaire French family, can afford the rent. I rather doubt that hordes of people will stream to the UWS Chanel to purchase stuff they can buy at any of its other other locations, and remain here to “bring volume” to the neighborhood.
Ah, yes, another “eat the rich” comment. I, for one, look forward to welcoming our new neighbor.
You’re ignoring the people that live on the UWS who will shop there and at other businesses in the neighborhood. The UWS has plenty of wealthy people already living here.
But the wealthy people on the UWS might not be shopping at Channel. Barney’s closed it’s shop on the UWs for a reason and I think Burberry did too.
Lllll – Agree. Not to mention Brooks Brothers and Reiss, the high-end clothing store that preceded Chanel at that location. There is certainly an affluent element on the UWS, but it’s not the major demographic.
Van Leeuwen! I was sad to see Blue Marble go but this is great news. Hooray!
Me too. I got pints of ice creamat Blue Marble every so often, will do the same at van Leeuwen.
The CVS Pharmacy closure at Target seems to be corporate speak for we do not want to pay pharmacists the going rate so we’ll just close the pharmacy. They claim there is a pharmacist shortage but it is a wage shortage.
There are signs up on 84th and Broadway that a new bakery is going in to the space that was formerly Aldo and then the pop up Variazione. This new bakery will be 50 feet south of the Panera Bread store, so it will be interesting to see which one survives. (Panera is so expensive, it is hard to see how anyone can afford their products.)
Thanks for posting – beat me to it. It is called Avenue Bakery – nice signage. I just did some googling and it looks like it is kosher and there is one at 77th and 2nd. It looks like more cakes and pastries, so between that and being kosher, it is quite different from Panera (though I agree that there is some overlap). There is also a Baked by Melissa on that block so it is quite the dessert spot!
Gosh I miss Margot Patisserie
There will be a bagel shop in place of the Starbucks on 76 and Columbus . Bagelup i think it s called
Popup Bagels
It’s been written about. It’s very well-regarded.
I can’t believe that Robert Sietsema missed Bagelup!!!!!
Mimi’s Pizza was once at Lexington and 84th on UES until LL forced a move. Glad to see they found a new spot in area and are expanding to UWS.
Sadly, this is not the same Mimi’s pizza that closed in 2016.
Oh, that’s too bad. Mimi’s on the UES was yummy and a real neighborhood place. Pizza up front, casual dinner in the back
Nice to see an ice cream shop opening on Broadway & 97th and a gym opening on Broadway & 96th! Coincidence? I think not. Let the conspiracy theories begin . . . Lol!
I love Van Leeuwen ice cream and know it well, that is why I would like to make a slight correction, the up and running location is between 71st and 72nd St on Columbus Ave.
Has anyone heard any news about the structure on the corner of 84th & Columbus? No progress has been made in months. I’m hoping it’s an extension of Champion Martial Arts.
Okay I can’t be the only one to be surprised by the ABSURDLY narrow aisles at the new Morton Williams. Two normal sized people can not pass.