Text and Photographs by Stephen Harmon
Part 1 of the Finale to Throwback Thursday, featuring Stephen Harmon’s favorite photos, focused on people. Now we move to places on the Upper West Side in the 1970s and 80s, including some that have stood the test of time.
I hope you find something to enjoy.
Next Thursday, The Finale, Part 3
Stephen Harmon is a longtime Upper West Sider, a retired lawyer, and a world-class photographer whose work is on display in many of the city’s museums, including The Museum of the City of New York, The Brooklyn Museum, New York Historical, and The New York Public Library.
Check out our audio interview with Stephen Harmon on Rag Radio — HERE.
New! See all Throwback Thursdays — HERE.
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the old Thalia 😩
Ah memories … if you sat in the row with the hump in the floor you were almost looking at the ceiling instead of the screen.
I used to sneak in a whole Chinese lunch special
They used to have double features during the week for like $2.
I’d spend a few hours in there weekly 🤣
Gosh, I look at these pictures and tears well up over what we’ve lost (well, not the OTB). These were the stores that gave the UWS character. Now it seems we are all surrounded by cheap construction and empty storefronts.
Yes, that OTB on 72nd was a blight.
I remember buying items in the Town Shop. I am not the enthusiast of Zabar’s that I once was.
I would imagine your faded love with Zabar’s is akin to mine: their prices have crept into an obscene level.
How come?
The Town Shop lives! Great, olld-fashioned sleep- and underwear. Good materials (cotton, silk) and fair prices. They’ll even measure you for a bra!
Thank you for sharing these photos!! Brings back such good memories!!
I hope Part 3 includes a shot of the late lamented Hungarian Rendezvous (east side of Broadway around 81st, I think).
Between 81st and 82nd. Great place!
The Thalia.. remember seeing brother from another planet at the Thalia.
The tranche of photos captures the time sq marque style of store fronts reminiscent of the pre Disney era for times sq.
I ate in the Cherry restaurant all of the time!
The Unforgettable Betty was the Queen of the Cherry!
Saturday morning breakfasts.
I lost my Cherry there!
Ah, Williams. I so loved their buckwheat and onion and bow tie pasta dish. Can’t remember what it’s called. Was good day when Mom brought it home.
Pearl barley with mushrooms!
Kasha varnishkas. The kasha part is the buckwheat; I don’t know whether varnishkas refers to the bowtie noodles or the dish as a whole. (Any Yiddish etymologists here?) I make a potful once every winter to remember my grandmother by.
“ The name and the dish varnishkes as a whole seems to be a Yiddish adaptation of the Ukrainian vareniki (varenyky, stuffed dumplings).”
-wikipedia
The called it “ kasha!’
Kasha varnishkes!
Kashe varnishkes
Kasha varnishkes
Every single photo brings a jolt of recognition. Thanks for the memories 🎵 🎶 !!
Would love to buy some of these prints. Is that possible?
Yes, yes, so would I!
Pandemonium!!! The original Town Shop!! My friends and I loved Pandemonium, and I bought my first bra at Town Shop. So great to see the Thalia again, and I remember those OTBs.
Thank you so much for this series, I’ve looked forward to it every week. I’ll miss it.
Love these photos so much, thank you Stephen! Wonder if you happen to have a photo of the middle eastern place that was on the west side of Broadway in the 1980s and early 1990s between either 85th and 86th or 84th and 85th Streets? One ordered from the counter but there were tables. The food was wonderful. It was there in the early 1990s — not sure when it closed. Anyone?
This made me think of At Our Place from later on, around 94th, with all the mirrors!
Middle Eastern Restaurant on Westside of Broadway between 84th and 85th. IT WAS GREAT! Name?
Was it Fez inside the Time Cafe?
Yes it was wonderful but I cannot for the life of me remember the name! I hope someone else does!
I don’t remember what it was called, but I have often thought of that place. The food was excellent. I don’t think it was there for that long.
I loved the fried chicken from Williams Bar-B-Q on the corner of 86th and Broadway. The best…
How many conversations did I have over coffee at the Cherry… hundreds?
The phenomenal burgers at Big Nick’s Burger Joint (plus the great thick-cut fries). Gone…
And the Thalia… a hidden treasure, sorely missed.
Thanks for the photos!
Apple strudel at Royale Bakery!
Apple strudel at Royale after sweating a workout at the Nickolaus studio upstairs.
OTB is best enjoyed in a photo than it was in real life. These photos bring back so many neighborhood memories. It’s been a wonderful gift to see them with other UWS neighbors every Thursday. Thank you, Stephen.
I had no interest in horse racing and there were a lot of “interesting” characters but several times I saw the name of a horse in one of the triple crown races that tickled my fancy and I would brave the crowds to put down a few bucks. It was a true piece of Americana.
Same here!
That OTB outlet on Kentucky Derby Day was something to behold. Haters here missed a grand slice of authentic UWS palooza. Sorry for you.
Remember Teachers???
And the Library!
Yes, and Teachers Too!
omg. my body got the chills just reading your question. Teachers and Teachers Too!! My favorite place EVAH! A chicken dish never to be duplicated there…..ying yang chicken or yang yang chicken. Whatever it was called, it was fabulous.
And Marvin Gardens!
the BEST flounder stuffed with crab meat anywhere at any price!!!!
A dish no one makes anymore.
These are so wonderful.
Thank you.
I’ll never forget my bright pink pegged-leg jeans from Pandemonium!
Will this section be featuring photos by another photographer? What’s the plan going forward? We need our nostalgia fix!
I wouldn’t mind seeing pics from random readers.
That’s a fun idea!
Oh boy, do I ever miss Royale Bakery — coffee and bagels!
And the sweetest, dearest, most generous women behind the counter — most of them middle European, all of them giving our kids a free cookie whenever we were there.
My grandmother worked behind the counter! She was tiny and I would be surprised if she could see over the counter. She loved serving all of you!
These are great! And I’ve been in every single place (except the OTB and the barber shop).
We’ll miss you and your photos. As the song goes, “thanks for the memories.”
So wonderfully evocative, Stephen! You have such an eye—for details and for composition. Thanks for these images.
As much as I miss certain places, I miss more a good, decent ‘breakfast special’. There are plenty of $20 (and up) breakfasts around but those are not for me. Waaaay too expensive.
I have found one not far from home hidden away in a shop that looks like a sit down pizza joint. it suffices.
But my favourite was an 8 stool joint over on Amsterdam just uptown of P&G. It was in my stellar cluster—the breakfast joint, P&G and Vinnie’s Pizza, where I used to dance my one year old daughter to Stevie Wonder on the jukebox.
It might be the one pictured here—Amsterdam Restaurant.
I still live in my same apartment and am ever so grateful to be doing so.
Vinnie’s Pizza! Went there so many times late at night–can’t remember how late they were open but I think late enough.. And yes, I think the Amsterdam Restaurant is the one separately pictured here.
I remember almost all of these and I still miss Williams Barbecue
Best fried chicken in the world.
Do you remember when Williams was on the West side of Broadway? Harry always gave me a chicken wing when I was a kid!
I remember the very first time i stepped inside of Zabar’s. The delicious, evocative aroma made me want to live there! They were open until midnight on Saturday night…you might meet your friends, not to mention our neighborhood’s many celebrities, all topping off the evening by picking up Sunday morning’s breakfast and the Sunday NY Times from the stand nearby. The Eat Shoppe (west side of Broadway – maybe corner of 95th?) was a good spot for breakfast. In it’s early years, Chun Cha Fu, where Carmine’s now stands, offered an “all you can eat” dinner buffet for a ridiculously low sum. I would often go there directly from night classes at Fordham Law — perhaps accounting for why I left law school after one year. Another treat for the little ones – Williams BBQ offered a fried chicken leg to every child.
I went to Zabars every Saturday night in the late 70’s and 80’s with my then boyfriend to get nova for the morning. There was always a mob of people at the fish counter, and we waited (sometimes for 45 minutes+) for our number to be called. I scoured the floor to find lower numbers which had been abandoned by less patient people. Sam Cohen was my favorite person behind the counter. What a wonderful man–and slicer!
oops, when a friend mentioned reading this, i had to circle back to see what i had actually written…i am my own grammar police! i am mortified that i typed “it’s” when i intended “its.” i am trying to safe face by offering self-correction!
Thanks, Stephen. I love these! I think I was inside the Thalia when you took this pic. Last week’s were great, too.
These photos are SO SPECIAL.–Royale pastry shop, Williams Barbeque, the Thalia where I saw all the old Ealing comedies with Alec Guinness; Pandemoniom where I got my first cool jeans; every single photo took me back to the world in which I grew up (or tried to) and I miss it more than I can begin to say. Thank you with all my heart for bringing it all back. If there were postcards with all these photos–and others–I would buy them all and even frame some. I hope you know how much your photos have meant to me and to all of us –tears well up as I look. Sometimes they fall.
Wow, wow, wow!! Such fun to see these photos — thank you!!
“I hope you find something to enjoy.”
I’ve enjoyed every edition of this wonderful series.
Stephen, are you photographing what the today’s UWS has become? Nostalgia aside, it’s still full of fascinating faces and streetscenes.
Just asking….
I would LOVE to see a pic of Vinnie’s Pizza that was on Amsterdam, right by Needle Park. Was a great representation of NYC pie. My tears flowed for months after they closed.
Around 1983, at 96th and Broadway, there were 3 Chinese restaurants. Not take out places. Real restaurants.
Szechuan West was one of them on the East side with upstairs seating overlooking the downstairs. Before the tower went up across the street.
One of the darkest days, restaurant-wise, for me was the closing of one of them – Empire Schezuan, somewhere on the block between 96 and 97 on the east side of Broadway.
If I recall, it moved to a smaller spot a couple blocks north on Broadway, but it couldn’t hold a candle to the original.
One was the Harbin Inn, i believe. At the southeast corner of 87th and broadway, there was a classic Chinese restaurant, which may or may not have described its cuisine as Cantonese and certainly offered items undreamed of in any region of China. That was all we knew at the time!
Yes, that became a clothing store.
OMG, Royale! When I moved in with my Jewish girlfriend to Lincoln Towers in 1986 as a 31 yo Cuban-Puertorican, she introduced me to Royale. I learned about babkas, rugelagh, hamantaschen and black and whites, among others. I still miss the women behind the counter who would always give me an extra rugelagh to eat on my way out. The cinnamon were best.
I used to get my haircut there on the corner of West 82nd St & Amsterdam Av., since 8 years of age.
P & G Bar on the corner of 74th & Amsterdam Ave.
Williams BBQ Chicken between 86th & 85th & Broadway. Awesome chickens since 1964.
Big Nick Best Hamburg in town 76th & 77th St & Broadway..
My aunt worked at the ladies underwear shop 82nd St & Broadway .
Pandemonium my favorite store for psychedelic posters and things.
Yes, I remember all of those locations. My childhood, teenage, and adulthood.
202 West 82nd St. across from Holy Trinity Church where I made my 1st holy communion 1965
Pandemonium
The place where I went to shop for psychedelic posters
Oh my, these are wonderful! The beloved P&G, on my corner…..
Hi Stephen – any pics of Columbus Ave in the late 70s-80s of Anita’s Chili Parlor, Indian Oven, and Yang Yang?
Looks like establishments took much better care of their fronts then they do now.
I remember a Burger King at the sw corner of 82nd and broadway and they’d have $1 whoppers. That and the pork chops in tomato sauce from La Caridad when it was a small take out mainly restaurant at the nw corner of 78th and broadway, then it expanded and became much bigger. I remember going to the aspca next to the queensboro bridge and adopting a cat then coming home from my 1st day of work downtown and the cat was stretched out really long on my futon from how hot it was so I went to Union Square at The Wiz and bought a giant a/c unit and put it in the trunk of a yellow cab and rode back to my apt over Laytners Linens and carried the 10k btu unit up to the top floor and installed it myself. Quite a lot of btus for a 300 sq ft apt lol. This was the mid 90’s. Not quite as far back as a lot of these photos but I still feel like an old codger. Big Nicks yes it was good. They had a very big menu. And dont forget about the old Emerald Inn on Columbus ave. They had live music and good food too.
Fantastic! (as always!)
A bit off-topic perhaps, but that entryway shown for Williams BBQ always struck me as a singular architectural component, which has lasted throughout the seemingly dozens of new owners over the many years.
I cannot think of another shop on Broadway, ever, that opted to put a concrete handicap ramp PLUS steps perpendicular to the front door.
(Yes, the Citibank one door north has a handicap ramp – but not one with steps!)
Williams BBQ was the best (or worst if you think of your arteries). All those birds roasting on rotating spits, the ticketing/payment system, the foil-lined white paper bags with red ink. I can still smell it. Whenever I walk by Broadway and 86th I am sad not to see it there even though I don’t eat any of that kind of food any more. We used to go there to pick up dinner with my mother, fried chicken for me and my brother, half a roast duck for my dad, latkes and that kasha (which my parents called “farfal” as in farfalle). The guys behind the counter would give each of us kids a free fried drum stick while. It was heaven. Thanks for sharing these amazing photos!
Wondering if Stephen has any photos of Cannon’s Bar; the Mill Luncheonette; Chock full of Nuts at 116th and B’way; Szechuan West at 96th and B’way; Moon Palace; a stationary store on the west side of Broadway between 116th and 115th; Mama Joys; the West End;
My friend and I hung out at CFON or when we were students at Barnard in the 70s!
Same here! We had breakfast at Chock every morning.
Golden’s Stationary right next to Sal and Vinny’s Pizza.
Loved Royale Pastry Shop. They used real whipped cream in their Napoleons. Everything was so delicious.
Royal Bakery had delicious old world pastries. You could barely see the elderly ladies who worked in the bakery over the tall, glass display cases.
Does anyone remember Sonia from the Royal Bakery?
Like The Town Shop, this old Upper West Sider is still hanging on, despite having to move around some! Thank you for these nostalgic images. I love to read the comments from neighbors I may never meet but who still hold the neighborhood close to their hearts.
We had our wonderful wedding cake baked there — white cake, lemon filling, and white buttercream icing, August 1, 1970. The town shop was one of my first articles. They had just opened and I interviewed the owners. That wonderful little shop turned into an upper west side Must Have! Does anybody remember benny’s, the little ice cream candy news and magazine store on 81st and Broadway on the northwest corner? Benny always had a smile for us kids.
Thanks so much for memorializing the Royale, where my late wife and I got our engagement cake, the famous mocha torte, in 1965. I suppose you know it appears on Seinfeld in the one-second shot before their Jewish bakery sequence. I’ll miss your very nostalgic shots, which take me back to my day.
Big Nick Cares!! And the P&G! 😍 Miss them so much.