By Lisa Kava and Natalie Demaree
Orwashers, the popular artisan bakery, opened an outpost at 66 West 84th Street (between Columbus Avenue and Central Park West), on April 27th. The outpost sells coffee, pastries, cookies, and loaves and is for takeout only. It sells bagel sandwiches, but does not offer lunch sandwiches or eggs, the manager told West Side Rag. All coffee is from Jack’s Coffee, with which Orwashers has a partnership. Current hours are daily from 7 a.m. until 3 p.m. Orwashers opened at 440 Amsterdam Avenue in 2016. The bakery also has locations on the Upper East Side, Long Island, and at various farmers markets. The space was previously used for storage by neighboring wine bar, Vin Sur Vingt.
Blank Street Coffee opened at 418 Columbus Avenue (at West 80th Street), on April 20th. This is the fourth Upper West Side location for the coffee chain; others are on Broadway at West 86th Street, Broadway at West 91st Street, and Columbus Avenue and West 69th Street. However this location differs from the other UWS coffee shops in that it is a “3.0 store” a representative told West Side Rag. “That means a more elevated experience for our customers who will get to see latte art (hearts and swans), and watch the baristas create and pour drinks,” the representative said. Blank Street Coffee was founded in Brooklyn in 2020, and has multiple locations in NYC, Boston, Washington D.C., England, and Scotland. Andy’s Deli, which closed in 2022, was previously in the space.
Fillup Coffee, at 2486 Broadway (between West 92nd and West 93rd streets), closed on April 25th. Signage in the window says, “It is with a heavy heart that this will be our last week in business. We are incredibly grateful for the support, conversations, and memories you’ve given us over the last five years.” A store clerk told West Side Rag that the closure was because of “too much competition.” Fillup Coffee, which opened in 2021, had mostly positive Yelp reviews with customers praising its coffee and friendly staff, while noting the small size of the shop. (Thanks to Marsha for the tip.)
The Cutting Edge Barber Shop, opened at 580 Amsterdam Avenue ( between West 88th and West 89th streets), on April 20th. The owner, Danny, is known as “Danny Barber” and previously worked at The Cutting District Barber Shop at 265 Columbus Avenue (at West 72nd Street). The Cutting Edge Barber Shop is open from 9 a.m. to 8 p.m. on weekdays, and from 9 a.m. to 7 p.m. on Saturdays and Sundays. Gerard Anthony Salon, which closed in May 2025 (the owners now operate out of Salli B Salon), was previously in the space. (Thanks to Julie for the tip.)
111 Hair Studio, a hair salon, opened at 111 West 86th Street on April 24th. Owner Mirjeta Beha, known as Kiki to her clients, spent 15 years as a stylist at Kolor Bar at 2490 Broadway before opening her own salon. 111 Hair Studio is a full-service salon offering haircuts, styling, color, keratin and other treatments, Beha told West Side Rag. It is open weekdays from 8 a.m. to 7p.m., Saturdays 9 a.m to 5 p.m., and on Sundays from 9 a.m to 4 p.m. There will be an opening party on Sunday, May 3rd, from 5 to 9 p.m. with cocktails. “After years of serving clients and building lasting relationships, this new space reflects a continued commitment to excellence, personalized care, and attention to detail,” Beha told the Rag. “ We look forward to welcoming both new and existing clients to our new space.” The space was previously a dry cleaner.
Auntie Anne’s, the pretzel company, and Carvel, the ice cream company, opened on April 26th at 2818 Broadway (at West 109th Street), an employee told West Side Rag. This is the second Upper West Side location for the Auntie Anne’s/Carvel combo. The first location opened in 2024 at 2588 Broadway (between West 96th and West 97th streets).
Taco Bell, the fast food chain, appears to be opening a location at 2818 Broadway (at West 109th Street), right next to, and sharing a building with the new Auntie Anne’s/Carvel. Taco Bell has not responded to West Side Rag’s outreach, but tipster Jill sent us a photo of the Taco Bell logo on a drink machine inside the space. The logo has also been noticed by other residents along with a Taco Bell work permit posted on the door, according to this Reddit thread. The space was previously offices for Claremont Hall, a condominium located in Morningside Heights. We will update when we have more information and an expected opening date. (Thanks to Jill and Michelle for the tip.)
ICYMI:
Smorgasburg, the Brooklyn based food market, is coming to Columbus Circle on May 14th. Read West Side Rag’s coverage of this news here.
The Openings & Closings column wouldn’t be possible without our many tipsters: thank you! Anyone can send tips about openings and closings in the neighborhood to info@westsiderag.com.
Subscribe to West Side Rag’s FREE email newsletter here. And you can Support the Rag here.
I am so excited about having Taco Bell followed by a Carvel flying saucer. Sorry if this offends all the UWS food snobs. Sometimes you just have one of those days. Or have a kid who wants simple fast food – this is not how I feed my children on a daily basis, but it is OK to indulge once in a while.
And for those who hate chains, Carvel was a small local business for many years (those of us of a certain age remember the commercials with the founder, Tom Carvel) until the original owner cashed out late in life – great American success story.
So don’t be a Cookie Puss.
Don’t forget the Whale of a Dad cakes!
This seems like a fake post…
I hope it’s one of those Cantina places with alcohol.
Kindly give credit to Fudgie the Whale. The proud Fudgie community thanks you.
Being a post graduate of the Tom Carvel School of Fatty Fats, I;m hoping they’ll offer Thinny Thin!
A Taco Bell? Dear Lord please forgive us for our sins, and let this be a short term blight upon us.
AnDee and Carlos –
lighten up, dudes! I grew up in a snobby town in CA that would not let the chain restaurants inside the city limits. But i found Taco Bell after college and I love it!.
If you don’t like it, don’t go. Would you rather have an empty store front? I am glad they will be paying taxes and employing people looking for jobs. Or were you going to pay salaries to all of those people?
And please note that unfortunately, it is food like this that is most affordable for many people. Not everyone can afford to eat gourmet food or even to buy fresh vegetables. And Mamdani’s supermarket is not going to solve this problem.
I’m not saying I’m going there several times a week, nor am I suggesting someone else does. But this dismissive, nasty attitude is not helpful. It is so typical of Upper West Siders and it is embarrassing.
Ugh, two new fast food places at 109th and Broadway. Sigh.
We’ll miss you dearly, Fillup. They opened up right in the middle of the pandemic and became such a great little spot. The coffees were always on point. Sigh.
Does Carvel serve Sundaes at either location? How about opening further down next time?
Carvel is the best! The more the merrier!
Ah, Fudgy the Whale is back! They should rebroadcast the old Tom Carvel commercials.
When I was in college I drove a Good Humor truck in Brooklyn and a friend’s family owned a Carvel store in Brighton Beach. His house was on my ice cream truck route so I would give him Good Humor and then go to Brighton Beach and get Carvel. And he gave my girlfriend one of those fake Fudgy the Whale cake molds that they put in the window on display.
I grew up in Brighton Beach and remember that Carvel store well. When I was a kid I had a tough time deciding whether to get a chocolate parfait, a chocolate cone, or a chocolate flying saucer. Nowadays I might get all three.
Sad to hear about Fillup. I was only able to visit a couple of times because they opened 10 mins after I had to catch my train and closed way before I get home from work.
There’s activity on the same block where the Starbucks used to be. I hope it’s another legit business that’ll last more than 5 years.
Of course we need a Taco Bell, there are so few taquerias within about three blocks.
Those in the know know that Taco Bell IS NOT a taqueria – it’s Taco Bell: Two completely different things!
“Fillup Coffee, which opened in 2021, had mostly positive Yelp reviews with customers praising its coffee and friendly staff, while noting the small size of the shop. (Thanks to Marsha for the tip…”
Do people still use Yelp?
“The Cutting Edge Barber Shop, opened at 580 Amsterdam Avenue ( between West 88th and West 89th streets), on April 20th. The owner, Danny, is known as “Danny Barber” and previously worked at The Cutting District Barber Shop at 265 Columbus Avenue (at West 72nd Street).”
I see a conflict in the name of this new shop, if anybody has been following the Coastal Caviar trademark infringement debacle, this seems like it may wind up costing the new business in the end. Maybe they have an agreement ?
Blank Street replacing Andy’s Deli is a huge disappointment. When Andy’s closed it was reported that a Japanese coffee shop was opening there. Certainly it would have been another chain, but nothing as banal as Blank Street, which is literally everywhere dispensing corporate mediocrity to the masses.
Well, there’s Frame Coffee on Broadway
I had the same recollection, thought we were promised a location from % Arabica, Blank Street is a huge bummer in comparison
Is 66 west 84th Street the correct address for Orwashers?
The good thing about more fast food locations in the neighborhood is that there are so many generous thoughtful people to stand outside of them and graciously hold the door open for the patrons with no expectations whatsoever. Oye what’s happening to this place. . . .
The chain businesses are the only ones left able to afford the rent!
Does anyone know if anything is going to happen with the deli on 88th and Broadway? I think it was supposed to open in Fall 2023.
Lamenting the loss of a local cafe while yet another soulless private equity-owned Blank Street appears in the neighborhood. Soon we’ll have no more bagel shops and Pop Up Bagels will be on every block.
So open a soulful local cafe and make millions. Or open a “bagel shop” and put PopUp out of business.
3.2.1. Go.
Seems like you missed the point. If anyone desires to live in a neighborhood with a diverse and thriving community, they have to partake in that community, which means going to the businesses that make up that community. PopUp and Blank Street are the latest in soulless storefronts that outcompete local businesses with marketing spend, economies of scale, and by burning capital, while siphoning revenue out of the neighborhood and not contributing to the diversity that makes the neighborhood great.
If you like Blank Street and PopUp, power to you, but in our isolating world my opinion is that local community is worth investing in.
I always somehow miss the point. But I agree with you on the point of investing in our community, which is why I encouraged you to do so in earnest and become part of that thriving and diverse story.
I’m all for investing in diverse and thriving community businesses that manage not to burn capital or siphon revenue out of the neighborhood (and yet are somehow outcompeted by some soulless capital-burning marketing machines). I wish there was a way for someone to discover how much more superior the product and value offerings are at the soulful locally-owned shops. A few of them even fixed their C health grades recently, woohoo.
PS. Never been to Blank St. ($7 coffee, soulful or not, is not my thing a block away from my own coffee machine), and don’t eat bagels that often, so really, no power to me.
PPS. All the soulful talk ends when it meets a spreadsheet, and when the bank account bleeds down for 15 months, but my guess is that you’ve never operated a business.
If your guess is that P.E.D.O.L. has never operated a business, then why are you telling him to open a cafe or bagel shop and compete with businesses that have economies of scale and experience? Yes, you miss the point.
Fortunately you are wrong.
How so?
Hardly surprising that Fillup closed. There are still four coffee places on Broadway between 91st and 95th alone. Something had to give.
I got a coffee there for the first time a couple of weeks ago and it was outrageously expensive and the barista was not the least bit friendly. I for one will not miss it. I also agree with everyone who is underwhelmed by Blank Street. There are som many good places to get coffee on the UWS now, that we can all be discerning
6 – the three on 91st and Broadway, the place between 92 and 93, the Starbucks between 94th and 95th and the coffee shop on 95th and Broadway
I’m casting a gimlet eye on the prospect of a Taco-Bell at 109th street/B’Way…. I have voluntarily nurtured/cared for the flower beds on both sides of the intersection for decades. The prospect of more trash does not EGG-ZACTLY gladden my heart. (So put me down as a bit of a sour-head.)
Maybe you can enlist them to help care for it, as part of their corporate and business interests. It works sometimes.
“Gimlet” I learned a new word today!
More good news for you: It’s also a vodka cocktail.
It’s also a small tool with a screw tip for making holes in wood or other material. Handy when you don’t want to get out the big drill.
A new outpost of Orwasher’s? Ooooh!
Another link in the Blank Street corporate chain? Ugh.!
The pretzel/Carvel place at 97th always seems desperate and depressing. People really buy those pretzels?
I am wondering why Orwasher’s would open a second location just 5 blocks from its current location. Won’t they be “eating” into their own profits? Seems odd.
Blank Street failed to make a go out of it downtown, but I guess they figure they can do better with a population better disciplined by capital to accept what’s put in front of them as long as it feels sufficiently affluent and homogenized.
Still mourning the years ago loss of family-run, neighborhood loved Andy’s deli due to the reputed greed of the Co-op Board who crazy hiked the rent. I will not be buying blank coffee.
What is happening at the corner of 95 & Columbus?
Looks like they’re demolishing the building finally. This morning there was a temporary wall up around the place. Maybe the WSR can find out.
And Broadway from 72 to 96…..nothing
What we still really, really need is a low calorie gourmet bakery turning out oven-fresh danishes and rugelach 24 hours a day…. (Extra credit iif they have vegan, kosher and gluten-free, halal and shade tree friendly options). Back in the days we could wander into H & H for a hot bagel at 2:00 a.m. and reinvigorate the flagging creative urge. But bagels are a little outdated, we need cream and crunch now. Please tell me there is something like that in the works fpr one of the many empty storefronts.