By Westley Slater
Bobby Santangelo, the beloved fish monger from Jake’s Fish Market and Broadway Farms, has passed.
He was 76 years old.
Bobby was a fixture on the Upper West Side since the late 1980’s. His customers and friends (they were one and the same) could always count on Bobby for a great piece of fish, guidance on how to cook it, and great sports conversations ranging from his beloved NY Mets and Rangers to his inexplicable love of the Nebraska Cornhusker’s. He always had a few golf tips as well and often referred to himself as “Dr. Golf.”
He had the same greeting for all. “How Ya Doing Young Man/Lady!”
He will be missed.
There is currently a search for next of kin being conducted. If you have any information on relatives, please contact West Side Rag at info@westsiderag.com and we will forward the information.
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Very sad. Rest in peace, Mr. Santangelo.
One of the few reallty nice people at that supermarket. Knowledgeable, and always helpful. RIP.
I hope he was ok.
A few years ago, I believe right before the pandemic, my wife and I walked into the fish area at Broadway Farm looking to buy some fish. It was close to 5 pm and it seemed like he was cleaning up for the day. As soon as he saw us he asked in a grumpy (I’m being generous) “what do you want????!!!” I looked at him for five seconds without saying a word, flabbergasted at the greeting, then looked at my stunned wife before deciding to leave. At that time I had been leaving on the upper West side for almost ten years and had only being at Broadway Farm a handful of times. That day was the last day either of us stopped there.
Sounds like he also had a great read on people– you guys clearly are . . . a delight– you were “flabbergasted” that someone cleaning up irritated that a worker was grumpy that you asked for something at close- a fish monger no less whose extra time to get fish would require more cleaning? Seriously? “Flabbergasted”?? Dear me. I’m sure your help adore you.
Just gross.
Oh the humanity.
Agreed. His passing may be sad, but he was not likable. And his chronic chain-smoking, even on duty, made me stop shopping for fish there many years ago. More than once I had to ask him to wash his hands before serving me.
You people bashing this guy who just died are absolutely horrible human beings. Silence is an option.
It’s not “bashing.” It’s putting things in perspective. Not all people are/were saints simply because they’re now dead. Deal with it. Learn to take the bad with the good. Silence is an option? So is truth.
De mortuis nil nisi bonum
verbum sapientis satis
This is so unkind. What do you know about what he may have been going through that day? And how you choose this forum to express this is unfathomable. Says more about you than him.
Well…I guess “salt of the earth” isn’t for everyone. (chuckle, chuckle).
His demeanor was simply the traditional behavior of delicatessen counter men .It is expected sa a stereotype of what people expect from NY>
what on earth is wrong with you leaving this comment on a story about a beloved persons death? You need to go touch grass.
Bobby could be gruff, but he could also be incredibly kind and caring. He was salt of the earth, and my partner and I got to know him well over the years. He always recognized us, always had a kind word, and I never doubted that if I needed his help, he would have given it without hesitation. I think you did yourself a disservice that day by deciding never to return. There was a lot more to Bobby than that one interaction.
Not the place nor the time
When and where then?
What a un-purposeful story you left here.
Why say anything then?
And your second to last sentence has a typo, you wrote ‘leaving’ when you meant ‘living’.
Oh the humanity.
Why post this? It serves no useful purpose. Badmouthing the recently deceased is not a good look. Is JL Rivers your real name? If so this was extra stupid. People who know you will have a worse opinion of you than they did yesterday.
A reminder to let so many workers that you bump into everyday — to let them know that you love them on some level — that you care about them.
Mr. Santangelo was not only the fishmonger during the years Broadway Farm had a fish market, he acted as manager during the pandemic up to the sad year when BF closed. He and his lovely colleagues will be greatly missed.
I first met Bobby as a patron when I bartended at Docks, but we quickly became friends as we shared a mania for sports; he Mets, me Yankees, both Rangers and Giants. He also was fiercely loyal. Becoming friends with Bobby meant becoming friends forever and it also meant he would do whatever he could for you if you asked. And he always included the people that were close to you in his thoughts, often telling me to, “Kiss the bride for me” when we said goodbye to each other. As the years passed we spoke less and saw less of each other but never lost our commraderie or the immediacy of our friendship; we were able to pick right where we left off. He was a great guy and I will miss him. Peace Bobby
P.S. – Thanks you Wes for letting people know
What a sad day! Bobby often went into the back to get a piece of fish for my husband or me if around closing. But then again, we were regulars and always nice to him – never entitled. I respected the fact that he kept his fish counter super clean and that took quite a while to do each night, so if I was running late, I’d call him to put aside something for me. We were disappointed when the store closed the fish counter but kept visiting now and then just to say hi to him and share golf tips and stories. He served in the navy so we’re hoping they’ll take care of his burial and will know who to contact as next of kin. Also, he had a girlfriend in Florida named Beverly (I think) but we never met her. RIP Bobby “don’t call me sir”. If there’s a memorial in the neighbourhood, we’ll like to be there.
No matter what HAVE RESPECT for those whom us no longer with us, truthfully you probably should have just kept that comment in the whole story to yourself because they’re on here trying to find loved one for the the deceased and that was just unnecessary and very rude you wouldn’t like it if it was your time to go when people were on there doing that stuff so, God rest his soul in heaven and I hope that somebody does find a loved one for him R.I.P. Sir.
🙄
🙏
Bobby was such a dear. And a curmudgeon st the same time. We followed him from Jake’s to Broadway Farms. Hopefully we will meet him again in heaven.
Long after the fish counter closed, he was working in the store when I had to return a product that wasn’t up to snuff. He took it and just said “see me” when you want to get something else. No paper work, no receipts, nothing, just “see me”. Weeks later when I went in I fully expected I’d have to jump through hoops to have him remember the incident. He kept his promise without a question. Mind you, I also remember being put-off in the 80’s by his gruffness. I came to appreciate, even miss, that long faded UWS directness behind the counter. He and his ways will be missed.
Agreed on “if you don’t have something nice to say, why say it” on a chain about a recent deceased UWSider. Is it possible this fishmonger worked at Citarella in the old days?
I ‘d like to share this anecdote about Bob’s love of sports and his eagerness to engage his customers. I was a regular at Jake’s, and we always chatted about baseball. It was 2001; he he was in a fantasy baseball league, and their draft was being held that night. Knowing that I’ m a huge St. Louis Cardinals fan, he asked me, “Hey, Cards have any good young prospects coming up that are under the radar. I said, “Well, I’ve read a little about this guy who’s supposed to be terrific, but I doubt he’ll make the team this season. Might be worth taking a chance on drafting him anyway, so you’ll have him next year. “Oh, yeah?” Bobby said. “What’s his name?” I told him: “Albert Pujols.” The rest is history. Pujols went on to be perhaps the greatest player of his generation, and a lock to be a first-round selection to the Hall of Fame in his first year of eligibility. Bob was forever grateful. Sometimes, if I ordered a pound of salmon for delivery, I’d find an extra half pound in the bag. Or a container of their fabulous fish chili. No charge.
What a nice picture of Bobby! He truly loved our neighborhood and had strong opinions about us regulars as opposed to “the Yuppies” . He always passed a jumbo shrimp to each of our dachshunds when we shopped at Jake’s. His tastes were simple and ran deep. The pull of that golf course! Any talk of weather was measured against how it worked for the game. He was a good person who cared about us with humor and sweetness. I hope his passing was as easy as it could be. Thanks for this notice. Swing on, Bobby.
I didn’t know Bobby well but for years we’d always greet each other. He was often by the flowers or hanging out in the front of the counters in the store. He belonged there and I am sorry to hear of his death. He was part of us in the neighborhood. Someone steady for many years. RIP
Nice guy. He once told me “I’ve got the best fish in Manhattan”.
Welp, maybe not but I appreciated the enthusiasm.
RIP.
Bobby was a good man. I’m so happy I was able to see him spend a few minutes one evening with mark messier of his beloved rangers…
Even sadder that he died alone and you’re looking for next of kin.
We were fans when Bobby was at Jake’s and were happy to see him move to Broadway Farm to open their fish counter. (And of course sad that it didn’t work out for the store.)
My wife would chat with Bobby when she went in to buy fish for dinner. He once told her, when she asked him for recommendations for cooking something, that he didn’t know because he didn’t eat fish!
Rest in peace, Bobby.
Does anyone know what became of Sandra, a wonderful woman who had been the Broadway Farm store manager for many years and started out when it was still across the street? She was usually in the office but occasionally came out to the floor and helped at the registers. Sandra knew my kids (and probably many others) since their births and always asked about them (now adults) by name. Lovely lady — I hope she, and the other long-time staff, made good transitions.
I don’t know why we expect workers to do so much for us. What do we ever do for them? UWS would be a more human place if we would just spend some time with people who are helping/serving us — we could maybe consider taking our faces out of our devices and making some real contact with them — even for a minute or two. MUWHA. Make the Upper Westside Human Again!