Casa Havana, the Cuban diner on Chelsea's 8th Avenue, shuttered yesterday. Suddenly and, it appears, completely.
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| Today |
A reader sent in the above photo and reported that the place is empty inside. I was just there a week ago, filling up on delicious empanadas served by a tough young woman with a scorpion tattoo on her neck. Their phone is disconnected and there's no notice on their Facebook page or website.
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| A week ago |
This was an authentic and inexpensive spot, but it was not the original Cuban diner that was in this space. That was Havana Chelsea, an "old-school Cuban greasy spoon that...managed to survive the area’s influx of trendy restaurants."
New York Magazine wrote of Casa Havana: "When Havana Chelsea, the scruffy, long-time Cuban joint that used to be here, closed down, locals were bereft. For his spiffy successor, [owner] Vicari kept the old chef, and continues to peddle rustic Cuban fare with the same menu, prices, and humble roots." They kept the neon "Best Cuban Sandwiches" sign, too.
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| Another shot: Last night, from Richie Cohen |
The new Casa Havana was not without controversy. The Village Voice published a comment from the presumed owner of the old Havana Chelsea, calling Casa Havana a fake. To which the owner of Casa Havana responded that he wasn't trying to copy the old place at all. But many people believed it was the same business with a new name. (If it had gone upscale, it might belong in the annals of the fauxstalgia trend.)
A couple years ago, Grub Street reported: "Restaurateur Tom Vicari is battling to stave off eviction from the Chelsea space he leased in 2007 for his popular Casa Havana Cuban luncheonette, and claims that his landlord, the leader of a low-income housing cooperative board next door, is engaging in strong-arm tactics to remove him."
Maybe now we'll get that additional 7-Eleven that Chelsea really needs--oh, but that'll probably go into the Rawhide space, right?
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| inside Casa Havana |
Once, there were many Cuban diners in Chelsea. One by one, they have vanished. Pray this doesn't happen anytime soon to La Taza de Oro.
So sad and one of among many of the Cuban / Puerto Rican restaurants closing in the area(I cried when Cabo Rojo closed). At least we still have La Taza de Oro.
ReplyDeleteGood Lord, I'm flabbergasted! I was just in there about 10 days ago (getting some of their giant empanadas).
ReplyDeleteThe speed of this happening makes my head spin...
Thanks for the update,
Ivan
I was sad to see the Rosa's Pizza on 7th Ave and 27th St is now suddenly boarded up, set to be replaced with some sort of generic upscale coffee place. The pizza joint had been around since at least the early 90s and was a popular, affordable spot for generations of office workers, FIT students, commuters, the lost and aimless. I used to love to get a couple of slices and go upstairs to their spartan dining room kitted out with NY mob movie posters like some early 1990s teenage rec room. I'd sit up there for an hour or so and read or just enjoy the peace and quiet away from the bustle of the street or my office. Another hidden respite from the onslaught of the city disappears; another space where lives were lived quietly, relationships were formed and people devoted years of their lives to hard work is gone in an instant.
ReplyDeletewhoosh.......sigh. I'm tired of terrible news, of petty capitalist idles, of all this grab and crush--dead dog tired of it!
ReplyDeleteWell, this sucks, I loved that place. Cross that off my list of places to go to when I come back to visit.
ReplyDeleteWhy don't restaurants ever announce that they're closing or losing their lease ? That would give long time patrons a chance to come in for one last meal.....
ReplyDeleteI love that place. This sucks
ReplyDeleteSucks. We wandered up and down 8th ave last night thinking we must be walking by it, finally found the darkened former space. NOW where are we supposed to find good cheap grub on this strip? It was better, and cheaper, than Maryann's, certainly. ..Sigh ...
ReplyDelete