Quintet Of Recent Restaurants Closures, Both Established And Fleeting
No one ever said the food and drink business was easy, which is illustrated by five recent closings that have taken place throughout the neighborhood.
These join some other closures of great interest, such as Applewood and Pickle Shack – both which were well-loved by many in the community.
In the first few months of 2016, these food and drink places have joined the closed ranks:
Bar Reis (375 5th Avenue at 6th Street)
Back during their opening in 1999, Bar Reis was serving wine and getting started. As the years went by, the regulars started coming, and neighbors loved the lush garden and second level accessible by their spiral staircase. “It was time to get out while we were still on top,” owner Reis Goldberg told DNAinfo. 16 years is a long tenure, and as they described on their Facebook page, the “royal sendoff” took place February 8.
Cubana Café (80 6th Avenue at St. Marks Avenue)
After opening in 2009, the ropa vieja, goat cheese empanadas, and other Cuban specialities pleased many. The place had been closed for some time, but an employee inaccurately told us that the restaurant was re-modeling back in January. Not the case, as Here’s Park Slope reported that Fiat Cafe will be moving into the space. An employee at their Manhattan location on Mott Street confirmed the opening would be taking by this summer.
Elberta Restaurant & Bar (335 Flatbush Avenue near Park Place)
Owners Erica Phillips and Erwin Caesar were known for adjusting and adapting their menu since Elberta’s opening in 2012. When we spoke to them in 2013 as they marked the restaurant’s one-year anniversary, they shifted the menu from Southern classics to Southern-influenced New American with a touch of the Caribbean (Phillips spent much of her childhood in St. Vincent and The Grenadines, while Caesar lived in Guyana until age nine). Elberta closed a few days ago, and the owners sent a farewell note. “Restaurant work is not easy. It takes commitment, thick skin, a hard working staff and a really good sense of humor.”
Fresh Bite (168 5th Avenue between Degraw and Sackett Streets)
The deli opened last summer, serving a full menu of breakfast sandwiches, burgers, panini, wraps, and deli sandwiches. Eight months later, Fresh Bite closed its doors. We’re in agreement with Here’s Park Slope, who wrote, “[w]ith no shortage of corner delis in the immediate area, we can officially say that adding another one into the mix wasn’t a good idea.”
Windsor Roast House (426A 7th Avenue, between 14th and 15th Streets)
When we spoke with Manager Paul Boomhower soon after the restaurant’s opening back in September 2015, he described the place as a “no-frills, from-scratch, grass-fed, buy-from-the-local-vendors type of experience.” Less than six months later, the meat-based menu was getting mixed reviews on Yelp, and didn’t seem to ever quite fit in with the local clientele.
For more information about dining news for the first few months of 2016, you can visit our Slope Eats & Drinks. We’ll update you with more coming soons and openings in the near future.