Yup, it’s closed. Closed down for good.
The women who work at Met Food said the rent was too high. Another local shopkeeper said that they weren’t making any money. Maybe the renovation did them in. A neighbor saw the tall, white haired owner crying.
It’s very sudden. Everyone’s asking, “What happened to Second Street?”
One local shopkeeper told me that she loved the old decor, the pictures on the wall. She thinks they were ill advised to change anything. Moving the door from Seventh Avenue to 2nd Street may have been a problem as well.
Wherever I went today people said, “What happened to Second Street Cafe?” It was definitely the talk of the neighborhood. And there were many expressions of appreciation for the owners, the food, the staff, and the old pictures on the wall.
So sudden. So strange. The block between 2nd and 3rd Street on Seventh Avenue has had three closings in two months (Tempo Presto, Seventh Avenue Books, Second Street Cafe). Park Slope Books will be out in March.
Prior to Second Street that storefront had a liquor store and then an ill-fated Mexican restaurant. Second Street went in ten years ago. Then they made the changes and now they’re gone.
My sister had a dream that she walked into the Cafe and all the old crayon drawings were back.
Good bye Second Street: we will really miss you.
It is sad to see it go, but the sadness happened when they remodeled. WHAT WERE THEY THINKING???? And why did they make those terrible choices? It was a cozy place with a lot of character and it became a cold and uncomfortable place with the worst feng shui one can imagine. We miss the old 2nd Street cafe. The new one sealed its doom.
So a mediocre restuarant amid a sea of better options is closing and we should be sad? I’m sorry, but no. New York City has such a vibrant restaurant scene that if some not-very-good places closes, it takes no effort to find a suitable and better replacement.
Hi, Jessica–just wondering: You said “Another well known restaurant will be closing very soon between 2nd and 3rd street…” Are you forecasting anoither closure or just referring to 2nd Street Cafe? I’m not sure what restaurant is even left on that block. The fish market? Does the takeout sushi there count (though I would be so sad to see them goo–the tuna and swordfish steaks are great). You sound like you have an inside scoop!
I live 5 subway stops away from Park Slope, and I’m in the neighborhood several times a month, eating at restaurants, or going to the hardware store, or getting a haircut. 2nd Street Cafe was one of my favorite places to eat on 7th Avenue — good food, pleasant atmosphere — and the owners and staff were always personable and accommodating. I missed the walls full of drawings after the renovation, and now I’ll miss the entire restaurant. If the owners still want to be restauranteurs, I hope they can reopen in the neighborhood. Best of luck to them.
Can they please move to PLG?
Park Slope Books is not moving to Court Street. They are “consolidating” with their sister store on Montague Street. The other store is already packed to the rafters, so I don’t think it will have much new stock. It seems the functional equivalent of closing the Park Slope store and keeping the other one. There wouldn’t be any additional rent to be paid.
Rising rents is the easily identified culprit, but I’m betting it’s more complex than that.
The recent “renovation” was probably a big factor for two reasons:
1) During the renovation, regular customers, most of them casual diners or families with children who overlooked the mediocre food in favor of the atmosphere and convenience, were driven elsewhere. It’s likely that some of them, despite their loyalty to their favorite staffers or dishes, found better options during that exploration period.
2) When the place reopened, old customers returning to their beloved 2nd Street were unhappy with the changes. I definitely think the new incarnation was less “friendly” for many reasons. It just felt so sterile and out of place compared to what it replaced.
3) The changes failed to attract new diners. It seemed to me that they wanted to appeal to a completely different demographic, one that was more “upscale” and more geared toward evening meals. If so, they didn’t really understand who they were and what the market is in the slope. Why would I go to 2nd Street when I can eat at Al Di La for just a few dollars more and get much better food, service and a warmer, friendlier atmosphere?
Just my two cents. I will miss Sunday mornings there.
Closing so soon after an extended closure and extensive renovation means there is something going on other than the rent.
add this to the list of “soon to be a thing of the past”….Another well known restaurant will be closing very soon between 2nd and 3rd street..This place has a good following, but can’t afford the rent…Rents are killing the business owners.Seems like 7th Ave is as good as dead now..
It wasn’t about the food, it was just a friendly neighborhood place, and our family will miss it too. It had to have been open for longer than ten years though. We’ve been in the Slope for 11 years now, and it was our base of operations after schlepping around with realtors to see apartments – we’d sit on the corner barstools and have a great view of 7th ave. while figuring out where we were going to live and how much it’d cost. Tempo Presto’s closing, and the Carvel that was there before it, was definitely about the high rents. It wouldn’t be surprising in the least if that was the reason for 2nd St.’s fast closing too.
I agree about it being mediocre. The place was always packed with kids and strollers too, which contrary to popular belief…not all of us in Park Slope have those.
The place was always a turn off. Ate there once and never had a desire to return, with all the better options in the neighborhood.
DK- the quality of the food is not the only thing that makes a restaurant great. I admit the food wasn’t 4 star but it was comfortable. Dinner there was without pretense (which is harder and harder to find in Park Slope with every restaurant acting like they are doing you a favor for letting you eat there) and the staff was great. I’ve eaten at the restaurant for the last 8 years and since having kids, my family and I have been having brunch there every Sat pretty consistently for the last 2 years and we have great memories of the place. Maybe it won’t be missed in your mind’s eye because the food did not make your out of state friend jump up and down but I will remember the wonderful times I’ve had there and will sorely miss a neighborhood institution.
It would probably be a mistake to link all these closings to rising rents, as you seem to imply. Seventh Ave. Books went out of business because the owner didn’t want to do it anymore; from an extended discussion I had with a clerk there, I learned that it was a very profitable business and not having any financial troubles. I don’t know anything about Park Slope Books’ departure, but have a hard time imagining that moving from 7th Ave. to Court Street means a decrease in rent.
Losing the 2nd street cafe is another blow to the merchant community as well as the whole neighborhood.
Both owners, Ted and Joe, have been a vital part of the network of people who live and work in Park Slope.
Joe was a very active member of the Steering Committee for The Park Slope Chamber of Commerce, and served as President for several years.
2nd Street filled a particular niche. Open all day,serving breakfast, lunch and dinner, a welcoming space,and delicious “comfortable” food…there were so many times when nothing would fix me up like one of their burgers, great fries and a nice glass of red wine.
Thank you Joe and Ted.
A friend tells me Tarzian next door is renovating…could they be taking over that corner space?
Who was the landlord? Berman Realty? Does anyone know?
My only good memory of this place is that it was where it had dinner on 9/11. Otherwise, it was mediocre at best. Even a friend from out of state who I took there once because she wouldn’t eat anything remotely different thought so. Never understood the appeal of the 2nd St. Cafe. It won’t be missed here.