LIC new biz update; The Breadbox & Korean-French fusion on the way
The Breadbox bakery nearing completion, 11th St b/w 47th Rd & 47th Ave, LIC
New Biz News
- A Korean/French Fusion Restaurant is rumored to have leased the former Brasil Coffee House space on Vernon Blvd. 48-19 Vernon Blvd, LIC
Old New Biz News
The owners and operators of the Tennisport Restaurant are bringing a Cuban Restaurant to the space where Spa DiSilva was supposed to – but never – manifested. They’ve already begun work and have filed for a liquor license. 4729 Vernon Blvd, LIC
Another new restaurant is coming to the new 10-17 Jackson Avenue development next door to Café Henri, and has also filed for a liquor license.
A burger joint will be settling into the old Tomato and Wasabi location on Jackson Ave at 44th Drive, near Court Square. 25-36 Jackson Ave, LIC
A new café is coming to the space next to Da Gianni’s Ristorante on 44th Drive just west of 23rd Street.
Duane Reade is possibly setting up another shop in 2 Court Square, the new Citibank building.
New Biz In the Works
The former Getty autobody shop on 11th St between 47th Rd and 47th Ave is nearing its ‘adaptive re-use’ transformation into the Long Island City bakery, now known as The Breadbox.
El Ay Si, the American bistro serving ‘comfort food’ at 47-38 Vernon Blvd, offered initial Chef’s tastings late last month and will be fully open in the coming weeks. 718.389.8781
A preschool is opening in the ground floor of an old engineering building on 47th Ave, just east of 5th St. Lolly’s Early Learning Center will be ready for tours and full enrollment this November, and fully open for the new year on January 5, 2010. Call 646.351.6077 for more information. 5-44 47th Ave, LIC
A Doggy Day Spa is still in progress at the retail space in the bottom of Avalon Riverview North. 4-75 48th Ave, Queenswest, LIC, 866.211.8735
A new, fancy Italian furniture store is still under construction in the ground floor retail space at 10-50 Jackson Ave.
Guitart & Jones’ Open Door Restaurant serving American tapas will be opening this winter at 5-09 50th Ave, between Vernon Blvd & Jackson Ave.
CBRE, historically a commercial brokerage, will also be brokering residential sales and rentals out of their new retail space in the bottom of East Coast 6 (aka 4705 Center Blvd), which should also be opening in the fall.
Natural Frontier Market is opening a new location in LIC to add to its stores in Manhattan and Brooklyn. The health food market is confirmed for the 4000SF ground floor of 12-01 Jackson Ave, @ 11th Street.
Now Open
A new children’s boutique & consignment store called Little Closets is now open in the former Art-O-Mat space at 46-46 Vernon Blvd. The store offers “a sustainable, ‘recession friendly’, community-oriented retail option for the rapidly growing population of small children in the area,” including “child-friendly décor” with a story corner & puppet theater. They are currently accepting donations; email littleclosets@yahoo.com for more info. You can also check their blog, which is often updated with new products and events.
The high-flying academy of New York Circus Arts, one of the leading American Contemporary Circus organizations, has moved its space from Manhattan to 5321 Vernon Blvd in LIC. 646.291.6364
Closings
The Oh So Good Deli on the corner of 44th and Jackson and Thompson is closed.
The Brasil Coffee House spot on 23rd St at Court Square also seems to be closed.
City Dog Lounge on Vernon Blvd @ 49th Ave, however, is not closed according to the owners:
Sign on the door of City Dog Lounge – view larger, 49th Ave, Long Island City
I think the bakery is at 47th Ave., not 45th Road, as it says under photo.
Well, Vietnamese is very French-infleunced -why not Korean? Let’s reserve our judgement until we try.
The marriage between Korean and French cuisines sounds most excellent. I can’t wait to try the baguette with kimchi and creme.
The Oh So Good Deli was so overpriced! Along with the Tomato and Wasabi place, there is barely anything around that area now except Dutch Kills. Sign of the times.
But there’s a burger joint coming to T&W… if it’s good, and stays open late that will be fantastic.
Looking forward to the getty bakery thing. Seemed weird at first, but looks alright actually. There’s nothing on 11th st, so maybe this will be the beginning.
Bakery looking good. But 11th is going to be one of the last to be developed.
Vernon and Jackson would be first and they’re both suffering huge losses with this economy.
To add to the list, there’s a hair salon/spa moving into what was the leasing space in 4705 Center Blvd (i.e. Rockrose #2) – the leasing office has already moved to an office on the 2nd floor.
Jeez, why so many hair salons, thin crust pizza places, Asian fusion and wine stores?
The *real* NYC is truly dead. We’ve become a mockery of a suburb.
What is the *real* NYC?
Here we go again….all the complaints about what we have too many of….so predictable.
Well #12, it is bizarre how there’s such a lack of diversity of restaurants in LIC. That’s all… Koren/French is technically another Asian Fusion… which we do have an abundance of. Honestly, I would prefer just a great straight up Korean BBQ place. It would absolutely kill it! French & Korean throws me off too… but who knows? NYC has always been a birthplace of new mutant strains of restaurants.
Agreed #13 :-).
I always wanted Korean cusine in LIC. Although there is little disappointment that it is not going to be authentic Korean, I am still exited to hear the news.
LOL, 99% of you couldn’t even tell whether it’s “authentic” and yet you still demand it.
The bakery IS looking good. I like the decking. Not sure how pleasant it will be to sit on 11th street with all the traffic…….I sure hope they have decent fresh baked bread. This really potentially has the ability to be a business that would expand our horizons. Here’s hoping!
16, don’t be such a wise ass. When we say “authentic,” I think we understand we ain’t getting grandma Kim from Seoul’s homecooked food. We mean “normal” Korean like you’d get on 32nd Street and in other parts of Queens — and not some puffed-up, overpriced and maybe not especially good fusion restaurant.
i love how we have all already decided that the korean-french restaurant (which may or may not even be opening) has bad food and needs to re-think its menu (which doesn’t even exist yet).
19, true, we’re jumping the gun. But it’s just that the experiment in Asian fusion cuisine in LIC has left a lot to be desired. And I think some restaurant owners in LIC fail to understand that there is a genuine market in the area for places that stay true to one style of cooking and don’t need gimmicks to get people to come. Korean BBQ — bring it on.
We need to expand the idea of fusion. How about a real estate broker that also cuts hair or a hardware store that sells fish? I’m sure Townie can help us on this one.
Yeah, yeah, NYC is all about fusion–it’s a melting pot after all. We had pizza parlors selling heroin, now we have shopping malls where Major League Baseball games are played live, so why not award Starbuck’s a franchise to operate an East River Ferry, or better yet, lighter-than-air craft? Haven’t they earned it?
In any case these are all viable ideas, and faithful to their time, but personally I think 13 is right. I like a place that sticks to a basic program, the iconic template being “Just Things,” on the corner of 47th Rd. In comparison, so many of these other things seem…um…whimsical.
Applause # 21!!!!!!! Clap clap clap clap. Thank you Townie for rising…..to the occasion!
Is Townie the best thing about this blog, or possibly, about LIC? Humbly, I say ‘yes’.
Humbly, I thank you. Without my fans I am nothing.
Meanwhile, there are many contributors to this blog who are better informed and more clever than I, but they choose to go nameless, which makes it difficult to acknowledge them.
Townie, you too are nameless. Let’s not forget that.
Uh, not as nameless as Thou.
Whole Foods? Trader Joe? Home Depot? Rite Aid?
Starbucks?
Not sure how to play but I’ll give it a whirl. Blockbuster? Regal Cinema? Jiffy Lube? Chuckie Cheese?
Does anyone know where there is a Fed Ex location?
Craigslist has an open call job listing for “New 30-seat Cafe” @ 48-19 Vernon Blvd, LIC (ex-Brasil Coffee location?) that took place last Thu.
http://newyork.craigslist.org/que/fbh/1502590686.html
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Is it just me or does the idea of Korean-French fusion seem a little discordant? I like both styles of cooking on their own, but I’m not sure how well they blend. How about just a good authentic Korean place instead?