The 2023 Jersey restaurant closings that broke our hearts
New Jersey has incredible heart, history and longevity. Visit a local business, and chances are it's been open for 100 years. In a fast-paced world of transience and change, the Garden State has nooks and pockets that always remain the same.
And, as much as we love to complain about it, perhaps that's why so many of us stay.
Because, when you sink your teeth into a crisp-skinned, Rutt's Hut Ripper, it's as grounding as it is delicious; reminding you, with each salty bite, of where you've come from — and everyone you've been on your journey to where you are today.
So, when we lose a community restaurant, we lose more than just a great bagel or sloppy burger; we lose a treasured place of tradition, and a small piece of our identities.
This year, we dealt with this phenomenon way too many times.
Here were some 2023 North Jersey restaurant closings that broke our hearts.
Nicholas Diner, Paterson
Paterson took a heavy blow this year with the loss of its last existing diner, the Nicholas Diner. After 44 years of running the spot, its owners Nicholas and Georgia Doukas — aged 77 and 74, respectively — decided they were simply too old to keep running it.
"We just couldn't do it anymore," said Georgia, who with Nicholas immigrated from Patras, Greece, to the United States. "It's too hard."
When they first opened the diner, the Doukas's didn't intend to spend over four decades running it.
"We thought we'd stay here for five years and then sell it," Georgia said. "We ended up staying 44 years."
And, so though we mourn the loss of their great breakfasts, we applaud the couple for sticking it out for so long — and thank them for the great years we got to spend at their cozy, vintage counter.
Bischoff's, Teaneck
Bischoff's was a Teaneck staple for nearly 90 years when fourth generation owner Steve Mather and his mother, Anita, decided to close it in 2022. This past summer, however, the pair gave one last ditch effort to save the shop; reopening it as a pop-up.
Unfortunately, though, the seasonal ice cream stand couldn't bring in enough cash to rescue the bottom line, and — on September 3rd — the pair announced it would be closing again (but, for real this time).
"We can't begin to express how painful this decision was for us," the team said on Instagram. "Five generations of our family have treasured our role in the community. Bischoff's has been everything to us. YOU have been everything to us. — every kid who first tasted ice cream in our shop, every couple on a first date, everyone who came here for a celebration, or because they needed something sweet in a painful time."
Though the Mathers' original plan was to open a completely new, remodeled restaurant (with hot dogs and other entrées in addition to ice cream), the financial burden of COVID-19 was too difficult to overcome. Instead, the team thanked the community for their support, and sold the space.
Its buyers? Another Jersey small business, Marc's Cheesecake, and local ice cream maker, Mike Guerriero, who promise to keep homemade desserts alive in Teaneck with a hybrid gelato and cheesecake shop.
Thai Ping, Boonton
Boonton is the food court of Morris County. On its humble, vibrant Main Street, chefs and residents of all nationalities come together to enjoy delicious cuisine, with each storefront boasting the staple dishes of a different country. In this small, charming pocket of the state, cultural barriers are forgotten, and people speak the universal language of food.
At no place with this phenomenon more vividly true than in Thai Ping.
Opened in 1987 by Kim and Ong Saikum, the hole-in-the-wall Bangkok-inspired restaurant was a refuge for the seasoned foodies of the state. Preparing everything from Pad See Ew to Lard Na, chef Kim formed personal relationships with her customers, serving each entrée with a side of human connection.
When we visited her spot over the years, Saikum would often sit down and dine with us. Though her English was broken — and our Thai fluency nonexistent — we always understood we were friends; united by a common love of food, and the joy of eating something that tasted good.
The Crow's Nest, Hackensack
The Hackensack dining community sure felt the ripple when beloved Sunday night football institution The Crow's Nest shut its doors for good this past October. Originally opened by Andy Hajiyerou in 1974 (as Andy's Fishery), the seafood and steak-centric restaurant changed ownership in 1991 — Andy sold the business to family members — but, otherwise, existed unchanged on Route 17 for nearly 50 years.
Each day, The Crow's Nest served lunch and dinner to its loyal regulars, many of whom claimed the spot made the best seafood and roast beef in the region. On the weekends, patrons gathered around the bar to watch football. Sometimes, the restaurant even offered live music. When a great offer was made for the restaurant, however, owners Andreas and Angela Hajiyerou simply couldn't pass it up.
"We got a very sweet deal," Peter, the Hajiyerous' son and (former) manager of the restaurant, said. "It would have been insanity to reject the deal."
That answer wasn't good enough to pacify the local community, though, who — on the restaurant's last night — communicated their heartbreak by stealing a bunch of memorabilia from the nostalgia-packed place. (It was later returned.)
Fascino, Montclair
Earlier this year, acclaimed chef Ryan DePersio saddened fine diners everywhere with the closing of his high-end Italian restaurant Fascino. Located on Bloomfield Avenue, the upscale spot served refined dishes like fennel-dusted sea scallops and seasonal ricotta gnocchi to Montclair for 20 years.
"I just felt it was time," DePersio said of his decision. "With me growing and having bigger projects, I did not have the time I wanted to give to Fascino." He added, "I'm more a restaurateur than a chef now."
Today, the space has been taken over by Logan Ramirez and Mary Cumella, two former employees of DePersio's. They've rebranded the restaurant as Gioia Mia, which is committed to selling globally-inspired, market-driven fare (and, mind you, is very good). Ramirez — Fascino's former chef de cuisine — is the new chef.
And as for DePersio? He's moved on to focus on his other concepts: Kitchen Step in Jersey City, Kitchen Step in the Newark Airport and a 40,000-foot event space, Tilling House, in Eatontown.
White Birch, Flanders
White Birch was one of the most peaceful, picturesque fine dining restaurants in Morris County. Our heartstrings were tugged hard, then, when chef and owner Sam Freund announced the four-and-a-half year-old spot would close this past May.
A winner of New Jersey Monthly's annual Best 30 Restaurants list four years in a row, the Flanders-based new American restaurant was a top choice dining destination for many in the area.
"I was just not doing the business that I was before," said Freund, who made the announcement initially on social media. "I don't know why. You can't force people to come to your restaurant. If I could, I would."
And if we could? We would, too — because we're definitely going to miss his winter risottos, tender octopus and fresh, locally-sourced meats.
Kimchi Smoke, Westwood
New Jersey isn't a barbecue state, but, at Kimchi Smoke? You could certainly be convinced it was.
Serving Texas barbecue with innovative Asian flavor pairings, the Westwood spot was a cult-favorite, tour-de-meaty-force during the seven years it was open. To this day, however, we're unsure why it closed.
"We thank everyone who has visited us, supported us, dined in, took out, bought merchandise and sauce, ordered catering, wrote reviews, shared photos, posted photos...," owner Robert Austin Cho said on Instagram. "There are just so many great things that happened."
He went on to urge followers to visit his Ridgewood location, which will still be open as a pop-up, or to follow his new Kimchi Smoke Catering Truck.
The existence of Cho's other concepts helps a little bit (it's reassuring to know we can still indulge in his award-winning brisket and ribs on a limited schedule), but they can't replace the consistent reliability of his original location.
The Manor, West Orange
Though every closing on this list was disappointing, none was quite as surprising as West Orange's iconic catering hall The Manor. After 66 years of hosting lavish weddings, luxurious dinners and the most gorgeous events, the team behind the family-owned Essex County spot announced July 5th would be its last day of operations.
"After an immensity of difficult deliberation, it saddens us greatly to announce that this era of The Manor’s operation will be coming to an end," reads a post on the wedding venue's website.
COVID, inflation and other "unforeseen circumstances" related and unrelated to the pandemic played a part in the closing, said Keith Sly, communication director for the facility.
Over its six decades of operations, the venue played a part in the most instrumental parts of Garden State residents' lives. It was the backdrop in wedding photos, sweet 16s and — in 1975 — even threw a $100-a-plate champagne brunch by Ronald Reagan. When the hall closed its towering doors for good, then, we grieved the loss of one of our community's dazzling centerpieces.
Empire Diner, Parsippany
New Jersey is the diner capital of the world, so it only feels fitting that we start and end this list with the loss of a Garden State all-day breakfast landmark. This one? The Empire Diner: a once-24-hour Route 46 staple.
Formerly known as the Par-Troy Diner, the highway-side restaurant was a popular location for late-night drivers and high school crowds. It offered three spacious dining rooms, and a laundry list of home-cooked meals (of which we loved the Chicken Marsala, with a cup of soup, of course). On many occasions, we indulged in its Chicken Quesadilla — a greasy, cheesy appetizer beloved by many regulars.
Like most businesses, the diner faced a traumatic financial blow as a result of the COVID-19 pandemic. In 2020, the owners of the restaurant received a $33,258 federal PPP loan for COVID relief, as well as a federally funded Small Business Grant from the Morris County Commissioner Board. Neither, however, were enough to salvage the struggling business.
Earlier this year, it was finally announced the property had been sold to a redeveloper known for building Chick-fil-As.
So, for now, we bid adieu to warm dinner rolls and cherry danishes; handing them — reluctantly — to chicken nugget capitalists.
Kara VanDooijeweert is a food writer for NorthJersey.com and The Record. If you can't find her in Jersey's best restaurants, she's probably off running a race course in the mountains. Catch her on Instagram: @karanicolev & @northjerseyeats, and sign up for her North Jersey Eats newsletter.
This article originally appeared on NorthJersey.com: The 2023 Jersey restaurant closings that broke our hearts
