Tracks Bar & Grill

Tracks Bar & Grill, the railroad-themed bar was founded over 20 years ago inside Penn Station by Bruce Caulfield and his partners. Although the bar was forced to relocate to West 31st Street in 2019 when Penn Station began its giant redesign/expansion, Bruce retained the railroad theme inside the new location which features old prints and murals related to the history of the LIRR and for train lovers, there is a very rare model of the 1964 World’s Fair subway on display.

#storefront #irishbar #railroad #railroadlife #irishbar #divebar #disappearingfaceofnewyork #jamesandkarla #railroadtracks #rail

Air Line Diner

In remembrance of actor Paul Sorvino, who passed away the other day, we are highlighting the Air Line Diner in Queens where iconic scenes starring Sorvino as Paul Cicero aka Big Pauly in Martin Scorcese’s film “Goodfellas” were filmed. The Airline Diner is a Mountain View diner (built in New Jersey and transported to Queens) and opened near La Guardia Airport, adjacent to the Grand Central Pkwy in Astoria, Queens in 1952. This historic diner became part of the Jackson Hole hamburger chain in more recent years but its original neon signage (swipe left for 2nd photo) was preserved. It is a wonderful place to visit and have their delicious burgers and even the interior remains the same as it did when Goodfellas was filmed.

#storefront #jamesandkarla #goodfellas #goodfellasmovie #paulsorvino #diner #dinersdriveinsanddives #diners #neon #jacksonhole #dinerfood #vintage #neonsigns #neonsignage #neonsign #neonsignsonly #neonsignporn

Vegetable Garden

Vegetable Garden on Bleecker Street closed in 2005 after being in business since 1974. It was the last of the green grocers which remained in the neighborhood and was owned by John & Abel, who not only carefully hand-selected the items they sold but also knew all of their regular customers by name and warmly greeted them every day. 

We took this 35mm film photo in 2001 as part of a panorama of the entire block stretching from Leroy to Carmine Streets, which appears in our book “Store Front: The Disappearing Face of New York” and only 1 of the original businesses remains in business in its original location, Rocco’s Pasticceria. Joe’s Pizza which had been located right next door to Vegetable Garden on the corner of Bleecker & Carmine was forced to move after a similar rent increase by the landlord around the corner to Carmine Street, where it thankfully is still operating today.

#storefront #jamesandkarla #disappearingfaceofnewyork #vegetablegarden #vegetables #vegetable #vegetablegardening #vegetarian #greenwichvillagenyc #momandpopshop #veganfood #momandpopshops #veganlife #vegan #fruits #fruitarian #fruit

Pearl Diner

Pearl Diner in the Financial District in Lower Manhattan has been in business since 1962 and is one of the last freestanding diners in Manhattan. We heard from our friend @gsbhighway that although the diner is still open, it is now covered in scaffolding, which is very alarming to us as Pearl Diner has really struggled to survive since the pandemic because many nearby offices are still closed as many companies are still having their staff working remotely. Last year,

we visited Pearl Diner to help support them & had an amazing hamburger deluxe, fries and a grilled cheese sandwich (swipe left for 2nd photo) and finished with an amazing egg cream.

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To watch our visit to this iconic diner please check out our JamesandKarla YouTube channel, see direct link below & in bio and IG story.

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https://youtu.be/3B0nJKRwsqk

Pianos

Pianos on Ludlow Street in the Lower East Side is a 2-story bar/live music venue, which similar to what Arlene's Grocery did, kept the "Pianos" name and signage from the storefront that previously occupied the space (which we love). Pianos has two stages, an upstairs stage and one in a back room off the main floor.

#storefront #pianos #piano #livemusic #livemusicrocks #bar #lowreastsidenyc #lowereastside #jamesandkarla #signage #signspotting #handpainted #handpaintedsigns #livemusicvenue #livemusicrocks #livemusicnyc

Nathan's Famous

We are highlighting Nathan's Famous, which was opened in 1916 by Nathan Handwerker, a Jewish immigrant from Poland. He and his wife Ida opened their hot dog‬ stand with $300 borrowed from their friends, the entertainers Jimmy Durante and Eddie Cantor. Nathan's became popular in ‪Coney Island‬ due to its low prices, attention grabbing ‪signage‬ and attractive location near the beach and amusement parks. Their amazing ‪overhanging neon sign‬ (swipe for 2nd & 3rd photos) was installed around 1960 and was made by the Salzman Sign Company. We just can't get enough of that little hotdog guy with an apron on and a chef hat , holding a ‪camera‬ in one hand and a tray of ‪hot dogs and a drink in the other!

#storefront #nationalhotdogday #hotdog #hotdogs #hotdoglovers #hotdogs #hotdogstand #neon #nathanshotdogs #nathans #neonsign #nathansfamous #frankfurter #nathansfamoushotdogs #beefhotdogs #coneyisland #jamesandkarla #neonsigns #neonsignage #neonsignsonly

Coney Island Bialys & Bagels

It’s hot outside and our thoughts immediately went to the fantastic signage at Coney Island Bialys & Bagels. This family-owned shop & the oldest bialy shop in Brooklyn sadly closed in 2001 after 91 years in business due to the changing demographics of the neighborhood coupled with the rising costs of doing business. For those who are not aware of what a bialy is, they are chewy, flat, round rolls with a slightly depressed center containing onions or and unlike bagels have no sugar or malt.

Our photo of Coney Island Bialys & Bagels appears in our book “Store Front II- A History Preserved”.

#storefront #bialy #białystok #bagel #bagelsandwich #bagelsandlox #bagelshop #bagelbagel #bagelporn #bagellover #bialys #jamesandkarla #disappearingfaceofnewyork #bagelandcreamcheese #coneyisland