Three years ago, the Big Apple Deli closed at 259 East Broadway, a few months after the building was acquired by R.A. Cohen Associates, a real estate investment firm. The space has been vacant ever since. Now it looks like the glossed up storefront is about to be reactivated.
There’s a notice in the window indicating that a restaurant with a sidewalk cafe is in-the-works. The operator, Davitta Niakani will go before Community Board 3’s liquor licensing panel next month in her quest for a beer and wine permit. We placed a call to Niakani earlier today and are awaiting a reply. There’s no information about the application just yet on CB3’s website.
In the summer of 2015, a real estate broker handling the building told us the owner wanted $15,000/month for the space. All along, they have been searching for a restaurant to take the 1200 square foot storefront. There’s a second, smaller space on Montgomery Street.
The bodega, Big Apple Deli, relocated to 219 East Broadway. A fast food Chinese takeout operation was also displaced as R.A. Cohen gave its new Lower East Side acquisition a makeover.
