The long-awaited and highly-anticipated opening of Kossar’s new Upper East Side location won’t be happening March 1st, as previously planned, however, Upper East Site has confirmed that the famous old school New York bagel and bialy shop is still eyeing a grand opening next month.
The new UES bagel and bialy shop has been under construction at 1409 York Avenue, at the corner of East 75th Street, for more than a year. Upper East Site first reported on the company’s uptown expansion plans last February, when the company had still planned to open the location that spring.
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For a few months, a poster hanging in the window of the new restaurant read “We’re ready to roll, just waiting on the gas,” though, it has since been swapped out for one with the March 1st opening date — which the company admits it will not meet.
However, Kossar’s General Manager Sharon Bain tells Upper East Site that the 85-year-old Lower East Side institution hopes to open its brand new UES restaurant at some point in late March — about a month from now.
Construction workers could be seen inside the new restaurant on Wednesday, as a bag of tools sat on the modern designed service counter and checkout station along the restaurant’s northern wall, baskets waiting to be filled with fresh hot bagels sitting empty behind it.
Large black and white photos of old New York are arranged throughout the seating area.
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On the exterior, wires hung from the facade where either light fixtures or security cameras were likely going to be installed, while a vertical painted sign on the southern side of the building was missing the letter ‘K’ so the sign reads ‘ossar’s.’ So, it’s clear there’s still some work left to be done.
Kossar’s has been cranking out handmade bagels and its hole-less unboiled cousin, the bialy, since 1936, and recently expanded with a second location that opened in Hudson Yards last summer. The Upper East Side is set to become location number three.
Besides bagels, bialys and schmears of flavored cream cheese, homemade fish salads and sandwiches that make Kossar’s so popular, the there’s also plenty of options for those with a sweet tooth, including cinnamon and chocolate babka’s, black and white cookies and rugelach.
Hopefully we’ll all be able to sample them sooner rather than later.
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