R.I.P. Manhattan Mall Food Court (and the only Arby’s In Manhattan)
It’s a sad day for fans of the food court, as Midtown loses it’s only true collection of fast food kiosks under one roof. (How do you know you’re in a real food court? At least two places handing out pieces of chicken on toothpics.) The Manhattan Mall on 34th St. & 7th Ave. has sold the food court space in their basement to J.C. Penny, and most of the places have already closed. The biggest casualty, Manhattan’s only Arby’s , the undisputed favorite for fans of fast food roast beef flavored bologna. It will be missed.
Also closed, Wok & Roll, Chicken Bar/Ranch 1, Sbarro’s & Cajun Cafe (home to the world famous “bourbon chicken”). Still open, the Japanese stir fry place, the Nathan’s/Arthur Treacher’s Combo, Subway, Charlies and the Desert Moon Mexican place… but I wouldn’t count on them being opened for much longer.
My sad, final lunch at the Manhattan Mall Food Court after the jump…
Thanks crappy Japanese stir fry place… They couldn’t have left Arby’s opened for just one more day? So sad… can’t wait for the new JC Penny’s!
Posted: 4:15 pm, March 3rd, 2008 under Fast Food Chains.
40 Comments | RSS comments feed for this post
ADVERTISEMENT
40 Comments
-
-
nooooooooooo!
*slow motion leap over arby’s counter, frantic grab for foil-wrapped beef n’ cheddar, panicked curly fry-grappling leads to dreaded fry-in-eye, then falling face down onto the greasy floor and beloved sandwich, slow peeling of face off beef n’ cheddar reveals an unslightly mix of tears and delicious processed cheese sauce*
-
*cries*
don’t get me wrong I live 10 minutes from the Arby’s on the LIE service road near Fresh Meadows/Exit 19ish, but there was something about being able to grab a fresh RB sandwich from Arby’s on a tough day that made it all right. -
There is an Arby’s in the food court in the Newport Mall in Jersey City – just a quick ride on the PATH, which you can catch, conveniently, below the Manhattan Mall.
-
Dammit, I actually liked the crappy Japanese stir-fry place!
-
NOOOOOOOOOOOO, Sarku’s!!!!!!!
-
Yes! I can’t wait to buy stuff at JC Penny! This must be their first store in Manhattan.
-
dammit instead of arbys they now have more stores for ncaaaaas
-
The Arby’s in Newport Mall, NY is gross. They should have the franchise pulled.
-
Yes, I was saddened and in a bit of disbelief as I stared for a moment last night at the eviscerated Manhattan Mall Arby’s, even though I’d heard for a month it would be closing. Luckily, I was able to have my last sandwich the week before, a simple but classic regular roast beef and a small Mountain Dew. I savored it. So the pain was not as bad for me now that it is closed; I made my peace last week as I chewed and sipped. But then, needing a substitute for dinner, last night I ate for the first time at Charlie’s Grilled Subs in the food court. I had the chicken sub and it was craptasticaly good in that way the best fast food is. So just as I begin to look to heal from one fast food loss, I may have to mourn another. Damn you, new JC Penney’s!
-
I was actually there this weekend, wandering around and hoping to maybe pick up a roast beef at Arby’s. And then I saw that it, and several other stores were closed and had no idea what was up. I guess this explains it. On a side note, though I didn’t try it, I did notice that virtually everyone was eating one of those Charlie’s Grilled Subs. Was that place actually good?
-
I am happy that a JCPenney is coming to Manhattan, but I honestly wish it was a Kohl’s. (no sarcasm)
-
Why would ANY dept. chain store open up a store less than one block away from the largest and most famous Macy’s is beyond me.
-
Well, why does every store in the Manhattan Mall have a stand alone location a block away on 34th street? Why does the Manhattan Mall exist? There are many questions that come out of that building, and very few answers.
-
There is always the food court downstairs at Grand Central Station.
-
Yeah. The food court in Grand Central is vastly superior to the one in Manhattan Mall. Lots of good local chains, rather than the disgusting national ones. Sure, it toes the price line (usually a tad high), but there are some monster options down there (anything at Golden Krust, Zocalo’s sandwiches, Oyster Bar sandwiches just outside, etc)
-
i have to agree with the “good riddance” faction of this comment chain — and I’d say it all the louder if all of manhattan mall was torn down & paved over.
yours truly,
dave the grouch -
oh man. its sad that the manhattan mall is closing down. thatz my favorite mall in nyc. man. im gonna miss it and hell yea im gonna miss the food court too. so not looking 4ward to jc penny. besides macy*s and jc penny is the same damn thing!>)
-
Wait I misread this whole thing, the WHOLE mall is closing down to open a JC Penney?
if that’s the case then damn, there are a bunch of decent shops in the mall. -
Except for that Arthur Treacher’s craving that I have every once in a while, and legitimately good Ranch 1 sandwiches that are rare in NYC nowadays, I definitely add to the chorus of good riddance. I never felt safe eating at that the tables in the food court. Goodbye bourbon chicken ladies!
-
The way I understand it JC Penney is taking over the bottom three floors of the mall. I commute into the city on Path, and the food court has been the perfect stop coming and going without having to venture far from the trains.
-
what a great shame, the MMall food court was a great move removing it from the top floor and bringing it down where it was so much easier to access just a few yrs ago. it’s one of the few ‘public’ spaces in the area to have food and sit down and mind your business, use the public toilets, etc. every other place you’re specifically entering a business.
-
Just looking on the web for the Mall, I was there 6 months ago,and was showing friends when I read your blog.
it goes to show, you never know what will happen tomorrow.
You all have my regrets as it was a great place to go.
-
the real tragedy here is that Arby’s was giving away free curlies on Monday because their car won a NASCAR race this past weekend. Free food, yet another reason to pay attention to the various sports of the world.
-
[...] Visited: Wendy’s, Burger King, Arby’s (RIP), White Castle (8th Ave. btw. 36+37th), Taco Bell (3rd Ave. btw. 44+45th or 8th Ave. btw. [...]
-
I am sooo glad JCPenney’s is coming to MM. Hopefully I will be transferring there from my current job at JCPenney’s in North Carolina. Yay….JCP has reasonable prices when it comes to their clearance. Great sales.
-
Manhattan Mall is stupid. I am saddened that there is actually a mall in Manhattan period. Even going into the mall at Columbus Circle makes me feel uncomfortable.
Malls are all of suburbs, they shouldn’t be in the middle of Manhattan.
Go to New Jersey for Arby’s god. -
this is a travesty!
-
I used to love eating there during the colder months. I was all downhill when that great burger place didnt return..
-
Well lving nearby I will miss the food court. It was the only one in the neighborhood. It was not that great but there was no other in Chelsea. Yes we deserve a mall like all the surbanites have. Who wants to go out in the cold wintertime to shop on the street when you can do it inside. I say bring on JC Penneys. We have to travel to newport center on the path train to get to a real mall.
-
I believe there is still an Arby’s on west 4th street, right next to the ‘A’ train.
-
I think there is still an Arby’s on West 4th Street, across from the park next to the ‘A’ train.
-
@nicole: that’s been gone for a while; it’s a cvs now. what’s with your link?
-
for those who are a tad-bit confused, they arent closing the manhattan mall. they are just ma,king a big deal about renovaing and closing down places to make this pretty big jc pennys. but, come on, for the new yorkers here, u gotta admit- its about time! no more do we have to travl miles to go to fancy little new jersey to buy damn cute cheap dresses and the works. goooo new york!!
-
eh. i’m from missouri and our arby’s closed in our food court because they couldn’t compete and were losing money. right along with all the other stores closing. so don’t blame jcp there might be more to that story than you realize.
-
Who wants to go to Grand Central ..it stink and smells and they have nothing but DIRTY bums! @ least @ the MM, the bums wre few and far between and it never smelled like GC!
-
My first meal in Manhattan was at the Food Court.
The title of this article should have been: R.I.P. Manhattan, because Manhattan has been a sinking island for the past 20 years! Gone are all the hip, funky places (and most of the well-known artists) from the 70s and 80s and 90s.
And, shockingly, the rent still goes up like crazy. It’s not worth living in Manhattan–not now or in the last 20 years.
-
LISTEN UP ARBYS FANS!!! Take the train to Woodhaven stop in Queens. Not only will u find a mall 3 times the size of MM (and with a Target!) But you will find an Arbys in the fodcourt in all its glory and splendor. I too and mourning those curly fries. I could never resist even when I saw a rat scurry from the back one afternoon. Still can’t beat those fries!!
-
*food court
*I too am -
Yea wasnt a big fan of actual mall, but the food court will be missed, the honey mustard chicken at the cajun cafe was truly bliss, remember when it was on the top floor and A and S was still there. Sigh….. too bad cajun cafe couldnt have their own stand alone store
What happened to the 6th Ave. (NYU-area) Arby’s?