Midtown Lunch

If you work near the Fulton St. Transit Center construction area, you probably know it’s a nightmare trying to walk around with streets torn up and sidewalks narrowed, but on John St. there are also a bunch of other building projects going on. Unsurprisingly, it’s affecting businesses in the area, including the old-timer Roxy Coffee Shop on the block of John btw. Broadway & Nassau. It’s been there since 1944, was renovated a couple of years ago, and sits next to one of my favorite sources of pizza in the area, It’s A Pizza which I’m guessing has also lost business. As noted in the forums, a neighborhood resident talked to the owner of Roxy’s about how the construction was affecting business, and what he found out wasn’t good.

There are a few diners downtown, but not many make me want to go inside. Every time I’ve walked by the Roxy Coffee Shop on John St. (btw. Nassau & Broadway) I’ve wanted to eat there. Its red retro sign would beckon to me, and the small space just looked interesting. And then it got a makeover recently, which is sometimes the kiss of death for any restaurant, diner or otherwise. Besides, aren’t diners and coffee shops supposed to be slightly frayed around the edges? Well, since I didn’t eat there before the renovation I can’t report on if the food quality or prices have changed. What I can report is that it’s like stepping into a small town where the proprietor, a very chatty guy, will sit down at your table and talk to you like he did with the ladies in the booth next to mine. And the daily special that I tried was freaking awesome.  Read more »