Commenter “Jonathan” tells us and BHB has confirmed that Spicy Pickle at 143 Montague Street has served its last tasty sammich.
The store opened to much fanfare last August 15 but had begun to telegraph its demise only six weeks after it opened. Many BHB Community members had noticed that the eatery had eliminated its breakfast menu and truncated its business hours. At that time, a spokesperson for the chain told BHB that the store was going through a “testing process” to see what would work at the new location.
According to Spicy Pickle’s (not so rosy in general) corporate update released on February 11, the current economic climate may be to blame:
The New York franchisee is working on an agreement to terminate their tenancy and close the restaurant due to its proximity to the Wall Street financial district, and is looking to possibly transfer to another location on Long Island.
The Spicy Pickle moved into the space previously occupied by Armando’s Restaurant, known for its neon lobster sign. BHB publisher Homer Fink tried valiantly but unsuccessfully to have the sign landmarked.
DEVELOPING….
And for this we gave up the lobster sign?
Yeah I ordered take out from them and two hours after not receiving the order I called them to hear them tell me they shutting their doors permanently..go figure.
not really a loss.
My Spicy Pickle remains open.
How does their proximity to Wall St. have anything to do with success/fail in BH?
http://www.integratir.com/newsrelease.asp?news=2131021618&ticker=SPKL&lang=EN&ny=on
“We are extremely pleased to open our first restaurant in New York in the historic Brooklyn Heights neighborhood. This premier location has high-volume traffic and meets our demographics which include large daytime populations with administrative and professional concentrations.”
None of this has changed or is really that directly affected by the implosion of the financial market.
6 months to the day. (News release dated 8/20/2008)
I thought their sandwiches were pretty good, but the place was way over priced. The prospect of paying $12 for a pretty good but not amazing and not that big sandwich is what kept me from going there most of the time.
Terrible news. I loved Spicy Pickle. This realllly sucks.
At the end of the day, it’s still a fast food joint. I agree with mrmcd…too expensive for that kind of stuff. It’s funny, I saw a guy with a giant Spicy Pickle sign outside yesterday morning, and I thought they were putting it back up (where their old one had been taken down…i.e. where the Lobster used to be). Guess it was going rather than coming. Hopefully we’ll get something decent to replace it.
Montague’s got a lot of open real estate now. The book place, Spicy Pickle and the dentist place that never opened next door. Let’s hope for restaurants/bars. Something like Waterfront Ale House.
bring back annie’s blue moon!
bring back armandos
Bring back Montague Street Saloon!!!!
WAMU at Henry St. is also closing and combining with Chase at Clinton St.
And the Blue Rose space.
oh, I also noticed that La Cucina Traviata on Joralemon is also vacated.
Maybe a good place for Senor Salsa’s Cucinca Mexicana…
Bring back Slades and Old Mexico.
I miss the old Montague St. of mom and pops.
Maybe the recession will lower commercial rents sufficiently, will clean out some of the generic sterile chains, and we can get some interesting shops and restaurants.
Bring back Capulet’s!
Good Riddance, Spicy Pickle was a total rip-off
I know it’s a chain, but Jamba Juice would be a nice clean addition.
I was thinking that Jamba Juice would be a great replacement as well! Brooklyn Heights doesn’t really have a smoothie shop. Siggy’s makes great smoothies but they are expensive and small. Garden of Eden and Lassen also make smoothies but only in the summer. So my vote is definitely for Jamba Juice. Any way we can contact them and let them know about the space?
Brooklyn Heights isn’t the fancy sammich kind of place (I mean “fancy” as in weird ingredients that you’ve never considered combining before because it sounds awful). We’re not the crowd thats going to pay 12 bucks for a spicy tuna sandwich (Ive never even heard of a spicy tuna sandwich before). BK Heights is more into the bagel place’s tuna sandwich for 5 bucks kind of place.
I know the BHB has had lengthy discussions about what would work or what is needed on Montague Street, but I still feel that I would love it if something as simple as great lard bread or really fresh baked goods or gray sole or unpackaged shrimp didn’t demand a trip to somewhere. I don’t need rocking nightlife two blocks from my house, and I probably don’t even need a “fine” restaurant around the corner — there’s always Manhattan, the Slope, or Cobble Hill (or my own kitchen), and it’s good to “go somewhere” now and then. But until I become the consummate Italian baker or a fisher of fresh fish, I would really love having a run-to place that doesn’t demand use of the car or Magellanesque logistical details just to put good bread on the table, cake on the platter, or fish near the mac ‘n’ cheese.
How’s Five Guys doing? For some reason, I have a feeling that they’re going to move to a street level place by the end of this year. That’s if they stay in the Heights.
Yeah, I’ve noticed a lot of empty storefronts, not only on Montague, but Atlantic & Court as well. Maybe we’re a year or two away from seeing more of the type of stores that used to dominate the area when I was a child 20-25 years ago.
How about an Ialian bakery that’s also a laundromat and four-star yet affordable French-Mexican restaurant?
Oh–and the place would also sell books. And illicit drugs.
What say?
People, the Montague St. of 25 years ago is NOT coming back. I’m sorry, it’s just the facts of life.
There’s just too much competition and too high of a start-up cost for a fresh-fish store to open on Montague (by the way, how badly would the trash stink in front of that hypothetical place at night). If you really want fresh fish, or fresh italian bread, order from fresh direct or take a subway ride to fairway/whole foods.
When it comes to everything else, it’s time to realize that consumer goods have been nationalized. Mom and Pop’s can no longer compete with national chains’ buying power. Wishing for “the Montague St. of our youth” isn’t going to change that.
It seems our options are chain stores, small boutiques a la Smith St. (which we won’t support, see Blue Rose), restaurant types of varying quality and success, or empty storefronts. Give me the chain stores and restaurants, at least it’ll give the area the perception that something is happening in the Heights.
If I had a personal choice for this space. A nice sports bar would suit me. Not having to go to Manhattan anytime i want to see a game only available on Direct TV would be greatly appreciated.
LC — Sadly (for my sense of nostalgia), you make some good points; although the Fresh Direct/subway suggestion could, to varying degrees, apply to anything that might be a nice addition to the hood. (Doesn’t that bar on Court between Joralemon and State have DTV games?)
I want Kim Paris back. I pine for a hot bowl of Pho in the winter. I think nothing too exotic or trendy works in BH. Notice how the diners, delis, Thai, Japanese and Chinese places do fine but other restaurants like the Turkish or Vietnamese don’t. BH is not the same neighborhood as Boreum hill or Cobbile Hill.
Does Ricky’s even do well. I thought that was a weird fit for BH as well as the now defunct “Blue Rose”.
Bornhere – I think you’re right, but it’s a bit of a hike from the Northern heights to Court and Clinton. I’m sort of lazy and so I tend to only make it there or to a bar in manhattan for a game I REALLY want to watch. However, if there was a place on Montague, I’d be there every weekend during football season and would check out the occasional baseball/basketball game during the rest of the year.
This is a surprise to *anyone*? Spicy Pickle was corny, horrible and overpriced.
that place was nasty!
Bring back The Gap. And Burger King. And Waldenbooks. Oh, and how about the Dollar Store — good times all around. Don’t forget the gay bar taken over by Key Food. And the Promenade Diner. Down with all new stores. Spicy Pickle was kinda nasty and expensive, anywhere. Where will all those poor St. Ann’s kids go now?