Image: Union Square Café
Since 1985, the Union Square Cafe has blessed its neighborhood with “sophisticated, yet approachable” food. Just recently, however, soaring real estate prices have left the café no other option but to leave its Union Square location, despite it being ranked #1 by Zagat and other reviewers. The Union Square Cafe will move to a new, unspecified location by the end of next year.
Cafe regulars are sad to see their favorite eatery go, but by now they’re used to the changes occurring in their neighborhood. The recent attempts to remove P.J. Clarke’s from its downtown home are just another example of Downtown’s developing landscape.
In an interview with the New York Times, Union Square Cafe owner Danny Meyer explained that “[t]here’s no such thing as a New York restaurant that is immune to real estate.” Indeed, uprising rents aren’t novel, and downtown residents should be prepared for more changes to come. Nonetheless, here at DOWNTOWN, we wish Union Square Cafe all the best.
– Linda Tell
