After 60 Years, the Neon at Times Square Dive Smith's Will Go Dark This Thursday

Smith's Bar & Restaurant, one of the last remnants of old New York in the mall that is Times Square, is shuttering this Thursday after 60 years. The bar wasn't much — it used to have a steam table and served "hand carved" sandwiches like corned beef and knockwurst — but its glowing neon script recalled a Times Square before LED lights. In 2005 the New York Times wrote: "That a place like Smith's still exists in Midtown is a testament to the bipolar nature of New Yorkers, who are obsessed with the new and trendy and yet fiercely protective of old haunts and habits." In 2009 the bar was purchase by a chain and became a sports bar, which apparently didn't do much to help. Smith's Bar & Restaurant, 701 8th Ave, Midtown

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