Kosher Cafe Beats Out Alex Raij and Other Suitors For Grand Street Space

A victor has been declared in the four way battle for the old Shalom Chai Space at 357-359 Grand Street. Lifelong Seward Park resident Nathan Sklar and his restaurant tentatively called Grand and Essex Cafe recently won the bid, reports the Lo-Down. Sklar calls the project "a last hurrah" for kosher dining in the neighborhood, which at present has no sit-down kosher dining options. He's planning a fish and vegetable focused restaurant with outdoor seating both on the sidewalk and in the space's backyard. Co-op board president Kat Nammacher decline to comment on the decision, but a small group of neighbors had been rallying for a kosher restaurant.

La Vara owners Alex Raij and Eder Montero, who also live in the co-op, were also vying for the space, as was Ned Baldwin from Prune and the Pickle Guys who have apparently outgrown that tiny space they kicked Guss's out of years ago.