A night at Chez Napoléon, Manhattan's soon-to-shutter French classic | Subscriber Extra
Plus, California theater to be demolished; rent hike shutters Brooklyn pizzeria; and Bojangles returns to NYC after almost 40 years
Earlier this week, I brought you the news that Chez Napoléon is closing after 65 years. The French classic is one of the last restaurants in Hell’s Kitchen with ties to the post-World War II surge in French bistros in this neighborhood, catering to the French-flagged ocean liners docking on the Hudson River nearby, tourists, locals, and even Madison Square Garden crowds when the arena stood at West 50th Street and Eighth Avenue. (A comment in my earlier post revealed that CBS News journalists made a point of dining here, too, back in the day. I tell you, if the walls of this place could talk …)
I certainly hope these pictures whet your appetite to visit before their last day, Jan. 31. The ambiance inside is irreplaceable, something that took 65 years to develop. And the food was a complete and utter delight, with items on the menu that you just can’t get anywhere else these days. My thanks to the Bruno family for 44 years of sensitive stewardship. (They took over in 1982, just 22 years into what would be the restaurant’s 65-year history.)
It pains me to think this place will soon be gone.
