La Taza de Oro

I've been avoiding this one, because I can't bear to face the possibility that we will lose La Taza de Oro, a warm and lovely Puerto Rican restaurant and last vestige of old Chelsea on 8th Avenue. It's been shuttered for over a month now.

Recently, someone posted a sign to the shutter that says "We Miss You."



Back on April 4, NY1 reported that some bricks fell from the neighboring facade, no one was hurt, but Con Ed turned off the gas in the restaurant's building. Scaffolding went up, one of the metal poles piercing the restaurant's awning.

And then these vacate notices appeared on the door of the building:





#SaveNYC group member Trina Rodriguez checked it out. She wrote in to say:

"I spoke to the owner and they're waiting to sign a contract/get a permit to separate their facade from the building next door--the one causing all the problems. She hopes that when that happens they'll be able to move back in relatively quickly."

Of course, once that happens, they'll need to get Con Ed to turn the gas back on. And we know how hard that can be.



Lately, it seems like the city is waging war on our oldest, most vulnerable, and beloved businesses.

Inspections ramp up. Violations are handed out. Gas goes off. It goes on and on. They shuttered La Taza de Oro last fall, too. Coincidence? With the High Line nearby, Google across the street, and Chelsea being called the new Upper East Side, these are now golden properties that plenty of developers would love to demolish and replace with a glass box and a bank.


See more about La Taza de Oro and its history on Neighborhood Slice. Join #SaveNYC to stop the insanity.