It was just last week we were waxing poetic about New Clements Restaurant, but now our favorite hangover joint is closing its doors for good. Owner Tony Hustulakis told us that the landlord has refused to renew the lease.
Anyone passing by the greasy spoon yesterday saw the storefront at 1612 Sheepshead Bay Road being gutted, and Hustulakis said everything would be gone by Friday when their lease is up. Hustulakis – who has owned the diner for past 13 years of its several decade-long existence – approached the landlord about three of four months ago to ask for a lease renewal, but was met with a stern “No.”
“After 13 years this store is like my home. I spend 15 hours a day here. I feel angry. I feel upset. But I have no choice, I have to leave,” Hustulakis said.
The 59-year-old owner said he may retire or start a new venture in a few years, closer to his home in New Jersey. But he added he will always have fond memories of the bay.
“I like this place. It’s nice and quiet. The customers are nice,” he said.
For the past four years, Hustulakis has been paying $3,200 per month for rent, much lower than market value. When he tried to sell the business recently, he approached the landlord to broker a deal with the potential buyer. The landlord wanted to up the rent to $5,500 per month. The deal eventually fell through for other reasons.
Hustulakis thinks the landlord may have signed a deal with another area business. He said he’s “99.9 percent” sure the new tenant is Forces of Nature Health Food, which has a location next door in one direction and three doors down the other way. He believes the health store owners would tear down the wall and consolidate the two locations. He also said that the owner recently came in with the landlord, who gave him a tour.
An owner at Forces of Nature denied signing a lease, though.
“We are not involved,” he said.
So, if the health food store isn’t taking over the location, what do you think it’ll be? Sushi? Hair and nail salon? Cell phone store? Your guess is as good as ours, but one thing is for sure – the best breakfast joint in the bay is gone. And that sucks.
Some photos of the interior being gutted:
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Sad, really. Small restaurants like Clements are part of the cement that hold communities together. We need more, not less of them.
Even sadder than this happened so quietly. A lot of people would have liked to come one last time, just to say goodbye.
That sucks. I still don’t understand how a business makes it with such crazy rent prices. Ugh.
I know someone who would leave her home every morning to buy a cup of coffee from this place. Must have been a good cup.
According to the article it seems that Mr. Hustulakis waited till the last minute to renew his lease. He should have been more proactive and started the dialogue at least a year before the lease expired. Makes me wonder how much he really wanted to keep this place open.
It was a friendly place. All the morning people knew each other. A good place to catch up on what people were up to. We don’t have too many places like that anymore.
The breakfast food was good, but that was only part of the experience.
Alex, he was looking for a buyer. Perhaps this played into the landlord’s attempt to get a better paying tenant. And if the lease was not renewed then it is likely that some deal had already been made when Hustulakis asked about the lease renewal. We don’t know how long the lease period was. Aditionally, market conditions change, so entering into a lease agreement a year before the lease goes into effect may not be a wise move for either party.
Lisanne, entering a lease agreement a year earlier may or may not cost you more. However, this preemptive strike will allow you to preserve your business. The article states that Mr. Hustulakis broached the landlord just a few month before the lease expired. If I were the landlord, I would not wait till the last minute as well and sould start looking for a new tenant.
My landlord always gave me my lease long before the date to renew.
I did not have to ask.
P.S. from the looks of the brickwork in the photo Back 2 Nature is next.
Another medical building/multi-family structure to follow.
Clare, for once I believe that there is not a large possibility that will happen. I’m sure there would have been some sort of buzz if that did happen. We would be hearing rumors, I think.
first i would like to say i have never been in this place before and have been living in the area for 25 years. i used to go the the coffee shop on brighton beach ave and 14th street since i was a kid went there one day to get breakfast and walked in to a gutted store like it was never there. they closed down for the same reason lease was up and now its a pharmacy. anyway i did a little research and looked up who the owner is didnt come up with a number so i didnt call but did a little more digging and it looks like the family that owns this property also owns a diner on 65th street and 7th avenue called Bridge View right off the gowenus expwy 2 of the same names that are attached to this property are attached to the diner. so i could be wrong but maybe they are p going to open a new little shop here it seems like there is a following and they might take advantage of it. the one on 65th st is a big free standing building like el greco. we will see. as for renewing commercial leases it could be done last minute its easier because its not a new tenant but if the guy had any intention of staying he would have taken care of it before hand. as you mentioned he wanted out and was trying to sell the place.
I hope I’m wrong Broker but I can’t see a free standing building fitting there.
i hope your joking thats not what i meant. i was saying they have a big freestanding building maybe they will open a little coffee shop here.
OK, do they own the connecting property?
I have lived here 45 years and have been very aware of how neighborhoods have changed,why they changed and what the changes have gotten Sheepshead bay and surrounding neighborhoods to reflect. Quality of life has been on a down trend.
i was just giving some info if you want me to get you more its going to cost i dont work for free
lol
Does punctuation cost, too?
Sorry, low blow, but I had to do it
Speaking of punctuation. I was curious as to the origin of the New Clements restaurant name. Was it meant to be the possessive or plural?
It’s possessive. The cursive logo takes liberties by omitting the apostrophe, but the awning contains it.
I believe in the far distant past the original owner was named Clement.
i am usually the first one to rip into people but have held my self back on this site because you are a startup and cutting you some slack. but you should know thats going to stop. and you should know your in brooklyn low blows are met with boots to the face so you should expect nothing less. no reason for smart ass personal shit.
Hey now. No need to get so angry, it was just a light hearted joke.
WTF local, you going loco?
not at all im good ………………………….
I think we let go of this. Apparently the joke was misunderstood though it shouldn’t have been.
So this is how buildings are put up in Brooklyn, Local Broker? With a boot to the face? Now I know why so much of these stinking, ugly, filthy condos are going up all over the place. It’s thugs like you that give real estate brokers a bad name. It’s thugs like that scum lord and others like him that are driving family businesses out of business in this neighborhood and all over the city. But I shouldn’t worry too much. The foreclosure rate on new condos is going up.
http://newyork.condo.com/ForSale/Foreclosures/United-States/New-York/New-York-Condos
http://www.wnyc.org/news/articles/136095
wow i was not expecting a reaction like this. i was joking with him i have actually spoken with Ned a few times and have always given this site information on local deals that i know about. i dont know whats going on with that property but did a little homework to give some insight to what MIGHT be going on. i agree there are a lot of brokers who terrible especially in the residential market. i have been in real estate in for about 8 years and have never sold a condo or a house i only sell commercial properties its a completely different business. as far as the boot to the face it was a sarcastic joke and dont care if you like it or not. you can skip over my comments next time. its also not a the brokers fault for the way the market is its the banks and mortgage companies and the perception of people like you that a read bad press and make it a reality.
I hope we’re all okay now. We’ve had very little dissension among the core people here. Your contribution help make this blog work.
Brokers don’t build the intrusive structures that strangle a community. They are in the business of selling homes and other real estate. It’s become a very competitive field over the past ten years here. And thusly, not everyone who sells real estate gets rich as a result.
I don’t think it’s a secret that I believe that there has been some planning involved in recent years concerning how and where new structures would be built. In most cases I try to separate the people from their projects. Their perception of what this community should become differs from mine. Two conflicting visions will often be difficult to reconcile. But we can try.
I really loved going to this place for brunch and casual dinners, and it will be missed. It was a nice touch to leave the day’s newspapers on the counter for all to share. The food was cheap, the place was a “dump,” but it was our dump! The owners were kind and friendly, as was the help.
Their food sucked, at least as of recently.
Tried getting a cup of coffee not so long ago – it felt old, some cheap brand, not even the Vasilaro’s that’s normally served in diners.
what the hell is happening to good ole sheepshead bay????nothing has lasted as long as clements.i started going as a teen(a million years ago).then brought my kids,then my grandson. DAM!!!!! if another sushi place opens(i love sushi)but enough is enough. landlords,stop getting so greedy and think!!! wouldnt you rather have an established store at a lower rent,than a new one at 3 times the rent,empty!!! come on you landlords,do the right thing.
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