Former Chinar Building At Avenue U And Gerritsen Ave Demolished


by on Feb 24th, 2012

The former site of Chinar at 3110 Avenue U, which once also housed Jahn’s Ice Cream and The Flame, was torn down this week.

Chinar vacated the site in mid-2010, when they moved to a new location at 2775 Coney Island Avenue. It has been empty since then.

There are no plans listed on the Department of Buildings website for a new structure on the property, currently owned by CGB Principals Realty Associates.

GerritsenBeach.net also reported on the demolition.

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  • http://www.facebook.com/people/Billy-Durando/749057893 Billy Durando

    it was over run by rats from what i understand…

  • Anonymous

    Would of been a great Starbucks.

    • batchelder streeter

      That would have been a great starbucks with a drive thru.

    • Tinman

      Yuppy Java–NOT!

  • ES

    Another Southern Brooklyn institution, with so many great memories, gone forever.

    • Anonymous

      The Flame has been gone for many years.

  • doobieman

    we really need an IHOP around this side of brooklyn

    • Juliejared

      Pancakes are so easy to make from scratch.  No IHOP is needed here.

  • Tinman

    Once was Jahn’s!

    • ES

      As the post states in the lede?

    • http://www.brucebrodinsky.com Bruce B

      I’m not sure of Andy’s timeline, but, as I posted, in April of 1967, I am 100% sure it was a Jahn’s at that moment in time.

      • http://andy-baum.com/ Andy

         Bruce – it didn’t become a Jahn’s location until after 1977 – after the one on Nostrand Avenue & Ave Z went out of business and became the Pavilion Diner (present-day site of Kouros Bay Diner).

        • http://www.brucebrodinsky.com Bruce B

          can i have been at the one on ave z and nostrand, can my memory be that bad?

          Upon further checking, I’d have to say you’re right Andy. Since I remember going to the Gerritsen Avenue one so much when I was older, I must have merged that in with my memory, I guess the celebration was on Nostrand Avenue. Thanks for the correction! So much for being “100% sure”! :)

          • Anonymous

            It was never a Jahns untill at least the late 70s. I have read other people saying that it was a Jahns earlier. But it was not. 

  • http://andy-baum.com/ Andy

    The site was, prior to 1967, the home of the Charcoal Burger. It was a small octogonal shaped building (which later housed the interior kitchen area of the final built-out structure) that accommodated 90 degree parking all around. The Charcoal Burger featured car hop service. It was on the same block as Carvel and, together, they formed a nice summer recreational pit stop in the neighborhood. In 1967, the building was renovated to it’s final dimensions and became Ray & Shy’s “The Flame”.

    • ES

      My parents were loyal patrons to Ray and Shy, long before I was born in the very early seventies. My father — who had gone in there for a bite to eat very late in the evening — was given a hero’s welcome by both of them the day my mother birthed me.

      • Raquel

        Does anyone still know the guy Ray from the Flame? I would love to get in touch with him.

  • subway stinker

    Another Greater Bay Area landmark bites the dust. I moved into the neighborhood in the 1970s at the height of the Flame vs. Foursome rivalries. But the big hot spot was Martin’s on Nostrand Avenue with the adjoining Versalles Room and that large parking lot. Martin’s was a favorite with members of the local Democratic club and we would often retire there after our club meeting for late night snacks. Martin’s fell on hard times and I took note when the owner put in a large commercial grade refrigerator near the cashier and sold Milk and Orange Juice. It is not a good sign for a restaurnat to sell groceries. I have never been able to understand the economics of coffee shops and diners that seem to do well, and people like to eat out, but yet they fail are razed.

  • guest

    The developers are probably not even from NYC originally and have no interest in any local history.

    • Anonymous

      You should have bought the building and kept it as a musem.

  • http://www.brucebrodinsky.com Bruce B

    I have a very fond memory of the Jahn’s on that site from 4/28/1967…. as a 6th grader, I “successfully represented PS100″ (as the certificate said) in a district-wide history contest held at Brooklyn College. My dad had pre-dated Joe Namath in “guaranteeing victory” for me, which caused mom to hit him in the head with a newspaper for “getting his hopes up too high”.

       My usually fiscally responsible parents took all my classmates who came to see me to Jahn’s, where several “kitchen sinks” were consumed. A great night.

       It’s a highlight I can’t  forget. I apologize for the boasting, but the sight of this article brought the memories rushing back.

    • brooklyn native

      I clearly remember those ‘kitchen sinks’ and many kids around the table.
      I have a few pictures of my 7th birthday party there.    So much fun….
      It’s nice to be able to sorta share those memories!  

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