See this story at BrooklynDaily.com.
By Will Bredderman
Brooklyn Daily
Hinsch’s, Bay Ridge’s beloved ’50s-era soda fountain, ice cream parlor, and greasy spoon, is closing for good.
The neon-signed confectionery, which started serving egg creams and sundaes on Fifth Avenue near 86th Street in 1948, will close permanently on March 1 and will be replace with a new store, BrooklynDaily has learned.
Co-owner Roger Desmond, — who temporarily saved the small piece of history in November, 2011 after a brief closure, said the high cost of doing business on Fifth Avenue and changing tastes in the area made it to difficult to makes ends meet.
“The area no longer supports this kind of establishment,” said Desmond. “Bay Ridge is more of a fast food kind of place now. Hinsch’s is passé, I guess.”
Desmond said he and his partners, who own Skinflints on Third Avenue, regretted having to close the classic counter luncheonette, which they grew up visiting and loving.
“We’re neighborhood people, and we wanted to keep the tradition alive, keep Bay Ridge alive, and it didn’t work,” said Desmond.
Landlord Anna Tesoriero already has a new tenant lined up to take over the hot corner spot, according to Desmond, although he did not know what business would be moving in.
However, the businessmen claims he still has the rights to the Hinsch’s name, meaning they could potentially re-open elsewhere — though Desmond said that was unlikely to happen.
“I don’t really see that in the cards, unfortunately,” he said.
Reach reporter Will Bredderman at wbredderman@cnglocal.com or by calling (718) 260-4507. Follow him at twitter.com/WillBredderman.