Faan had been in business since 2001. The once hugely popular eatery offered a mixed bag of Asian dishes from Japanese to Vietnamese to Thai. Though it did seem a bit emptier in recent months, the closing comes as a surprise. On a recent NYC HealthDepartment inspection, the restaurant earned an A.
The restaurant space with its glassed-in sidewalk seating area is one of the largest on Smith Street.
Will you miss Faan's food? What kind of restaurant would you like to see in that space?
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16 comments:
My wife, son and I were regulars at Faan. We enjoyed the food, but more so the hospitality of the staff, whom we counted as good friends.
They closed quietly April 30th, citing decreased patronage, rent and rising food costs as the main reasons for the decision to close.
We already miss them...
What I do miss is Bar Below, the basement bar/club underneath Faan. Mind you, I don't miss everything about the place (memories of overly gruff bouncers and a poster delineating the dress code -- always a bad sign), but I do miss the space itself. Maybe a little too slick for some, but it was a unique place for something different when out with a group of friends in the neighborhood. Here's hoping whoever takes over will resurrect it.
That place opened up around the same time I moved to the neighborhood. I used to go there a lot in the beginning but hadn't been in years. I was just thinking about it when I walked past a couple weeks ago about how it's still going.
There seem to be a lot of empty storefronts on Smith St.
I second Chris R. Faan was a place to grab some dinner before heading down to Bar Below. Without the club, it wasn't much more than a mediocre pan-asian place... hope it comes back as something good!
...and kudos to the owners for always keeping that outdoor space looking fresh and inviting, no matter how bad the food got. It was like magic (or like subway advertisements) -- you never saw them replacing the flowers and plants, but they always looked gorgeous and architecturally striking.
I frequented Faan alot for their lunch special and will definitely miss it.
Didn't Bar Below close a really long time ago? It felt like a swimming pool down there, weird space and I agree about the bouncers..
I would like to see something useful open up there. Shoot me for saying this but I wouldn't mind a 99 cent store so I don't have to schlep over to the South Slope for random "non designer" household/stationary type stuff.
The "original' Faan was pretty good. When it changed management a few years ago, its downfall began. The food was never the same.
doubt rising rent a factor since owned by the developer of building. And Bar Below was nuisance(and not all legit) to the area. Glad didn't last.
Restaurant was looking tired and rundown - not kept up. They'll probably renovate and open with different theme.
This closing really saddens me. It was a nice, inexpensive place to go to after work or on a sunny weekend afternoon. Faan boasted a unique storefront and where else can I get thai iced tea?
I mourn their cold sesame noodles - literally the best I've ever had.
It was a very nice place to go and to eat- that was a few years ago, basement was ok- but not too great to go often -sullen. As for a replacement- a grand FISH RESTAURANT would be lovely- its huge- have a LUNCH SPECIAL PRICE- that would be till 4PM People come in for all they like to eat. Than, REGULAR PRICES after 5 pm. As they do in Sheepshead Bay.
I hope we get a new pan-asian place in that space. We sorely need one.
Oh, wait. Never mind. I also vote dollar store. I miss the Family Value Center that was on Smith/Wyckoff.
Also, Arianna, you can get your Thai Iced Tea at the other half-dozen Thai/pan-asian places :)
Last night we drove in from Midwood (aka Murrow HS, Zone A) and we were saddened to see the place was closed! Both our girls liked FAAN. I remember when Jessica, as a toddler, knocked down a bowl of rice. What a clatter. But the staff was very nice about it.
Darn!
OMG my Bf and I are so upset we loved this place the beef pad thai would be the highlight of our week :/ .. Faan will truely be missed.
I frequented faan a lot in the 1st 8 years, food went down 2 years ago. The insurmountable problem for me was the pressure to order food as soon as you sat down and then it arrives 5 minutes later before you have had a chance to unwind. I tried telling them I was not in a hurry to order but they were always hovering ...
We shall never see their like again. Let's track down the owners and get the recipe!
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