Carroll Gardens Market had opened this past August and it was rumored that it was being taken over by the Mastellone's family who had run a successful old-fashioned, family-owned Italian deli/ superette at the same location for many years.
The original Mastellone's closed in the fall of 2013. Shortly afterwards, it was taken over by Billy Solmaz, who also runs Pacific Green, a popular Cobble Hill store at 303 Court Street at Pacific Street. It had been reported that Solmaz was being forced out of his Cobble Hill location at 151 Court Street by his landlord, because national retailer J.Crew had penned a ten year lease for the space. Strangely, Pacific Green is still very much open to this day, but Solmaz closed his new store at 303 Court Street this past April, just six months after opening it.
When Carroll Gardens Market opened n August 2014, many in the neighborhood were happy to hear that the Mastellone's family was involved once more. However, the store seemed badly run and it just did not feel inviting.
Too bad! In a neighborhood once filled with wonderful Italian delis, we now have a shortage of them. I think many of us had hoped that Carroll Gardens market could have been a worthy successor to Mastellone's.
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12 comments:
This place smelled like dead animals. Good riddance.
Bully here again...
I'm not sure that was run by the Mastellone's group. I must say I gave this place a chance, although they did not keep up their promise to the customers. They started as a full-service deli and butcher. The prepared food at the start was actually good. Over time they scaled back their offerings. First to go was the butcher, then the deli, the prepared food selection was scaled back... People can sense a dying store and won't want to shop there, especially if the food is not quality. They did have good prices, but it just wasn't meant to be. I don't understand how businesses who don't have enough capital to run for a year without scaling back expect to survive. I'm not sure what's going to survive on this corner. Deli's/markets are 0 for 2 now. Not sure someone else will want to give it a shot.
Just a matter a time before it's a Cash 4 Gold, Gap Kids, Starbucks or Capital One. Outfits like that love corner locations. They don't care about D'Amico's or the character of a neighborhood, just about $. I hope I'm wrong.
Of course, it all depends on the rent, but with the closing of Met Food and the ridiculous pricing at Union Markup, there would be demand for a small, well-priced supermarket/deli in the neighborhood.
No matter what I went in there for or when I went in, they were "getting it in soon". That includes ham and swiss at the deli counter and they didn't have swiss. Huh? If you looked at the shelves the stock was lined up at the front row with nothing behind it. It was rare to find someone working there and they never knew anything. Right from the beginning it looked like a front.
Well, J Crew fled to greener $$ pastures. They occupy a space on Weyth in Williamsburg, now.
I think the problem with that store after the closing of Mastellone was that it didn't know what it wanted to be. A green grocer? A "gourmet" market? A grocery/deli? I went in there only twice, and it seemed to me they didn't have a real focus. Maybe someone with a better vision can run it, and hopefully it would be a small supermarket/deli as "bored at work" suggests. The original Mastellone store which was located in the current Winn Discount space was successful for decades before it moved into the corner space. Surely there's demand for that type of store again.
Trumbull Bully nailed it. It was great when it opened, and it was open late. I'm over by 2nd place and would regularly go for late night grocery runs because everything on my side of the hood closes early. Quality went downhill quick and then it started to smell.
I hope it reopens as a grocery store as there's a need. Maybe one without produce since K&Y next door already does that PERFECTLY.
Also hope the flower guys stick around. They are fantastic.
I too was excited when I thought Mastellone's was reopening. And this place seemed great at first... but then slowly the offerings and quality decreased. There also were more flies in the store than seemed appropriate. It's too bad -- there's more than enough need for a nice market right there!
I had hoped that it would be a local grocery store nand that I could combine shopping there with K&Y, and have no temptation when in a rush and unable to get to Met Food to just go to Union Market. However, the selection was frustratingly spotchy. In my view, a local non-gourmet straight out grocery could do well at that location.
It's imperative that this location becomes a useful grocery store again. The Met Food on Henry Street has just become "Key Food Marketplace" according to the weekly sale circulars. This is a bad omen. The store has already become messy recently, and I wouldn't be surprised if it eventually closes -- leaving CG with NO "normal" supermarket.
Not sure how they expected to compete with Union Market or the fruit a few stores away. they should have reopened as an Italian deli/specialty store.
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