After Departing Alphabet City, Ost Cafe Doubles Down on Grand Street

Come Sunday, Ost Cafe will be down one. High rents forced the cafe to shutter its Alphabet City shop after more than eight years in business.

In a snarky letter to its faithful, ownership accused the city of “forgetting” about small businesses, and “cheering from the sidelines for more, bigger, taller, and pocketing the tax revenue.”

Despite the departure, Ost Cafe is doubling down on the Lower East Side, its admitted home. The three-year-old outpost on Grand Street remains unscathed and is apparently “going strong.”

Below is their farewell to Alphabet City…

Friends, East Villagers, Countrymen-

It has been a good run. We love being part of the neighborhood, and part of all of your lives.

Unfortunately, our little corner of 12th St and Ave. A has become too expensive to stay open any longer. The East Village (the commoditized version of it that is controlled by the Real Estate industry) is moving on up, and they seem to have forgotten to set any place at the table for small businesses. The City of New York is complicit in this change, cheering from the sidelines for more, bigger, taller, and pocketing the tax revenue. Alas.

Short of charging $10 a cup, we can no longer make ends meet selling just coffee and wine, and options are limited. “Ost Café and 24-Hour Vape Shop Emporium” just doesn’t have the same ring to it.

We will close the doors on Sunday at 5PM for the last time. Stop by and say hello in the next few days, and thank you for making the past 9 years such a wonderful experience. Our Lower East Side location on Grand St is going strong, and we will always call this community home.

Ost Cafe