After rapid and apparently misguided expansion, the New York grocery store Fairway may finally be reaching the end of its lifelines. Stocks in the store, which went public in 2013, have been falling since CEO Jack Murphy came on in 2014; they now rest at 30-40 cents a share. Nasdaq has twice warned the company that they may be delisted, and over the past 5 years they have accumulated $267 million in debt.
The chains owners have made attempts to sell, but have not been able to come up with buyers. Now, in a last-ditch effort to keep at least the most successful stores open, they are attempting to enter Chapter 11 bankruptcy protection by the end of May and restructure their debt. If the deal goes through, creditors will take over the company temporarily until they (hopefully) reach more solid footing.
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Midtown staple Sushi Zen first opened its doors in 1983, when sushi was still considered an adventurous choice for Times Square dining. In the years since, more and more upscale sushi restaurants have joined the scene, and raw fish has fully entered the mainstream (arguably ushering in the next-wave poke trend). Sushi Zen, run by head chef Toshio Suzuki, nevertheless remained a favorite, earning some celebrity chef fans like Michael Anthony and training others like Masaharu Morimoto in the traditional Edomae style of sushi making.
After a brief stint with a second location in Greenwich village last year which closed after six months, the 7 year-old Bark Hot Dogs will officially close up shop completely on February 7th. Bark was a Park Slope standby for many years, and owner Joshua Sharkey had previously talked about plans to open a different Manhattan location in a new neighborhood. That now seems unlikely, although Sharkey has been vague on the exact reasons for closure, stating only that (unlike the Greenwich Village location), rent was not the primary factor.
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