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404 Restaurant Not Found

This is where I mourn the death of all my favorite restaurants in New York City.
Feel free to dig in and indulge in the flavors that don't exist anymore.

Ennju

Ennju

20 E 17th St, New York, NY 10003

2001 - 2022

During my undergrad years, I took a Japanese language course to fill up the liberal arts credit quota - where I met this one girl who always came in with a cup of miso soup in the morning. I was both horrified and fascinated by how she was drinking the soup like a cup of morning coffee. (Can you imagine the sodium?) Out of curiosity, I asked her where she picked up her soup every morning, and she introduced me to you. And boy oh boy do I have to thank her for introducing me to the best beef curry I've ever had in my life.
Even well after graduating, I would always go back to your beef curry. The tender meat, the perfect balance of spice, and the ungodly amount of white rice got me through much of my first few years of misery as a junior designer working for an egomaniac. We eventually grew apart from the pandemic and my moving back to South Korea for 2 years. You will never guess how devastated I was to find out you were gone when I came back to the city. I will never forget you or your curry. No one will ever do it like you.

Love always,
Da Won

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Croque Monsieur

17 E 13th St, New York, NY 10003

2012 - 2020

La Maison du Croque Monsieur, or as my uncultured self would lovingly call it, Croc. I still stand by that you had the best sandwiches and cafe mocha in the entire city. Unpopular opinion, maybe. But I still stand by it and am willing to fight anyone who says otherwise.
I bet all of the people working there hated me for taking up a table on your second floor and working on project after project next to where you kept all the old tenant's letterpress gear you never threw out. I remember passing out from lack of sleep one time and no one bothered to wake me up and let me know I've been there for 5 hours because it's New York City and no one gives a damn about anyone else.
You're one of the many folks I lost from the pandemic, and I will never forgive myself for not giving you a visit in your final years. I miss you and your sandwiches. I hate your tomato soup though - that stuff was nasty.

Love always,
Da Won

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La Goulette

159 Grand St, Brooklyn, NY 11249

2014 - 2020

Oh La Goulette, I will never forgive myself for making fun of you for taking healthy amounts of vacation every year and calling you European (derogatory) all the time. In 2019, you decided to go on the long holiday vacation that you took every year. But this time, you never came back.
I miss your shalafel - and how you always talked about it like it was something revolutionary when it was just a combo of chicken shawarma and falafel. I miss your interior design and the random photo of HBO Girls on your wall. Were you actually on the show? Is that why you had that photo? I would never know because it's 2024 and I doubt I will ever watch that show at this point.
I didn't realize how real Middle Eastern food was supposed to taste before I met you. I mean I used to think Halal Guys was the best thing in the world and EVERYONE knows it's not. The red sauce at Halal Guys is just spicy and painful - your red sauce had FLAVOR. I still dream of your red sauce and I will never stop dreaming.

Love always,
Da Won

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Saigon Market

93 University Pl, New York, NY 10003

2010 - 2020

When I first met you in 2013, you were the go-to place for Asian NYU students, which is why my sister, who was going to NYU at the time introduced me to you.
If I'm being honest, I never liked your food. If I wanted Vietnamese food, I preferred Luu's Baguette in Kips Bay (RIP) and Saigon Shack in Greenwich Village. If I'm being FULLY honest, you were always just a nice, somewhat affordable spot for me to hang out with friends and family. No one offers this much seating as you did anymore (maybe except for tourist traps in Midtown) in the city. Everything is fast, counter service now and it makes me realize how good I used to have when you were still around.
I can still hear the loud chattering in your dining room, the piercing smell of fish sauce, the dim lights that made me squint trying to read the many all the time, and the humid heat that you always had for some reason. I don't remember what food went into my mouth but I will never forget all the gossip that came out of my mouth when I was with you.

Love always,
Da Won