In December, Bergstein’s N.Y. Delicatessen closed its Hyde Park location. The restaurant had served New York style kosher and deli food in Hyde Park since 2014. Their flagship location in Chicago Heights, a suburb south of Chicago, still operates.
The company posted a thank you note to the Hyde Park and University community on its website, promising they “will continue to service the entire Chicago and Chicago Southland through BNY Catering.”
“The University was very supportive in terms of catering,” said Bergstein’s owner Bill Davis. “However, our walk-in business never really achieved the level we needed to be successful.” Bergstein’s first came to Hyde Park as a food truck in 2011 and opened as a store after success in that venture.
Bergstein’s closing comes amid a slew of other closings throughout Hyde Park. Japanese restaurant Yusho, athletic shoe store New Balance, frozen yogurt store ZBerry, and high-end cooking supplies store Freehling Pot and Pan have all closed their Hyde Park locations within the last year. Packed: Dumplings Reimagined and Red Mango closed in 2016 and 2015 respectively, each after only six months of operation. Noteworthy Notes, a stationery store in Harper Court, will close at the end of January, according to the store’s Instagram account. Some of these businesses also cited low sales as reason for their closing.
The building that housed Bergstein’s, located on 55th Street between University and Woodlawn Avenues, is owned by the University. According to University spokesperson Marielle Sainvilus, the University is still considering its options for the next tenant.