The Bronx is Burning (that’s a good thing)

We love to shop in the Bronx.  For the latest . . . .

Visit 985 East 174^th Street (500 SF) and get yourself a new Boost Mobile cell phone.  Call your friends and cruise on over to 1479 Westchester Avenue (1,500 SF) for some local grocery shopping, then walk next door to 1471 Westchester Avenue (500 SF) for the latest in music and musical instruments.  If you’re looking for some good ol’ fashioned Caribbean food, visit Veraboy Island Grille at 764 Burke Avenue (834 SF) and ask for Chef Peter.  Mmmm, jerk chicken!  Need the latest in auto sound and security, stop by Hi-Precision at 1580 Jerome Avenue (621 SF), and while waiting for your car, walk around the corner and get your hair cut at Mike’s Barber at 11 East Mt. Eden Road (500 SF).  Mike makes hair cutting an art!  Speaking of art, check out the art studio of famed artist Wallace Whitney III, located in a former synagogue at 53 Antin Place (840 SF).  For a candy bar or a turkey sandwich, stop into Sammy’s Deli at 3423 Boston Road (800 SF).  Let Sammy know Retail Specialist Evan Silver sent you and get an extra pickle!

These are just some of the many new deals in the Bronx.

And by the way, Besen Retail represented both owner and tenant on each of these leases.  Way to go Besen Retail!

Evan Silver Closes First Deal!

1307 Edward L. Grant Highway

Retail Specialist Evan Silver closed his first deal with ease last week. The property, at 1307 Edward L. Grant Highway in the Bronx, was leased to a refrigerator buying, selling and repairing shop. While Silver is modest about the closing, the rest of the team is excited about it! Executive Director Matt Mager has told him that he will buy him lunch to reward his hard work. We expect many more successes in the future.

-Caitlin

Where everybody knows your name…

Retail Specialist Evan Silver with the owner of his favorite eatery, Moishy's

Retail Specialist Evan Silver can’t get enough of Moishy’s Bakery & Cafe in the Bronx. With its shockingly low prices, giant portions, and friendly waitstaff, the Kosher eatery is the ideal lunch spot for the broker on the go. Moishy’s serves everything from paninis to pizza, and falafels to omlets, offering a giant menu to choose from. But even with the large menu, the staff still manages to memorize patrons’ orders.

“Everyone knows everyone there. Not only do they know everyone, but they know everyone’s orders. It’s a real community place,” Evan said. And even though breakfast burritos weren’t on the menu, the staff was happy to make one for Evan this morning. Looking for a place where everyone knows your name? Visit Moishy’s at 746 Lydig Avenue, nearby spaces for lease 750 and 782 Lydig Avenue.

-Caitlin

Need Bronx or Upper Manhattan Space?

Like I told you before, business in the Bronx is booming, with plenty of retail spaces available, and for only $1500 per month! This great price even extends into Upper Manhattan. Space is available in Burke, Bronxwood, Wallace, Lydig, Westchester, Decatur, Antin, and Brady areas in the Bronx and on Thayer and 188th Street in Upper Manhattan. Please call 212-213-6480 for leasing information.

-Caitlin

Bronx Christens “Mother Teresa Way”

A block of Lydig Avenue located between Holland and Wallace Aves in the Bronx is welcoming a new name, “Mother Teresa Way.” The area surrounding the block has a high Albanian population, and since Mother Teresa was an Albanian-born nun, it was only fitting to use the name to honor her and the community.

Not only was Mother Teresa chosen because of her heritage, but also because of her monumental visit to the Bronx in 1977, when she went to the Bronx convent of the Sisters of Charity, which was the first one established in the United States. The Albanian population had been wanting the name change for some time;  as it was a 16-year campaign led by the  President of the Albanian American Society Foundation, Esad Rizai.

Mother Teresa Way is not far from our recently featured juice bar space, 778 Lydig Avenue.

-Caitlin

Get Juiced

Upon moving to New York City, one trend became visible to me as I walked down the streets, the popularity of juice bars. Despite what neighborhood you are strolling through, you are likely to find a shop flowing with fruity mixtures. Besen Retail most recently leased a client’s property, 778 Lydig Avenue in the Bronx, to a couple with plans of selling smoothies and juices of “any combination you want.”  For those of us that know exactly what we want, the ability to customize is key.

The Hartford Courant  recently noted the popularity of juice bars among professionals. Kevin Lamb, co-owner of Robeks, a juice bar in West Hartford said, “Everybody is so busy today and not able to sit down and get their nutrients. More and more lately, our customers are business people who don’t get to eat right during the day and will drink a cup of fresh juice to get the nutrients that they need.” Since much of the population of New York City is people on-the-go, local juice bars become popular after-work and lunch-time destinations.

Liquiteria in the East Village “presses” their fruit for juice extraction, creating juices containing more 3 to 5 more vitamins, enzymes, and minerals than other juices. They also offer their bottling system, which ensures a shelf life of four days when refrigerated. Some of their featured flavors include, “Grasshopper,” a combination of apple, pear, pineapple, wheatgrass, and mint, and “Beets Me,” containing carrot, beet, apple, lemon, and ginger.

-Caitlin

778 Lydig Avenue, Soon to be juice bar, previously New Jhankar

Weekly Neighborhood Spotlight: Pelham Parkway, Bronx by Retail Specialist, Adam Caplan

In recent years, there has been much abuzz about up-and-coming Bronx neighborhoods such as Fordham and SoBro. From The Hub to The Gateway Center, much of the focus of city planners and urban renewal committees has focused on residential and retail projects in West Bronx. As such, these revitalized areas have experienced incredible diversity.

However, not to be overlooked are neighborhoods in the East Bronx which have remained vibrant and diverse even through the dark periods of The Bronx’s history. One such diamond in the rough is the Pelham Parkway section, situated just east of the Bronx Zoo and below the highway known as Pelham Parkway.

Residents of Pelham Parkway are of many races and income classes. While the highest percentage of residents are Hispanic, there are sizeable Italian, Albanian, Russian, Jewish and Asian communities within the neighborhood’s bounds.

Pelham Parkway’s largest retail thoroughfare, White Plains Road is comparable to Fordham Road and East 149th Street, with big-box retailers such as Pay/Half, Bolton’s and Foot Locker. Shoppers from across The Bronx flock to this easily-accessible district, with the 2 & 5 subway lines stopping along White Plains Road and the new Bx12 Select Bus Service running along Pelham Parkway.

Mirroring the diverse character of the neighborhood are the retail shops lining Lydig Avenue. While renowned stores such as Key Food, Weber’s Closeout Center and H & R Block act as anchor tenants, the various ethnicities have their own shops in between. On the corner of Lydig and Wallace Avenue is I&L Gastronom, an Eastern European gourmet food market specializing in Russian products. Gina’s Bakery, located in between Wallace and Holland Avenue, features the freshest, most authentic Italian baked goods. Moishy’s, a new kosher dairy restaurant between Holland and Cruger Avenue, serves everything from challah to Bourekhas. American & Asian Mini Mart on the corner of Holland Avenue sells meat and dairy Halal foods.

-Adam