New Yorkers react to the shocking closure of the Astor Place Starbucks
New York University students, downtown revelers and coffee fiends have been coming together at the Starbucks near Astor Place for nearly 30 years, sipping on their cappuccini while staring at the iconic Cube sculpture in the area. Alas, that Starbucks, until now the largest one in Manhattan, is no more: the destination officially closed this past Sunday night.
New Yorkers are rightfully shocked: the company had not announced the imminent shuttering and the venue is always pretty crowded.
Although initial reports pegged the closure to high rent, the New York Post reports that the company that owns the space refuted that theory.
“We are sad they chose to leave, even as we offered a lease extension that would have allowed them to remain in their existing space at the exact same rent,” a spokesperson for ASG Equities, who owns the venue, said to the New York Post.
A former barista also told the paper that the 2022 unionization of the store’s employees “didn’t improve [its] chances of staying open.” A Starbucks representative denied those allegations.
“We apply the same focus to evaluate, modify and close both union-represented and non-union stores based on our ability to provide the Starbucks Experience to our customers and to support both our partners and the business,” said the rep.
Whatever the case may be, one thing is for sure: the Starbucks on Astor Place is now closed—a development that has led many to social media to mourn their loss and reminisce about the good times they had in there.
Here is a collection of some of the best reactions to the closure:
There goes another public restroom.
— Joshua Pearson (@JoshuaLPearson) July 29, 2024
I remember when an additional Starbucks opened on the other side of Astor Place and the fact that you could sit in one Starbucks and watch another Starbucks was considered a sign of the apocalypse
— The Shameful Bronze (@scratchbomb) July 30, 2024
Rip astor place starbucks :'(
— Vivi (@Togemiss) July 30, 2024
i think and i actually know for certain i was the last person to order a drink at the astor place starbucks . it was an iced green tea
— Jade (@jadeellisart) July 30, 2024
astor place starbucks is the reason i survived method acting
— L (@atlantidegirl) July 30, 2024
End of an era. For old NYU grads, Starbucks on Astor place and the Kmart by it felt like forever places. St. Marks is also not what it used to be. 🥹
— Ivy Yang 杨方曦 (@ivylala) July 30, 2024
A girl I knew in college worked at the Astor place Starbucks and she owned a lot of urban outfitters great gatsby attire but she always brought us all the leftover sandwiches and cake pops when we hung out post shift and it’s the only time I’ve had cake pops cuz they’re gross.
— Claire B (@hiiclaire) July 30, 2024
I remember when the arrival of the Astor Place Starbucks was the sign of a deadened neighborhood, and now its departure is being lamented the same way.
Just goes to show: in NYC, the only constant is change—and no version of the city is better than the one you started with. https://t.co/hL5jyIOJKW
— Ryder Kessler (@ryderkessler) July 29, 2024