In every “hot” neighborhood there’s an anachronistic greasy spoon valiantly hanging on — think La Nueva Conquista in Soho. Or the Square Diner in Tribeca. In the West Village there was Joe Jr., now being replaced by a Brazilian joint. Chelsea has a couple of spots like La Tacita de Oro and the great Poppy's Terminal Restaurant, and now JV reports that one of them, Cabo Rojo, is closing after 51 years. As Sam Sifton pointed out in a praiseful $25 and Under review, the local joint was once Spanish before becoming “proudly Puerto Rican,” and quietly served “stellar variations on the island's favorite themes: sweet, salt, sour, fire.” The owner tells JVNY he lost his lease.

Cabo Rojo [JVNY]

Read more posts by Daniel Maurer

Filed Under: closings, cabo rojo, chelsea, la nueva conquista, la tacita de oro, square diner