In a city where restaurants come and go, one legendary kosher knish bakery in Queens happily endures by serving up old-world-style food that's continually finding a new audience. NY1's Roger Clark filed the following report.
Solomon Flores has been baking knishes at the Knish Nosh for nearly 30 years. That's half as long as the place has been selling the potato-filled snacks on Queens Boulevard.
"People just don't want to make things like this anymore. So we are like an old time knishery that people just don't open up anymore," said Haig Schneiderman, Knish Nosh's owner.
Schneiderman bought the business from the original owners in 2003. It's now in its third location - moving once across 67th Road and in September a block west after the lease ran out. The store survives along with a thriving wholesale business. Basically, some people can't live without their knishes.
"We often have a lot of limousines pull up in front of the store on the way to the airport - people take a Knish Nosh bag and load them up with knishes and some of our soups and they're off to the airport," Schneiderman said.
Schneiderman expanded the menu a bit 10 years ago with the help of Ana Vasilescu, who fixes up Eastern European comfort foods popular in Jewish homes for ages like latkes, peirogies, stuffed cabbage and matzo ball soup. She's at it sometimes seven days a week, but she says that's okay.
"Even if I go home I still cook," Vasilescu said with a smile.
And in a changing neighborhood where longtime businesses have vanished, the Knish Nosh is still filling folks up with old world delicacies - a taste of our past.
"It's feel good food. And it's reminiscent to that of our grandmothers," said Michael Perlman, a Forest Hills/Rego Park historian.
As for the knish recipe itseld, well, that's a big secret.
"When people ask me what it is it's really lots of love and care, when we make our product," Schneiderman said.
Knish Nosh is an institution in Queens. But you may be seeing more of their knishes all over town. Haig Schneiderman wants to expand the retail part of the business, which means you could be noshing on knishes in your neighborhood, sometime soon.