Two relatively new Upper West Side restaurants, Mokum and 8th Hill, have permanently closed, joining a growing list of shuttered UWS businesses.
Mokum, which opened at 464 Amsterdam (between 82nd and 83rd Streets) in late 2018 , made the announcement on August 21, stating “After our brief, but beautiful romance with the UWS, it is with a heavy heart that we must say goodbye. 2020 has not been kind to most, including us. Tea and Ben and the entire Mokum family wish only the best for this city and all of its people. Mokum means safe haven. So here’s to all of us finding our Mokum wherever it may be.”
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Mokum served “internationally-inspired dishes showcasing the finest local ingredients,” with seasonally changing breakfast, lunch and dinner menus. Hampton Chutney was the previous occupant of 464 Amsterdam Ave.
8th Hill opened at 359 Columbus Ave (between 76th and 77th Streets) during the spring of 2019, replacing longtime restaurant Isabella’s. Upper West Siders were anticipating this restaurant for a long time, as its opening had been postponed several times. But the Mediterranean restaurant has permanently closed its doors.
The upscale eatery served hot and cold mezzes, kebabs, lamb and short rib entrees, salmon and seabass dishes, and desserts including baklava and pumpkin cheesecake.
Owner Semi Feyzioglu named the restaurant after his hometown of Istanbul, Turkey. Istanbul is known as the “City on the Seven Hills”, he explained on 8th Hill’s website.
Such a shame. It was an institution of Isabella’s before they were squeezed out, and 8th Hill was promising. Now it’ll be vacant for a long time, I suspect.
Very sad about Mokum – it was such a great addition to our neighborhood. I will miss their great and inventive cooking. Really too bad!
I salute the brave entrepreneurs who tried so hard to build creative businesses to serve their neighborhood and got caught up in all this mess. Hopefully, your spirits are not diminished and you’ll be back again better than ever. Meanwhile, thanks so much for trying, so many of your neighbors really appreciate the effort and hope to see you sooner than later!
This is very sad and a great loss to our neighborhood.
What a loss, I loved 8th Hill. Delicious food & a wonderful restaurant. I’ll never forget the great delivery service they provided for us during the lockdown. So sorry to see you leave the neighborhood. I wish the owner all the best moving forward.
If we continue allowing and accepting the criminal element taking over our streets, we will continue losing these fine restaurants and other small businesses. Those of you who blame Covid 19 are sadly mistaken.
Please translate your euphemistic “criminal element”, whom we are “allowing and accepting” into our neighborhoods. I do not know to whom this refers. Thank you.
ML, do you live under a rock?
Upper West: Simply FYI, Isabella’s was not forced out. Landry bought the B.r. Guest group of restaurants, and decided to close isabella’s for reasons that i still cannot divine. As for 8th Hill, it was the single most outrageously overpriced restaurant on the UWS. Their appetizers were the price of most restaurants’ main dishes. I hope something more neighborhood-friendly opens in its place.
I disagree. 8th Hill was no more expensive than any other restaurant in this price range in the neighborhood. 8th Hill – we will miss you!! Hopefully another comparable restaurant will take its place.
ML – apparently you haven’t been outside of your apartment in quite some time. The crime in our neighborhood has risen dramatically.
UWS: i wonder if you see the absurdity of what you just said: that it was no more expensive than any other restaurant “in its price range…” Well, obviously if something is “within its price range,” then it is not going to be “any more expensive” than that. It is the price range that I was pointing out. But yes, they were more expensive than almost any other restaurant on the UWS, including other upscale places.
SE:
I think what ML was trying to point out is that you are blaming the hotel homeless for things that may have nothing to do with them. That you ae scapegoating them, as so many others are. If that is not the case, great. If it is the case, then ML is correct in his/her comment.
Couldn’t agree more about 8th Hill… the prices were outrageous and I had drinks and apps there one night (before COVID) and the service was diffident at best. Isabella’s was thriving but the new owners of BR Guest closed all of their UWS restaurants. We all are willing to pay higher prices but there’s a value proposition involved.
UWSMaven: Actually, BR Guest did not close its restaurants. BR Guest sold itself to the Landry Group (second largest restaurant group in the U.S.) and Landry closed Isabella’s, for reasons that elude me. They kept only four of BR Guest’s locations open (Dos Caminos, Blue Fin, Atlantic Grill, Strip House) and close the rest. Very sad. I was a friend of BR Guest for years, and went to many of their openings. My favorite place of theirs was Ruby Foo’s (remember that?!)
ha! Ruby Foo’s was one of my first ‘a-ha’ moments in NYC dining scene. The one on UWS opened the door, and that staircase (!), but even the Times Square one was impressive for visitors that couldn’t/didn’t leave the theater area – it was a scene in and of itself. Don’t forget Ocean Grill or Fiamma (was Fiamma BR?) Ocean Grill was generally very busy, and all things considered a reasonable price for quality seafood that always delivered. I preferred it over Isabella’s, if I had to choose. Thought those places closed well before their time. Always busy places. Nice memory.
Considerateneighbor: Yes! I was a regular at the UWS RF (had my birthday dinner there every year until it closed), and went to the opening of the one in TS. Ocean Grill closed for the renovation of that building and never re-opened. (It was also hampered by the sidewalk shed, even before work began.)
I had forgotten that Fiamma (!) was a BR Guest place. It WAS great. Blue Water Grill (Union Square) was another that Landry closed,. There was also the Park Avalon (PAS and 18th), and the original original: Coconut Grill on the UES (long closed). All of their restaurants were good to great. What a loss!
Interesting anecdote about Isabella’s. Years ago, I took a friend and colleague there for lunch. He was a really good looking guy: a cross between Harry Connick and Alec Baldwin. One of the hostesses took a shine to him and they went out a few times. That hostess was Jennifer Garner. True story. Only in NY. (And maybe LA)