My City Was Gone

It's hard to even keep up with all of the closings of New York favorites. But the demise of La Luncheonette -- where I celebrated my birthday with my friend Larry months before his untimely death a decade ago -- is particularly sad. (That cassoulet!) Nearby Moran's -- where I celebrated my 40th with my entire family -- is gone now too, making the area almost hard to walk by.

To my east, the Garage restaurant on Seventh Avenue South is also calling it a day, after its rent was hiked to 50 grand a month. I'm almost afraid to see what's next ...