Jahn's Ice Cream Parlor

Brother Kozel--

$2 for the subway is tough when you have to take it into work and back 5 days a week.
Where is my calculator ??
Hey, thats $20 a week-----

I think William Buckley had the right idea years ago when he ran for Mayor. Yep WB ran back in the 60's. One of his thoughts was to make the subway completely free---eliminating every employee except the engineer and the maintainence dept. Also eliminate a bunch of cops who have to stand and watch for turnstile jumpers. The cost of running the subway would be added to corporate taxes. All the fancy companies who want a NY City address, the Stock market and all the businesses who make money in NY would have an extra few dollars a year added to their tax bill and people would "ride forever 'neith the streets of NYC" with not a turnstile in sight.

I don't think Mike Twill and the Union liked his idea. I think that was when Lindsey was elected and he and Beame raised taxes and fares anyhow !!!!

I wonder where the furnishings of Jahn's went. That route would be interesting to follow---find out where it ends up !!!

I know a Kevin Walsh, but I don't think he is the same guy. You are 1000% correct though, that site is a great place to spend hours and hours. I gave my brother the name and address of Forgotten so get in touch with Kevin Walsh and get your commission. Have fun.

Have not seen a mention of the Jackson Heights Jahn's, located on 37th Ave. between 81st and 82nd Streets -- south side of the avenue.....anyone remember? For the non-locals, Jackson Heights is a neighborhood in north-central Queens, which, with all due respect to The Ancient Mariner (see first post) is NOT "a remote part of New York City"....it's actually quite accessible!

quote:

Originally posted by the ancient mariner

Brother Kozel--

$2 for the subway is tough when you have to take it into work and back 5 days a week.
Where is my calculator ??
Hey, thats $20 a week-----

One thing they did do was eliminate the 2 fare zones. If you live in Glendale for example, and need to take a bus to the subway paying 2 fares, you only pay one fare now. These remote (I'll use the word remote) areas were always more desirable because the cost to live there kept some of the less 'desirable' people out. Now the only extra cost is in time spent on multiple conveyances and the transfers. I think they also eliminated the extra fare levied on the subway to the Rockaways.

quote:

Originally posted by flattop5

Have not seen a mention of the Jackson Heights Jahn's, located on 37th Ave. between 81st and 82nd Streets -- south side of the avenue.....anyone remember? For the non-locals, Jackson Heights is a neighborhood in north-central Queens, which, with all due respect to The Ancient Mariner (see first post) is NOT "a remote part of New York City"....it's actually quite accessible!

If you had read the link I posted to Forgotten, you would have seen that Kevin states the last remaining Jahn's location is Jackson Heights. Go there while you can.

I remotely remember going to a remote area of NYC called Far Rockaway.
Even more remote than Jackson Heights and Middle Village.
The Rockaways were on the LIRR then and I went there because I lived
there,I understand from what you say that it is now part of the subway system.

When I was a kid---we moved when I was 14----it was a wonderful place
to live. A little remote but accessable and right on the ocean.
Ah! the breeze was lovely, except a very low tide !!!!

quote:

Originally posted by the ancient mariner

I remotely remember going to a remote area of NYC called Far Rockaway.
Even more remote than Jackson Heights and Middle Village.
The Rockaways were on the LIRR then and I went there because I lived
there,I understand from what you say that it is now part of the subway system.

When I was a kid---we moved when I was 14----it was a wonderful place
to live. A little remote but accessable and right on the ocean.
Ah! the breeze was lovely, except a very low tide !!!!

From Forgotten...

http://www.forgotten-ny.com/STREET%20SCENES/borderlinefarrock/farrock.html
http://www.forgotten-ny.com/NEIGHBORHOODS/rockaway.beach/rockbeach.html
http://www.forgotten-ny.com/Alleys/rockawayalleys/rockbeach.html
http://www.forgotten-ny.com/NEIGHBORHOODS/edgemere/edgemere.html
http://www.forgotten-ny.com/STREET%20SCENES/endofqueens/bridge.html

Kozel----U R FANTASTIC

These pictures and stories are wonderful. We lived in a nice big house on
Muhlbach Court off Beach 19th St in Far Rockaway from 1934 til 1940. My
father was a conductor for the LIRR and I traveled all over with a pass because
of his job. Even went to Brooklyn by myself to see the beloved Dodgers at Ebbets Field.
Went to the World's Fair in 1939 and 40 by myself--being only 12 years old was no big
deal because I had been on my own traveling since I was 5 1/2. That's the way it was then.

In the Far Rockaway segment they show the RKO Strand where I saw
lots of movies but the one most remembered is Alexander's Ragtime Band. My brother
and I came out of the theater into the hurricane of 1938, the worst ever to hit LI.
We made it home through downed trees and power lines. Scary.

In the Rockaway Beach portion they show the Park Inn on Bch 116th St. Next to it
was the Park Inn Baths where I was taught to swim by a runner up to Johnny Weissmuller
for the Olympic 100 yd freestyle championship. I would ride my Schwinn from Far Rock
to Rockaway on the boardwalk----5 miles each way and both ways up hill !!!

It was during the depression, and my father had a good job but with 5 kids we were
still broke. It was a great place to grow up. On Mulhback Ct we had Italian, Jewish,
German and Irish all together and right over an old wooden fence was a small apartment
house where a number of "colored" families lived. All us kids played together and
never knew we weren't supposed to like each other. My best friend was Albert "Fats" Rosen.

------Thank you so very much, the memories are re-kindled.

Glad you enjoyed it. I have a couple of clients in the Rockaways; one on B 20th a few doors south of The Strand and one on the bay side of 75th. Sorry we didn't get a chance to 'meet up' recently; I always enjoy your recollections. Maybe next time.

quote:

Originally posted by kozel

It looks like the Richmond Hill location has closed. Nice article on Forgotten-NY

http://www.forgotten-ny.com/SLICES/jahns/jahns.html

Sad News.

The "AM NY" newspaper today announced that this was almost the last Jahn's left. It served its last meal on Thanksgiving this year after 70 years of business.

The article mentioned that the Richnmond Hill Historical Society was trying to get the place preserved "It was really, really an institution" says Nancy Cataldi, the president. (we know that here on Roadfood, right?)

Nick Moukas, who runs the olny remaining Jahn's (in Jackson Heights) says that the #1 revenue is from food now, since Ben & Jerry's, B&R's, and Cold Stone have take the franchise for store bought ice cream (so no one goes to an "ice cream parlor" anymore to sit down and chow down, just "fast-food ice cream", He also claims that most ice cream is bought in a supermarket.

The article says that Jahn's once has outlets in Brooklyn, Bronx, Queens, Long Island and Florida, and that most Jahn's were strategically located next to movie theatres. "25 or 30 yrs. ago, on your first date, you'd go to the movies and get ice cream"..."If you speak to anyone in their 50's or 60's who grew up in Queens or Bklyn and ask them about Jahn's , they's get a smaile on their face and tell you about it...they's day "I had my first birthday there"

quote:

Originally posted by MacTAC
Very sad these places are gone. I have been to the sole survivor, Richmond Hill at least three times in the last year. Glad it's still here...

Glad I was wrong about RH being the sole survivor. Thanks to this thread I tracked down the JH location and ate there a few days ago. The food was fine and the only Ice Cream we had, my son's Chocolate Shake was good. Next time WILL be Ice Cream...

I went to the Jackson Heights Jahn's in Queens about five years back and it was horrible.   

Back in the early 1970s, I ate regularly at Jahn's in Sheepshead Bay and on Flatbush Av/Church Avenue.   In those days the food was quite good - you could get a side salad that was more complex than anything you get today from most restaurants.   You could get a hot open roast beef sandwich that was also quite fresh and "home-made".  

I suspect, although I can't prove, that when Jahn's was in its prime, it probably made its own ice-cream.   At the end, they probably bought ice-cream from a wholesaler that also served other restaurants.  Nothing special.    

That's what kills all of these types of places...either people get bored with them or the quality slowly erodes.   Then you get to a point where the place isn't offering anything distinctive anymore.   In the case of Jahn's, since most of them operated near large move theatres and almost all of those large movie theatres closed, their business model was no longer viable.    

ZOETMB----------I will take out my secret Orphan Annie de-coder ring and 
                          Figure out the message---ZOETMB--a tough one---but just
                           hang on a few minutes.

Back to Jahn's--- I wish all Roadfooders could go back to the Jahns in Richmond Hill after WW2 when we were there ------- it was wonderful----and just like everything else-------It passed and is forgotten----- it had it's 15 minutes of fame-----great home made ice cream with dozens of variations.  Kids of today don't know what they are missing.  They grow up much too early------an I-Pod, or cell phone can never replace sitting in Jahn's with a "Kitchen Sink" shared by 4 buddies ---2 of each gender !!!!

Put another nickel in---
in the nickel-o-deon
and music, music, music !!!!!!----------- Theresa Brewer RIP.

Here is a March, 2009 NY Times feature about the sole surviving Jahn's:
http://www.nytimes.com/2009/03/22/nyregion/thecity/22jahn.html

The owner was brutually honest with the Times reporter. He should have also stated that there were chain ice cream dip stores in the area, such as Cold Stone that he competes with, along with generic coffee shops/diners.

I went to that Jahn's quite often from 1963-1969 while visiting relatives in Jackson Heights. Even then, I wasn't sure they still made their own ice cream. But, there was plenty of good quality bulk ice cream to be had.

Just like with ice cream parlors, there are no more candy stores with soda fountains in the area. Rents and labor are too high. Our site does discuss Roadfood ice cream parlors, but they tend to be in lower cost of business areas. Their prices are also quite high if they are selling home made ice cream made from locally procured fluid milk.

People talk about what goes into hot dogs. You would probably eat less ice cream if you saw what they make commercial ice cream out of today. An ice cream plant in New York may use evaporated cream from Texas, plus all sorts of butter fat and dairy derivative products.

Tara had mentioned the one in Coral Gables which I think closed down about '76-'77 about the same time several of the other restaurants on Miracle Mile did because of diminishing evening and friday night shopping and theater draw. Swenson's became the place primarly for the younger/university crowds with a still active theater nearby. When my girls were in still in school in the early 90's, you could still see the workers making ice cream behind glass. Last time I stopped in was about '2000 and the place had deteriorated from it's former glory. Gone was the on-site ice cream processing and was now ugly,visible storage. Jahn's brought back wonderful memories of carefree high school friday nights. To those that recall the area, we can't forget Chippy's. They were really a delicatessen-style restaurant, but had some awesome ice cream parlor style offerings. About the only other similar venue to Jahn's during that same time was Farrel's in Hialeah which was a continuous experiment of corporate/Marriot blundering and tampering with a wonderful,inital concept. Never realized that Jahn's was a chain.

How lucky can a guy be?  I went to PS 52 across the street from Jahn's in Sheepshead Bay and then Jr. High nearby. My high school was four blocks from Miracle Mile in Coral Gables, FL with another Jahn's nearby.

Four blocks from Miracle Mile? Only High School that I can think of was Dearborne. Only other school 4 blocks is Coral Gables Elementery. CG Senior high is down further towards Bird & Le Jeune. The Jahn's Tara and I were talking about I think was between Salzedo and Ponce on Miracle Mile' north side.