A long battle between matzo ball soup lovers and the relentless real estate crush weren't enough to save Cafe Edison, an institution in the Theatre District. Now, the space that formerly housed the 34-year-old Cafe will be home to a new tenant, whose menu has some similarities to its forebear. The Daily News reports that local chain Friedman's Lunch will be the next tenant at 228 West 47th Street—and there's gonna be Matzo Ball Soup on the menu.
Friedman's operates four other NYC outposts, including Chelsea Market and one up near Columbia. Their motto of "homemade comfort food at affordable prices" includes $5 cups of Chicken Matzo Ball Soup, a $15 Friedman's Burger and a $17 Grilled Salmon Salad. "We'll have a lot of the same menu items. We have a great chicken soup and a great reuben but we also do vegan food and quinoi [sic]," founder Alan Phillips told the News. "It's not as narrow as a classic, Jewish delicatessen." Phillips also touted his Polish roots and a childhood making blintzes.
Actress Martha Plimpton—who has not eaten at Friedman's—thinks it "seems silly to replace the Edison, which had history and family relationships with a chain that will approximate that." Doubtless many theater folks and other regulars will feel the same. Still, the chain is well-reviewed on Yelp and tourists taking in a show at the Barrymore aren't likely to know the difference anyway.
