Small Business Watch: Shrub Oak Deli and Vinny’s Big Bite Close Their Doors

So far, 2011 has been a tough year for Yorktown’s independent delis, and Yorktown residents have recently lost two well-loved businesses – and the Shrub Oak Deli. 

Vinny’s Big Bite Deli closed its doors for good on April 5. Its shutdown came on the heels of last month’s closure of the Shrub Oak Deli.

Many surprised customers found the following farewell letter from Vinny’s owners Vinny and Dina Capone, posted to the building’s locked doors, “To our valued customers, The Big Bite will no longer be opened. We would like to thank you for your patronage. It was our pleasure to serve you! Vinny, Dina & the Crew.”

Conveniently located beside the JFK bus line stop, just in front of the Triangle Shopping Center, Vinny’s was Jonathan Mullen’s favorite morning stop. For the last three months, Mullen said he stopped in every morning before catching the bus. And what made Vinny’s so special was, he said, the market-like layout, being on a first-name basis with the staff, and the "awesome food."

“The best deli in Yorktown is gone,” Mullen said.

Dominick Scolpini, an employee at Silicon Valley Computers, located in the building adjacent to Vinny’s, said that he knew for about a month that Vinny and Dina Capone were having financial difficulties and had been hearing rumors that the duo might be forced to close their business. 

Scolpini wonders if the competition from a Mobil gas station just three doors down was too fierce. “I think it hurt them that they didn’t sell cigarettes or beer,” he said. 

In a similar scenario, the Shrub Oak Deli closed amidst rumors of financial difficulties. The deli was owned by Linda and Eddie Cooper for the past 28 years and was a well-loved staple of the Shrub Oak community.

“It is sad to see a long time Shrub Oak institution close," Arnold Goldberg said. "They had the best deli turkey breast and potato salad I have ever eaten."

Bobby Joachim, who owns the neighboring business Abbott’s Frozen Custard, said the Shrub Oak Deli building already has a new owner. A card on the door said "The Sansotta Brothers Italian Specialties," and the deli is expected to re-open under new ownership in the near future.

But Vinny’s Big Bite and the Shrub Oak Deli are not the only independent delis in financial trouble, and it seems likely that Yorktown residents may expect to see some more of their favorites close down in the near future. 

“I hear things around the street," Mario Mancini, owner of A&S Pork Store and Fine Foods. "I’d rather not name names, but another deli may be closing up soon."

Mancini, who has been in the business for 20 years, said his business is weathering the storm, but this is the worst business environment for small, independent grocers and restaurants he has experienced in the past two decades.

Small independent businesses like Vinny’s and Shrub Oak have it particularly tough, he said, because rent, food, transportation, and utility costs are escalating while consumers are becoming more price conscious.   

Chain stores are better able to pass along the rising costs onto their customers without losing business, he said, and big chains are doing well by offering a “one stop shop” approach through on site cafés and other conveniences. 

“At A&S Pork, I specialize in quality and freshness," he said of how he has been able to survive the tough times. "I’m at Hunts Point Market by 5 or 6 every morning so I can hand pick the freshest meat, and we make everything from scratch.”

In addition to specializing, Mancini said the owners that are surviving watch their businesses very carefully and have deep access to working capital.

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