Restaurants & Bars

NYC Restaurants: Starbucks Fruit Suit + Food Stamp Bungles Edition

Oh, also the Bidens were dinin' in Manhattan.

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Matt Troutman, Patch StaffVerified Patch Staff Badge

NEW YORK CITY — A Starbucks fruit(less) suit isn't moot.

Let us explain.

Foodies in New York City this past week were greeted by headlines about Starbucks fruit drinks, food stamp failings, Biden family's dinin' and more.

Find out what's happening in New York Cityfor free with the latest updates from Patch.

As always, Patch's dedicated and tiny newsroom was there to serve up morsels for our dear readers.

Check out our weekly roundup, and come back next week for seconds.

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Starbucks Refreshers drinks were the focus of a civil lawsuit brought by a Queens woman who was outraged that her go-to Strawberry Acai beverage lacked a key ingredient: its eponymous fruit.

Starbucks — arguing Refreshers are named for flavors not ingredients and customers' confusion could be dispelled by any barista — filed to have the case dismissed, but Manhattan U.S. District Judge John Cronan ruled Monday it could continue.

The not-moot and literally fruitless suit will go forward.

Seattle-based coffee slingers weren't the only people facing food-related heat this past week.

Bungling by New York City officials left tens of thousands of families waiting for much-need food stamps and cash assistance benefits, advocates said.

This "outrageous and cruel" failing should be corrected, Legal Aid advocates argued.

Speaking of public officials and New York City food, President Joe Biden and his family went out on the town for some fine Italian cuisine.

The president who fashions himself as an ally to the working class likely will greet this news: a Bed-Stuy coffee shop won a union contract after nearly a year of organizing.

Beyond that back-of-house wrangling, Upper West Side and Williamsburg eateries were among those whose fare got them named among the New York Times' 50 best restaurants in the U.S.

Word about new restaurants blanketed New York City this past week like the soon-to-fall leaves.

Here goes, just for the Upper West Side...

A Michelin-recommended soup dumpling chain — Nan Xiang Soup Dumpling — signed a lease for a new restaurant in the Upper West Side.

Fairway Market’s 74th Street Café reopened after a COVID hiatus.

Friend of a Farmer opened its second location in the city on the Upper West Side.

And a new Just Salad in the neighborhood offered $5 meals on select day.

Across the park, the Upper East Side saw Regina's Grocery, a specialty Italian sandwich spot long heralded for their delicious sandwiches, plan to open its fourth location in the neighborhood.

The Brazilian Market opened on East 77th Street, just off Second Avenue. For the curious, its many offerings include a waffle with cheese and guava.

A little more Uptown, the Latin Night Market held its inaugural opening Friday in Inwood.

In Brooklyn, Sweet Catch celebrated its first year of serving up Black and Southern cuisine.

And one of Brooklyn's favorite cheesecake and deli spots — Junior's — announced plans to open a spot on the Las Vegas Strip.

Bad things happened to some New York City establishments too.

A teenaged former employee robbed two locations of the popular French patisserie Julien Boulangerie within minutes of each other, police said.

Local hospital favorite Cafe Fresco closed on the Upper East Side, although it will open a new location in Midtown.

And, finally, two restaurants in Manhattan and brooklyn were closed by health inspectors.

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