New Upper East Side Restaurants: Asian Food, Subway Inn Moves

UPPER EAST SIDE, NY — The Upper East Side's next restaurant openings will include a to-go branch of Serafina, a new location for the beloved Subway Inn, and a new outpost for a popular kosher Chinese restaurant.

The upcoming eateries and bars were presented on Tuesday to a Community Board 8 committee as their owners sought the board's approval to obtain alcohol licenses. They are among the dozens of new restaurants that Patch has covered in recent months as the hospitality industry recovers from the pandemic.

Here's a rundown of the openings we learned about this week:

Cho-Zen (1553 Second Ave., between East 80th and 81st streets):

• Replacing the shuttered Thai restaurant Jaiya will be a new restaurant by Neil Wallin, founder of the mini-chain "Cho-Sen" — a series of kosher Chinese restaurants with three locations in Forest Hills, Great Neck, and Lawrence, Long Island.
• Serving what Wallin described only as "Asian food," it will occupy three floors of the walk-up building — though only the ground level will be open to the public, with the cellar and second floor housing the kitchen and offices, respectively.
• Cho-Zen will handle its own delivery, according to a representative — satisfying concerns from CB8 members who object to the influx of delivery drivers from companies like Grubhub and Seamless.

New Chinatown UES INC (1650 Third Ave., between East 92nd and 93rd streets):

• New management will be taking over the existing Chinatown Restaurant on Third Avenue, according to a representative identified only as Steve L. Listed only under its registered name, it was unclear whether it will be retaining the same official name.
• With that comes changes: new owners "took away the sushi" that formerly made up a chunk of the restaurant's menu, in order to focus exclusively on Chinese cuisine, Steve said.
• The new Chinatown Restaurant will focus on "more traditional" Chinese cooking rather than its Americanized counterpart, Steve said.
• The restaurant will be open seven days a week, from 11 a.m. to 10 p.m.

Serafina to Go (1492 Third Ave., between East 84th and 85th streets):

• First previewed last month, this will be an outpost of the well-known chain that began in 1995 on Madison Avenue and has since "evolved into an international brand of Italian restaurants," representative Max Bookman said during Tuesday's meeting.
• Unlike other Serafina locations, however, this will be a "lighter concept," focusing on grab-and-go foods like salads, sandwiches and pizzas, Bookman said. It will replace a former Ann Taylor Loft clothing store.
• Bookman sought to assuage concerns raised by neighbors at last month's meeting, including whether Serafina would encroach on the next-door privately-owned public space, saying the restaurant will be confined to its own property.
• Still, other concerns surfaced: Taub Schwartz, a resident of the building that Serafina is moving into, said neighbors were worried about delivery bikes clogging the public plaza outside. "It sometimes looks like a Sturgis rally," he said.

Subway Inn (1154 Second Ave., between East 60th and 61st streets):

• This longtime watering hole is moving just up the block from its existing location on East 60th Street, as has been previously reported. The move came amid its landlord's plan to demolish much of the block, though the status of that teardown is now unclear.
• Subway Inn is now seeking to transfer its liquor license to its new home: a former restaurant supply store near the corner of East 61st Street.
• "Everything will remain the same — the management, the company, the staff," representative Ellen Lee said of the new Subway Inn. Even the bar's interior design will remain about the same, she said.
• The new bar will seat 34 people across eight tables, plus a 22-seat bar.
• The bar will be open until 4 a.m. daily, opening at 10 a.m. from Monday-Thursday, at 11 a.m. Friday-Saturday and at noon Sundays.

None of the upcoming restaurants said when they planned to open.

Have an Upper East Side news tip? Email reporter Nick Garber at nick.garber@patch.com.

Related coverage:

• New UES Restaurants: Gracie's Diner Moves, Bar Coastal Replaced
• New Upper East Side Restaurants: Italian Spot, Pub, Indoor Golf Venue
• Newest Upper East Side Restaurants: TBar Returns, Teacup Replaced
• Pizzeria, French Bistro Among New Upper East Side Restaurants