Forget all the other famous candy stores in NYC! They are more hype and high prices than anything else. Economy Candy is the place to go! They have old school candy that isn't easy to find anymore. They are a family run business which opened in 1937!

Also they carry a lot of imported chocolates and candies and Kosher candy as well. They have a Pez collection that is out of this world as well as merchandise that is based on candy brands. It's a very cool store indeed.

Economy Candy, 108 Rivington Street

Good News - Yes they are open. You know the drill - masks and social distancing.

Dave’s New York is one very cool store indeed and without the typical fanfare of hipster stores. It is a family owned and operated business for over 50 years, Instead of me raving about it, I’ll include a paragraph from their site.

“Family owned and operated for over 55 years, Dave's New York features branded "Americana" rugged and casual clothing. Interactive American icon brands such as Levi's, Carhartt, Red Wing, Dickies, Schott, Alpha, Woolrich, Ben Davis, Timberland Pro, The North Face, Columbia, and Chippewa are offered in a wide selection of models at very favorable pricing.”

It’s in a neighborhood with much going on and it’s rather easy to miss it with all the other stuff going on. But it’s definitely worth it! You can also order online.

Dave’s New York - 581 Avenue of the Americas between 16th & 17th Streets

When was the last time you were in a cool magazine store? I still love print. After seeing Ali’s Instagram feed I decided that I needed to check out his shop. It’s very small and he has managed to use every square inch of the shop.

While I typically just show a photo of the facade of a business, after we got into a conversation he invited me to take his photo. He is proudly holding a magazine with Julianne Moore on the cover. She lives in the neighborhood and he calls her his friend.

Btw, he has more than 28,000 on Instagram! And, he’s 2 doors down from one of my favorite diner style restaurants, La Bobonniere.

Casa Magazines, 22 Eighth Avenue at Bleecker Street

Update: Casey’s is in business still! It’s a great store. Updated 12 July 2021.

In a world that seems to be dominated by all things digital there are some analog items that still exist with good reason. Casey’s Rubber Stamps has existed in its East Village location on 11th Street for more than 15 years now. Casey has been in the rubber stamp business for more than 35 years.

Casey has every kind of rubber stamp that you can imagine from alphabets to zebras. And if he doesn’t have what you’re looking for he takes custom orders. You can also order online. When was the last time you wrote a physical letter to someone or made a greeting card by hand? There are so many cool things you can do with rubber stamps including shopping at an independent business.

Casey’s hours are based on artist’s hours and he is “open when not closed and closed when not open.” The listed hours of business are Monday-Saturday 1-8 pm and Sunday 2:30-7 pm.

Casey Rubber Stamps 322 East 11th Street (between First and Second Avenue)

So let’s talk pickles! Talk about a specialty. The Pickle Guys are the last pickle shop in the Lower East Side. I understand that there were once many pickle vendors in LES.

They say that their pickles are from an old Eastern European recipe and “just the way mom used to made them.” Their pickles are Kosher and they have a variety of other pickled vegetables and condiments.

If you’re a fan of pickles you definitely need to stop by here and have a few. Also, the have a restaurant next door which I will be posting about shortly. What’s not to love about pickles?

They are open on Saturdays, but they close for the Jewish holidays. So check their website first.

The Pickle Guys - 357 Grand Street at the corner of Essex Street

Morgenststern's Finest Ice Cream is a very retro style looking ice cream parlor with updated tastes. If you like ice cream I definitely suggest it. The flavors are both standard and new flavors as well. Like Tahini Caramel! The ingredients are all natural.

I'll let them speak for themselves here! "Nicholas Morgenstern is a self-made restaurateur, with extensive pastry experience in some of New York's finest establishments. In 2014, Nicholas opened Morgenstern's Finest Ice Cream. "Morgenstern's Finest Ice Cream is my chance to express my love of the quintessential American indulgence. I have been dreaming of these flavors, this style, and this place for years.""

Morgenstern's Finest Ice Cream - 2 Rivington Street near Bowery

Two sweet words when seen together in a shop window! Yes, hot bagels. As in they make them there! Once you’ve had a fresh bagel out of the oven and still warm, you may never have another standard deli bagel again.

Kossar’s has been around since 1936 and apparently they are the oldest Bialy shop in the US! I haven’t tried their bialy but the bagels are fabulous. They are located in the lower Lower East Side. It’s a very cool neighborhood and they are next door to not one, but two pickle shops. Stay tuned for the posts about them.

Kossar’s - 367 Grand Street near Essex Street

Rapha is a bicycle for the serious cyclist. They have very cool bikes and biking gear. It's also on the pricey side. I'm not a cyclist, but you don't need to be a cyclist to visit the Rapha store in Soho. I found it my accident.

Cyclists bring their bicycles into the shop and hang them on a rack while shopping, watching bicycle races and ordering something to drink. They have a very good café latté and they have a few seats indoors and a really nice outdoor seating area. It is often difficult to find a seat in a cafe in this city. I've always found one at Rapha. Open daily from 8am.

Rapha - 159 Prince Street near West Broadway

I finally managed to try out Yonah Shimmel's Knish Bakery. Fabulous! I had a sweet potato knish and a cherry knish. They are large and filling. I didn't eat them both at once. Really good. Yonah Shimmel's has been there since 1910! They are a bakery and a restaurant. 

Yonah Shimmel started selling his knishes from a pushcart in 1890. He was a Russian Jewish immigrant and the business remains in the family of his cousin's family after all these years. As well as knishes they have a number of Eastern European dishes. 

"Yonah Schimmel’s was so integral to the Lower East Side that “No New York politician in the last fifty years has been elected to public office without having at least one photograph taken showing him on the Lower East Side with a knish in his face,” according to Milton Glaser and Jerome Snyder’s 1968 column in New York Magazine “Underground Eats.”"

Yonah Shimmel Knish Bakery, 137 East Houston Street between 1st and 2nd Avenues