Coney Island Bialys and Bagels to close

What some consider the oldest bialy store in Brooklyn, if not in New
York City, will be closing down soon, the Forward reported. Coney
Island Bialys And Bagels Has Been Operating On Coney Island Avenue
since 1920. But now owner Steven Ross said that the economic crisis
and changing makeup of the neighborhood were forcing the closure.

Once
a predominantly Jewish area, the new population has primarily been
Asian, Russian and Middle Eastern. The traditional customers who came
every Sunday to pick up bagels, cream cheese and juice for their
families are no longer there. Only Ross and two other
employees will be left after this Friday, Ross said. He does not yet
know whether the store, at 2359 Coney Island Avenue, will close before or after the Jewish high
holidays in September.

This closure comes on the heals of the closure of H & H Bagels on the Upper West Side  last
month.

Kossar’s Bialys on the Lower East also claims to be oldest
bialy shop in the United States. [The Forward]