Lindy's was two different deli and

restaurant A restaurant is an establishment that prepares and serves food and drinks to customers. Meals are generally served and eaten on the premises, but many restaurants also offer take-out and Delivery (commerce), food delivery services. Restaurants ...

chains in

Manhattan Manhattan ( ) is the most densely populated and geographically smallest of the Boroughs of New York City, five boroughs of New York City. Coextensive with New York County, Manhattan is the County statistics of the United States#Smallest, larg ...

New York City New York, often called New York City (NYC), is the most populous city in the United States, located at the southern tip of New York State on one of the world's largest natural harbors. The city comprises five boroughs, each coextensive w ...

. The first chain, founded by Leo "Lindy" Lindemann, operated from 1921 to 1969.("Opening date was Aug. 20, 1921.") In 1979, the Riese Organization determined that the Lindy's trademark had been abandoned, and opened new restaurants, the last of which closed in February 2018.

Locations

The original chain had locations at 1626 Broadway (at NE corner of 49th Street; now occupied by a Junior's Restaurant, as of July 2023) and 1655 Broadway (at NW corner of 51st Street; now occupied by a McDonald's Restaurant, as of October 2020). The Riese's Lindy's were located at 825 7th Avenue (at 53rd Street) and 401 7th Avenue at 32nd Street (now closed). The location at Seventh Avenue at W. 53rd Street closed in 2018.

History

Lindy's was opened by Leo "Lindy" Lindemann (died 1957,

Parkinson's disease Parkinson's disease (PD), or simply Parkinson's, is a neurodegenerative disease primarily of the central nervous system, affecting both motor system, motor and non-motor systems. Symptoms typically develop gradually and non-motor issues become ...

) and his wife Clara on August 20, 1921, and was located at 1626 Broadway, between 49th and 50th Streets. A second location was opened at 1655 Broadway in 1929.("The original Lindy's here was opened in 1921 by Leo and Clara Lindemann and three partners at 1626 Broadway, between 49th and 50th Streets.... Lindy's annex at 1655 Broadway was opened in 1929. The original place was closed in 1957.") The original Lindy's location closed in 1957. Since June 2017, a Junior's Restaurant now occupies the venerated location. In 1969, the 1655 Broadway location was acquired by Longchamps restaurants, who closed the restaurant in September 1969 to convert it into a steak house (it became a Steak & Brew and later a Beefsteak Charlie's).("Lindy's ... has been acquired by the Longchamps restaurant chain. Larry Ellman, president ... (said) it would be remodeled as a steak house with special delicatessen features.")(Reporting that restaurant would close that night; "The fabled turf of Damon Runyon's stable of Broadway guys and dolls as well as lox and yocks has been sold to Longchamps to become a steak house.") Lindy's was especially well known for its

cheesecake Cheesecake is a dessert made with a soft fresh cheese (typically cottage cheese, cream cheese, quark or ricotta), eggs, and sugar. It may have a crust or base made from crushed cookies (or digestive biscuits), graham crackers, pastry, ...

, which was at times credited as perhaps the most famous in the United States.("Soon Lindy's cheesecake, according to Spira, grew famous nationwide...")("But most of all it was renowned for its cheesecakes, which were as integral a part of Gotham culture as Yankee Stadium, Coney Island, Grant's Tomb and the Staten Island Ferry....; Quoting Abe Burrows, co-author of ''Guys and Dolls'': "Damon Runyon was very fond of Lindy's cheesecake. In his stories he changed Lindy to Mindy, but he never tried to change the great cheesecake. ...We saw to it that our gambler hero, Sky Masterson, the highest roller of them all, was 'quite partial to Mindy's cheesecake'.")("Probably the most famous cheesecake in America is served at Lindy's restaurant in New York city.") The cheesecake was immortalized in ''

Guys and Dolls ''Guys and Dolls'' is a musical theater, musical with music and lyrics by Frank Loesser and book by Jo Swerling and Abe Burrows. It is based on "The Idyll of Miss Sarah Brown" (1933) and "Blood Pressure", which are two short stories by Damon Run ...

'', where Nathan Detroit and Sky Masterson sang its praises. The "Lindy's" name and concept was resurrected in 1979 by New York City restaurant operator the Riese Organization, who determined that the name had fallen into the

public domain The public domain (PD) consists of all the creative work to which no Exclusive exclusive intellectual property rights apply. Those rights may have expired, been forfeited, expressly Waiver, waived, or may be inapplicable. Because no one holds ...

, and later obtained the

trademark A trademark (also written trade mark or trade-mark) is a form of intellectual property that consists of a word, phrase, symbol, design, or a combination that identifies a Good (economics and accounting), product or Service (economics), service f ...

.("Lindy's, of course, still exists, but not in its original form. The name is owned by the Riese organization, which foreshadowed the current theme craze with its own nostalgic revival.")

Clientele

Harpo Marx Arthur "Harpo" Marx (born Adolph Marx; November 23, 1888 – September 28, 1964) was an American comedian and harpist, and the second-oldest of the Marx Brothers. In contrast to the mainly verbal comedy of his brothers Groucho and Chico, Harp ...

frequently ate at Lindy's in the 1920s, writing "I had a home again, and during the day a choice of two homes-away-from-home, Lindy's or Reuben's. I was back with my own people, who spoke my language, with my accent - cardplayers, horseplayers, bookies, song-pluggers, agents, actors out of work and actors playing the Palace,

Al Jolson Al Jolson (born Asa Yoelson, ; May 26, 1886 – October 23, 1950) was a Lithuanian-born American singer, comedian, actor, and vaudevillian. Self-billed as "The World's Greatest Entertainer," Jolson was one of the United States' most famous and ...

with his mob of fans, and

Arnold Rothstein Arnold Rothstein (January 17, 1882 – November 6, 1928), nicknamed "The Brain", was an American racketeer, crime boss, businessman, and gambler who became a kingpin of the Jewish Mob in New York City. Rothstein was widely reputed to have orga ...

with his mob of runners and flunkies. The cheesecake was ambrosia. The talk was old, familiar music. A lot of yucks. A lot of action. Home Sweet Home." Jewish Mafia icon

claimed Lindy's as his favorite "office" and would stand on the corner, surrounded by bodyguards, and conduct business outside. On the day that Rothstein was killed in 1928, the last place he visited before the murder was Lindy's and he received a phone call at Lindy´s. On April 5, 1956,

Abraham Telvi Past member(s) Joseph Abate Joseph "Joe" Abate (July 8, 1902 – November 28, 1994) was a capo in the family's Lucchese crime family New Jersey faction, New Jersey faction. In the 1920s, Abate served as an enforcer for Al Capone in Chicago befo ...

, a mobster and hit man, attacked journalist Victor Riesel with acid, blinding him as he left the restaurant.

Milton Berle Milton Berle (born Mendel Berlinger; ; July 12, 1908 – March 27, 2002) was an American actor and comedian. His career as an entertainer spanned over eight decades, first in silent films and on stage as a child actor, then in radio, movies and ...

frequented Lindy's almost on a nightly basis.

Groucho Marx Julius Henry "Groucho" Marx (; October 2, 1890 – August 19, 1977) was an American comedian, actor, writer, and singer who performed in films and vaudeville on television, radio, and the stage. He is considered one of America's greatest comed ...

was eating there with

Dick Cavett Richard Alva Cavett (; born November 19, 1936) is an American television personality and former talk show host. He appeared regularly on nationally broadcast television in the United States from the 1960s through the 2000s. In later years, Cave ...

and

Woody Allen Heywood Allen (born Allan Stewart Konigsberg; November 30, 1935) is an American filmmaker, actor, and comedian whose career spans more than six decades. Allen has received many List of awards and nominations received by Woody Allen, accolade ...

in the 1960s when they informed him that his work was appreciated by college students of the time.

In popular culture

Historian Albert Goldman named the Lindy effect for the restaurant.

Damon Runyon Alfred Damon Runyon (October 4, 1880 – December 10, 1946) was an American journalist and short-story writer. He was best known for his short stories celebrating the world of Broadway theatre, Broadway in New York City that grew out of the Proh ...

was a big fan and wrote the restaurant into his books as "Mindy's." The musical ''

'', based on Runyon's writings, immortalizes Lindy's in one of its songs. The commonly told "Waiter, there's a fly in my soup" joke is theorised to have originated at Lindy's during its original incarnation. Lindy's is referenced in ''The Critic'' episode "Dukerella." Lindy's is referenced in

Billy Wilder Billy Wilder (; ; born Samuel Wilder; June 22, 1906 – March 27, 2002) was an American filmmaker and screenwriter. His career in Hollywood (film industry), Hollywood spanned five decades, and he is regarded as one of the most brilliant and ver ...

's '' Ace in the Hole (1951 film)''. In the 1952 film ''

Pat and Mike ''Pat and Mike'' is a 1952 American romantic comedy film starring Spencer Tracy and Katharine Hepburn. The movie was written by Ruth Gordon and Garson Kanin, and directed by George Cukor. Cukor directed ''The Philadelphia Story (film), The Phil ...

'', Lindy's is shown as the location where Pat (''

Katharine Hepburn Katharine Houghton Hepburn (May 12, 1907 – June 29, 2003) was an American actress whose Katharine Hepburn on screen and stage, career as a Golden Age of Hollywood, Hollywood leading lady spanned six decades. She was known for her headstrong ...

'') signs a contract with Mike (''

Spencer Tracy Spencer Bonaventure Tracy (April 5, 1900 – June 10, 1967) was an American actor. He was known for his natural performing style and versatility. One of the major stars of Classical Hollywood cinema, Hollywood's Golden Age, Tracy was the ...

''), making him her agent and manager. Lindy’s is referenced in the opening paragraph of the 1952

science fiction Science fiction (often shortened to sci-fi or abbreviated SF) is a genre of speculative fiction that deals with imaginative and futuristic concepts. These concepts may include information technology and robotics, biological manipulations, space ...

novel A novel is an extended work of narrative fiction usually written in prose and published as a book. The word derives from the for 'new', 'news', or 'short story (of something new)', itself from the , a singular noun use of the neuter plural of ...

Leigh Brackett Leigh Douglass Brackett (December 7, 1915 – March 24, 1978) was an American author and screenwriter. Nicknamed "the Queen of space opera, Space Opera", she was one of the most prominent female writers during the Golden Age of Science Fiction. ...

'' The Galactic Breed'' published in Ace Double D-99, 1955 ( List of Ace double titles). In season 4 episode 10 of ''I Love Lucy,'' entitled “Ricky’s Contract,” Lucy tells Fred and Ethel that Ricky took his entire band to Lindy’s to celebrate learning that he had been offered a movie contract. Donald Fagen's song, "Good Stuff" (2012), from the album '' Sunken Condos'', is a prohibition-era gangland fantasy that uses Lindy's as a location. Lindy's is pictured in the closing scene of ''Friday the 13th, VIII, Jason Takes Manhattan'' In the 1969 movie ''Midnight Cowboy,'' the man on the telephone with Cass (Morey) making dinner plans can be heard through the receiver mentioning Lindy’s.

References

External links