Biggest Long Island restaurant closings of 2025
La Parma restaurants are known for family-style Italian dishes, such as lobster ravioli with cognac shrimp sauce. The Williston Park location closed after 41 years. Credit: Daniel Brennan
Longtime family-run restaurants, classic Italian spots and diners — so many diners — closed on Long Island in 2025. While the local dining scene continues to evolve with plenty of new restaurants opening every month, the most significant closings of the year leave a lasting mark.
LONG ISLAND DINERS
Baldwin Coach Diner in Baldwin closed in April after 61 years. Credit: Newsday/Howard Schnapp
The Baldwin Coach Diner
The diner that fed generations of Long Islanders closed in April after 61 years, following the death of co-owner John Kanaris.
The Golden Coach Diner, Huntington
Maria Korines, co-owner of the landmark that's been on West Jericho Turnpike in Huntington since 1980, retired in April. Since her husband, founder Harry Korines, died two years ago, she said, "it has been very difficult to carry on." The Korines family posted a notice in the diner window expressing their "most sincere thanks to the generations of loyal patrons who have supported us throughout the years."
The South Bay Diner, Lindenhurst
The diner closed at the beginning of 2025 after a 24-year run on Sunrise Highway in Lindenhurst.
LONGTIME RESTAURANTS
George Martin's Grillfire closed in Merrick. Credit: Bruce Gilbert
George Martin's Grillfire, Merrick
It was hard to miss the illuminated cornice and boldly colored graphic awning that managed to magnify and dramatize what was, in truth, an unremarkable one-story building across from the railroad tracks. But 31 years after he started leasing the space, George Korten closed the restaurant, saying he was unable to reach a new deal with the landlord.
Luigi Q, Hicksville
Luigi Q was one of the Island's most divisive restaurants, where regulars enjoyed personalized service and off-the-menu delicacies, while newcomers were often surprised by the no-kids, no-shorts policies. Since it opened in 2000, Luigi Q was a perennial presence on Newsday's list of top Italian restaurants. With little fanfare, owner Luigi Quarta left the Long Island dining scene after 25 years, selling his business to Demetra and Carl Mattone, who opened Ficarra Ristorante in its place.
La Parma, Williston Park
La Parma opened in June 1984 and touted itself as "one of the first family style restaurants on Long Island," serving oversized portions of pastas, Parms and chops. Co-owner Anthony Gralto and business partner Dominic Gregorio sold the building and closed in July, paving the way for the opening of ACASA from the South Shore restaurant group that runs Mangia Bene and Churchill's in Rockville Centre.
Domenico's Restaurant, Levittown
Levittown’s Domenico’s Restaurant closed after 58 years. The owner of the restaurant, Domenico Belcastro, opened the eatery at 3270-A Hempstead Tpke. in 1967. His menu was inspired by his grandmother's recipes from Calabria.
Jade King, Roslyn Heights
One of Long Island’s oldest Chinese restaurants closed late this year, capping a run that started in 1975. Jade King was a white-tableclothed, wonton-soup-egg-roll sort of place where you could still get egg foo young and chow mein, and wash them down with a mai tai. Such old-school eateries, serving a version of Cantonese cuisine tailored to American tastes, have largely been eclipsed in the last few decades by Asian fusion and regional Chinese cooking.
Nunzio's Pizza Town, West Babylon
The family-owned pizzeria in West Babylon that had been in business for more than 50 years closed Nov. 1 after its owner Nunzio Minissale retired. Since 1967, the family had been creating pies, calzones and Italian American classics, from fried calamari and baked clams to eggplant rollatini, stuffed shells and homemade lasagna.
VILLAGE RESTAURANTS
The Whales Tale location in Northport has closed. Credit: Whales Tale
The Whales Tale, Northport
Northport’s popular waterside restaurant closed after 16 years as owner Sosh Andriano said he was not able to reach a renewal agreement on the lease. The closing came months after The Whales Tale opened a new outpost in the Hamptons.
The Cuban, Patchogue
The 154-seat restaurant that opened in the heart of Patchogue village in 2019 closed at the end of October. The eatery’s menu of Cuban and Latin-fusion fare included tableside guacamole and elaborate entertainment from live music and costumed dancers on Friday and Saturday nights. The Cuban's Garden City location remains open.
Finley's, Huntington
It was a rough year for Huntington restaurants, with closings including the longtime Red, the seafood specialist Neraki and House of India, among others. But after a three-decade run, the shuttering of the village's longtime watering hole Finley's was perhaps the largest blow. A pie specialist is hosting pop-ups this month, with plans for a full renovation of the space next year.
MALL RESTAURANTS
Havana Central offered outdoor dining at Roosevelt Field and hosted catered parties and events. The restaurant has closed. Credit: Newsday/Erica Marcus
Havana Central, Roosevelt Field
A lively staple at the mall since 2013, the Cuban restaurant closed abruptly in September with owner Jeremy Merrin citing a precipitous drop in business he attributed to ICE raids and the national political climate. "We are a Latino restaurant and, because of the ICE actions in recent months, I think a good part of our customer base feels that they don't want to go out and eat," Merrin said. The restaurant, he said, also never fully recovered from the post-COVID downturn.
Carpaccio, Walt Whitman Shops
The massive Italian restaurant named after the Italian crudo and owned by the Limani Hospitality Group, closed at the Huntington Station mall. This was the Limani Group’s first Italian concept — they also own Greek powerhouse Limani in Roslyn and Limani Grille in Commack — but the company's Limani Taverna also closed in Woodbury this year.
LAST CALL
Long Ireland Beer Company plans to close in Riverhead.
Long Ireland Brewing Company, Riverhead
New Year’s Eve will be the last service for Long Ireland Beer Company in Riverhead. Dan Burke and Greg Martin have been making beer since 2009 and, in 2011, they opened their brewery in an old Agway on Pulaski Street in Riverhead. Long Ireland was one of the North Fork’s first craft breweries.
Oak Chalet, Bellmore
One of Long Island's oldest German restaurants, Oak Chalet, has been serving the hearty foods of southern Germany's Bavaria region since 1981. But owner Gisela Wedel said after the death of her husband, Dieter Reinking, the family plans to sell the business and close on Jan. 4. Wedel said it's been very expensive to maintain the business and more difficult to find good staff. Many of Oak Chalet's employees have been working there for more than three decades, she said. And she's hoping the new owners of the business will find a way to keep them on.
Newsday's Melissa Azofeifa, Andi Berlin, Erica Marcus and Marie Elena Martinez contributed to this story.
