Published Jan. 21, 2016
There have been many changes to the Nassau Street restaurant landscape, with the 56-year-old Carousel becoming the latest eatery to close. It will be replaced by a chain restaurant, one of several that have opened in recent years. Here’s a snapshot of selected eating spots along Nassau Street, past and present.
RENWICK’S (CLOSED)
50 Nassau St.
1901–1970
Now: Ralph Lauren
Known as Wicks — and located at various locations along Nassau Street in its 70-year history — this Princeton landmark started as an ice cream parlor and hosted hamburger-eating contests in the ’50s.
ZORBA’S BROTHER
80 Nassau St.
Opened 2003
This classic Greek diner serves salads and souvlaki to its many fans, including members of the University’s staff.
THE BALT (CLOSED)
82 Nassau St.
1920s–1963
Now: Paper Source
This tiled-wall classic (full name: the Baltimore Dairy Lunch) was a student haunt for more than four decades. Now it’s a fancy stationery shop.
LAHIERE’S (CLOSED)
5 Witherspoon St.
1919–2010
Now: vacant
Albert Einstein ate lunch here, and it was the place your parents took you for shrimp cocktail and rack of lamb when they visited. It closed in 2010. No word on what will replace it.
STARBUCKS
100 Nassau St.
Opened 1996
The coffee mecca competes with local favorite Small World Coffee on Witherspoon Street.
MASSIMO’S
110 Nassau St.
Opened 1973
Decorated in orange and black — and festooned with banners from Princeton and its Ivy League brethren — Massimo’s dishes up pizza and pasta to hungry students.
THE ANNEX (CLOSED)
128 Nassau St.
1930s–2006
Now: Princeton Sports Bar & Grill (shown above)
The beloved Annex — with its stained-glass roaring tiger and old football-team photos — was replaced first with Italian restaurant Sotto, and is now a burger-and-nacho joint.
PANERA BREAD
136 Nassau St.
Opened 2001
This spot finds students munching muffins and checking email using the free Wi-Fi.
TRIUMPH BREWING COMPANY
138 Nassau St.
Opened 1995
Behind the lively bar — a favorite hangout for Princeton staffers — is the seven-barrel, stainless-steel brewery where craft beers are made.
QDOBA MEXICAN GRILL
140 Nassau St.
Opened 2011
This newcomer — a national chain — dishes out huge burritos to students on a budget.
PJ’S PANCAKE HOUSE
154 Nassau St.
Opened 1962
Students huddle in line under heat lamps on weekends; once inside, they carve their names in the wooden tables, if they can find an empty spot.
NAKED PIZZA
180 Nassau St.
Opened 2011
This chain calls its pizza “all-natural” with “no freaky chemicals”; students perch on outside benches, since there’s no seating.
CAROUSEL (CLOSED)
182 Nassau St.
1955–2011
Opening spring 2012: Cheeburger Cheeburger
A favorite of Cornel West *80 and other faculty members, this breakfast-all-day diner — known for the carousel horses in the window and originally located farther east on Nassau Street — is giving way to a burger chain with a ’50s motif.
GREENLINE DINER (DESTROYED)
179 Nassau St.
1981–1990
This natural-foods restaurant — later known as the American Diner — was destroyed by a spectacular fire in 1990.
ZORBA’S GRILL
183 Nassau St.
Opened 1990
Outdoor tables make this Greek takeout spot a draw on sunny days.
HOAGIE HAVEN
242 Nassau St.
Opened early 1970s
The ultimate student hangout, known for serving the cheapest, greasiest sandwiches around; there are crowds here at 2 a.m. Says James Paddon ’88: “Anyone who does not say Hoagie Haven (is their favorite place to eat in Princeton) should have their degree revoked.”
Tell us about your favorite place to eat in Princeton, then and now, in the comments section below.
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4 Responses
Sutherland McColley
3 Years AgoI enjoyed reading your article of Feb. 8, 2012, “Off Campus Eateries.”
I saw no mention of one you missed, Viette’s, where I remember eating olive sandwiches — of all things! There was nothing on them even in Google. Help!
Dennis Grubbs ’63
8 Years AgoReference: the comment about Hoagie Haven in the in caption accompanying the Feb. 8 Campus Notebook article on “Off-campus eateries” – anyone whose Hoagie Haven hanging-out precluded pronoun proficiency should surely have “his or her” degree revoked.
Colin McAneny ’52
8 Years AgoBrowsing through the Feb. 8 issue of PAW, I happened on the two-page pictorial spread, “Off-campus eateries: Here today, chain tomorrow?” Talk about memories!
I was a “townie,” although I lived on campus during my four undergraduate years. So my acquaintance with Renwick’s and the Balt went back many years. The Balt was kind of a quick-and-dirty joint – not dirty, really, but not the place where you’d take friends from out of town to impress them. Renwick’s, though, was the kind of place where you took a girl – maybe one you’d met in dancing class – to make at least a non-negative impression.
When I accepted my diploma in June 1952, I embarked on a life not lived in Princeton. But the memory of those early years lived in Princeton had sunk in to stay forever. Renwick’s and the Balt were unforgettable elements in that set of memories.
Anonymous
8 Years AgoCoverage of the changing Nassau Street restaurant scene in the Feb. 8 issue brought suggestions from readers about favorites that PAW omitted:
H.W. MATALENE ’58 remembered “the first chili-and-onion-adorned hot dogs in my experience” at the G&L on Witherspoon Street. “Particularly late at night, the G&L attracted undergrads with Bohemian proclivities, notably Frank Stella ’58.”
RUSS STRATTON ’60 suggested “another oldie on Nassau Street, Viedt’s, run by Mr. Goldstein, where I used to take my homesickness with breakfast during my first year.”
BILL ROSENBLATT ’83 said Iano’s Rosticceria should have been listed: “To those of us who were there during the ’80s, it was Victor’s. They served much the same fare as Hoagie Haven, but their location made them much more popular. In those days, Hoagie Haven was mostly a hangout for students at the nearby EQuad.”
For SUN-YOUNG PARK ’03, “My freshman year revolved around Einstein’s Bagels (since taken over by Zorba’s Brother). I will never understand why they deserted me.”