It’s pretty cool when a local business beats out a chain, so we have to give some props to Cafe Grumpy, which will be taking over the Starbucks location on the east side of Grand Central. Sources told the Huffington Post that Starbucks’ lease was up and apparently the the MTA has a policy of not allowing big chain stores to apply for a new one. “It’s part of our effort to keep the space unique,” an MTA spokesperson said.
Off course, HuffPo also mentioned that Grumpy is where Hannah from GIRLS works as a barista (their headline is “Starbucks loses to Hipster Coffee Shop”). The Greenpoint location might even be featured in a future GIRLS bus tour (queue projectile vomit), but hey, if it helps the business, we’re not ones to argue because their coffee is good.
Apparently Starbucks still has a store in the west side of Grand Central, but progress is progress.