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New York’s restaurant scene is tough on even its most enduring institutions. Now Candle, the pioneering vegan restaurant that staged an unlikely comeback three years ago, is preparing to close once again.
Chef Jorge Pineda announced in an Instagram video that the restaurant will shut down at the end of September, citing rising operating costs, accumulated debt and an inability to attract outside investment. “Things are very expensive now,” Pineda said. “Food, gas, employees. I just want to say thank you to everybody, thank you for all the support. But sadly, we have to close. September will be our last month; we can’t afford any more.”
The closure marks another painful chapter for a restaurant whose roots reach back more than three decades. Joy Pierson and Bart Potenza opened the original Candle Cafe on Third Avenue in the early 1990s after reportedly winning more than $50,000 in the New York lottery. Its name came from the Healthy Candle, the couple’s vegetarian health-food store.
Long before cashew cheese and cauliflower steaks became ubiquitous on New York menus, Candle was making plant-based dining feel like an occasion. The original restaurant eventually expanded into a small vegan empire, including the more upscale Candle 79, which arrived in 2003, followed by Candle Cafe West in 2012. Diners came for dishes including seitan piccata, raw lasagna and chimichurri-topped seitan.
Then the candles began going out: Candle Cafe West closed in 2019 amid building-safety issues and Candle 79 followed later that year because of a real estate development. Candle Cafe East shut down after its building was sold in 2020.
In 2023, longtime Candle chefs Pineda and Angel Ramos revived the restaurant at a new Third Avenue location, building a greatest-hits menu from its earlier incarnations. At the time, Pineda described his ambition as creating a “Candle for the people.”
The comeback restored a piece of old-school vegan New York at a time when plant-based cooking had finally entered the mainstream. But the broader popularity of vegan food has not insulated dedicated restaurants from soaring labor, ingredient and occupancy costs. Candle joins a growing list of longtime plant-based spots struggling to remain open.
There is still a small glimmer of hope for Candle devotees. Pineda, who has spent nearly 30 years with the restaurant, did not rule out another return. “We’ll see where life takes us,” he said. “Hopefully, we’ll see you soon.”