A little slice of Old New York is coming back to life on the Upper East Side.
Flex Mussels is a popular seafood restaurant based on the Upper East Side. The restaurant was established by owners Bobby and Laura Shapiro and their daughter Alexandra in 2009 and earned critical praise for its rich broth and fresh Prince Edward Island mussels. The original location operated for nearly a decade at 174 East 82nd Street but sadly closed in 2020 when a tragic fire devastated the building. Two years later though, the Shapiros were able to expand to a larger flagship location at 1431 Third Avenue, in the former Beyoglu space.
Today, Flex Mussels is operating smoothly and winning the hearts of neighborhood locals who are thrilled to have Flex back. For the near future though, Alexandra Shapiro has something special planned for their original location on East 82nd Street. After the fire ravaged the original building, Alexandra discovered a matchbook for an old restaurant called Hoexters (pronounced Hexters), which was established by her father, Bobby in 1977. Now that Flex Mussles is back on track in a brand-new location, Alexandra is now getting ready to reopen Hoexter’s in their former Flex space at 174 East 82nd Street.
Shapiro told Community Board 8 in a committee meeting that “I’ve kind of made it my life’s mission to find old relics from his projects in the past”, adding that she envisions the Hoexter’s revival as a “real Old New York neighborhood place… the kind of place you can sit at the bar and have a great martini and a shrimp cocktail and a burger, but also have a really delicious steak in the back.” Shapiro additionally notes that Hoeter’s design will be “classy but approachable” and will focus on being “a great place for the neighborhood.”
In its prime, Hoexter’s was well-known among locals as one of the go-to spots in the neighborhood. A 1978 New York Times review describes the restaurant’s food as having “very good ingredients” and being “very well bandied”, describing the bread in particular as “irresistible.” Special praise was placed on the meat dishes, which were sourced directly from the Shapiros’ Hoexter’s Meat Market on Lexington Avenue.
According to Shapiro, she hopes to have the new restaurant open to the public as early as Summer 2023, though those plans aren’t set in stone. Hoexter’s will initially operate from 4:00 PM – 12:00 AM daily, but plans are in place to eventually incorporate a brunch program. For more information as the restaurant develops, you can follow Hoexter’s recently launched Instagram page.
