Back Forty West - CLOSED
Back Forty West closed on July 16, 2016. Chef and Owner Peter Hoffman said that after Back Forty West bows out, he will start a sabbatical from the restaurant industry and is planning to work on a book.
Hoffman emailed his customers:
In addition to any activist work you might find me involved with, look forward to curated events, pop-ups, and more published prose from me. It’s not that running a restaurant is any more challenging today than it was when we took over an old luncheonette on a crack vial strewn block of not-really Soho in 1990, I am just less stimulated by the prospect of meeting those challenges. Writing a food memoir and deepening my relationships with the activist food community is what I have set my sights on.
And Hoffman detailed on his restaurant's website:
After 26 years on the corner of Prince and Crosby Streets, I am moving away from a bricks and mortar involvement with the restaurant business. July 16th will be our last day of service for Back Forty West. My interests have evolved over the past decades and so I am shifting my efforts beyond day-to-day operations of a food service business to work on broader food and agriculture issues. Since its inception Susan and I strove to build a passionate community of neighbors, patrons, employees and suppliers. We succeeded. That community has sustained us in myriad ways and we are deeply grateful. We are also proud of the cooks and service staff we mentored, of all the dollars we committed to purchasing local or sustainable ingredients, and of the memorable meals we cooked and orchestrated for thousands of diners who share our aesthetic and social values. These efforts have indelibly altered the food economy, shifted how we think about food and made us all healthier and happier people. In addition to any activist work you might find me involved with, look forward to curated events, pop-ups, and more published prose from me. It’s not that running a restaurant is any more challenging today than it was when we took over an old luncheonette on a crack vial strewn block of not-really Soho in 1990, I am just less stimulated by the prospect of meeting those challenges. Writing a food memoir and deepening my relationships with the activist food community is what I have set my sights on. Please stop by for a Back Forty cocktail or a meal and share some memories with us. Or post it on Fb. We’re happy to hear from you in any form.
Back Forty West will be Missed!
Back Forty West, known for amazing communal crab boils among many other events, will be deeply missed by NYC locals and tourists alike. Rest assured that the restaurant did not close from lack of customers.
Thanks for all the great meals and events Back Forty!