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Glace, a new Upper East Side ice cream shop, carries on the Zabar family tradition
(New York Jewish Week) — It’s not every day that a new ice cream parlor opens on the Upper East Side — much less a new, “French-inspired” scoop shop opened by the offspring of one the most famous Jewish families in New York’s culinary scene.
On a sunny Wednesday afternoon, Sasha Zabar launched his latest food venture: Glace, an ice cream parlor that boasts some 20 homemade flavors, including Pistachio White Chocolate and PB&J. He’s the grandson of Lillian and Louis Zabar, who founded the eponymous Upper West Side gourmet grocery and appetizing store in 1934, and the son of Eli Zabar, the Upper East Side restaurateur who has 10 different stores and eateries.
Motivated by the lack of ice cream options in the neighborhood, Sasha Zabar decided to open Glace. (Julia Gergely)
Within minutes of the opening of Glace — the French word for ice cream — a gaggle of high schoolers had already made it their mid-afternoon hangout spot, crowding around bright red outdoor dining tables.
“There’s really nowhere to get ice cream in the neighborhood,” Zabar, 31, told the New York Jewish Week as he scooped cups and cones from behind the counter for the steady trickle of customers. “I grew up here and there used to be a Ciao Bella on 92nd between Madison and Fifth. After that closed in 2010, I’ve always wanted another ice cream store nearby.”
Located at 1266 Madison Ave., Glace occupies the former location of the French gluten-free bakery Noglu, which is also operated by Eli and Sasha. The bakery moved to a larger location just a few doors down at the beginning of 2022.
And though the scoop shop’s small, bright pink storefront with just a few stools for indoor seating is a new, independent venture, Glace stays true to the space’s gluten-free roots: Noglu’s gluten-free brownies and cookies are incorporated into several flavors, and the housemade waffle cones are also gluten-free. Glace offers homemade soft serve, sorbet, sundaes and milkshakes, and liquid toppings like hot fudge and raspberry sauce.
The “Eton Mess,” a $12 sundae that includes vanilla ice cream, strawberry sorbet, strawberry jam, whipped cream and toasted almonds. (Julia Gergely)
“I did all the flavors, I designed the store, it’s my vision being executed with a little bit of Noglu and Eli’s influence. But it’s a separate business,” Zabar said when asked how he feels about carrying on the family tradition. “It feels good, but it’s different in many ways. I want it to be its own thing.”
Then again, Zabar’s desire to strike out on his own also has precedent in the family: His father Eli split from the original Upper West Side Zabar’s business in 1973 when he moved across the park to found gourmet food shop E.A.T. Sasha Zabar and his twin, Oliver, have been involved in their father’s food empire for half a decade, and have already launched a few of the brand’s businesses, including Eli’s Night Shift, a craft beer bar on 79th and Third Ave., and Devon, a Lower East Side restaurant and cocktail bar that closed in 2021.
Zabar noted that many of his 20-some flavors — including Toasted Almond, which is reminiscent of a “gourmet version of Good Humor bar,” Zabar said, and Banoffee, a banana and salted caramel flavor — are inspired by memories from a childhood filled with Jewish celebrations, although he has yet to focus on particularly “Jewish” flavor profiles (like the Chocolate Covered Caramel Matzoh Ice Cream sold at his father’s shop this Passover for $20 a pint). “I am mostly focused on good ingredients and good flavors,” he said.
On opening day — which Zabar referred to as “an early draft” — Zabar had already identified some changes he wanted to make. The ice cream was harder than he intended (a freezer temperature fix) and he wanted to reorganize the toppings — the jars of almonds, pistachios, sprinkles and honeycomb meringue weren’t as obviously displayed as he wanted them to be.
“There are still some things that may change,” he said, adding that he plans to rotate flavors and toppings weekly, depending on what’s in season and what’s popular. “I just want to get it up and running and we’ll see where it goes.”
Zabar scoops a mango sorbet for one of the shop’s first customers. (Julia Gergely)
As for Glace’s customers, none seemed to pick up on Zabar’s perceived missteps. Several Upper East Siders out walking their dogs or taking a stroll excitedly popped their heads in to see what was finally filling the space that had been vacant for a year. While many walked in with promises to come back soon, some purchased cones, others ordered scoops and one chic older woman even tried the “Mac-wich,” a scoop of ice cream sandwiched in between two homemade, gluten-free macarons.
“I have a lot of thoughts,” said Lily, a ninth grader from a nearby high school, who stopped by to try out a mango sorbet in a waffle cone. “I’m scared to go to Noglu because it’s so expensive; I don’t even want to ask for water. I’m glad there is somewhere else to go and I love the flavors.”
(For what it’s worth, a gluten-free croissant at Noglu will set you back $10.50. A small scoop at Glace costs $7 — the cones are an additional $3.)
Her friend Lauren, who is gluten-free, opted for a chocolate cone, telling the New York Jewish Week that Glace’s opening “is really special to me.”
“I love the aesthetic, the flavors are amazing, I haven’t had a cone in five years because I can never find a gluten-free one,” she said. “It shouldn’t be three extra dollars, but at the same time I’m willing to pay for it. It’s really good.”
The pair couldn’t talk long — they were rushing to finish their ice cream cones before they melted in the sunshine. Plus, their next class began in three minutes.
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The post Glace, a new Upper East Side ice cream shop, carries on the Zabar family tradition appeared first on Jewish Telegraphic Agency.
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NELLA MARGRITHE ESKIN NOVEMBER 14, 1946 – AUGUST 27, 2025
It is with great sorrow that the Eskin family reports the passing of Nella Margrithe Eskin, beloved wife and devoted partner of Michael Eskin, on August 27, 2025.
Nella, the only child of the late Kasiel and Rosa Kessler, Holocaust survivors, was born in a displaced persons camp in Fohrenwald, Germany, in 1946. The family first moved to Baltimore as refugees in 1949 before settling in Chicago, where Nella graduated from Roosevelt University with Bachelor of Science degree.
In 1969, she met Michael, and three months later they were married in Chicago in March 1970. They shared a wonderful marriage of over 55 years, during which they raised a family of four boys and created a home that was always full of song, food, guests and Yiddishkeit. Sadly, their eldest son, Katriel, passed away in 2015. Nella is survived by her other three sons, Josh, Ezra and Daniel, and their families as well as Katriel’s wife and family. She was a devoted wife, mother, and grandmother to her husband, sons, and ten grandchildren, and a loving daughter to her mother, Rosa, who passed away in 2020.
A lifelong scholar, she earned an MBA from the University of Manitoba in 1995. Nella was a very pious and learned woman who was also a wonderful artist, music lover, gardener and cook. She passed her love of music, art, storytelling and learning to her children, teaching each of them piano and instilling in them an enduring appreciation for the arts that continues to this day. She was an incredibly warm woman and made every gathering feel special, every guest feel valued, and every meal feel like a celebration of love and friendship.
She will be sorely missed by her husband, children, grandchildren, relatives in the UK, USA, Australia, and Israel, and many dear friends. Her kindness, curiosity, and love will live on in the many lives she touched. May her memory be
a blessing.
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VIDEO: Moishele Alfonso on the new book of I. L. Peretz stories for students
לכּבֿוד דער פּובליקאַציע פֿונעם ביכל „אויפֿן װעג: זיבן דערציילונגען פֿון י.־ל. פּרץ“ — אַ זאַמלונג ספּעציעל געמאַכט פֿאַר סטודענטן — קען מען איצט זען אַן אינטערוויו מיטן ייִדיש־לערער משהלע אַלפֿאָנסאָ, וואָס האָט פֿאַרקירצט און באַאַרבעט די דערציילונגען.
אין דעם אינטערוויו דערציילט אַלפֿאָנסאָ וועגן דעם פּראָצעס פֿון שאַפֿן דאָס ביכל, און לייענט געקליבענע אויסצוגן דערפֿון. דער אינטערוויו, געפֿירט פֿון אלי בענעדיקט, איז געשטיצט געוואָרן פֿון דער ייִדיש־ליגע, וואָס האָט אויך אַרויסגעגעבן דאָס לייענביכל.
דאָס נאָוואַטאָרישע ביכל גיט דעם לייענער אַ צוטריט צו קלאַסישע ייִדיש־דערציילונגען דורך אַ זײַט־בײַ־זײַטיקן גלאָסאַר, שמועס־פֿראַגעס און קלאַנג־רעקאָרדירונגען פֿון די מעשׂיות.
משהלע אַלפֿאָנסאָ איז אַ ייִדיש־לערער בײַם ייִדישן ביכער־צענטער זינט 2019. אין 2022 האָט ער, דורכן פֿאַרלאַג „אָלניאַנסקי־טעקסט“, טראַנסקריבירט און אַרויסגעגעבן יצחק באַשעוויסעס בוך „שׂונאים: די געשיכטע פֿון אַ ליבע“. דער ראָמאַן איז אַרויס אין המשכים אינעם פֿאָרווערטס אין 1966, און ס’איז דאָס ערשטע מאָל וואָס שׂונאים איז אַרויס אין בוכפֿאָרעם אויף ייִדיש.
דאָס ביכל קען מען באַשטעלן דאָ.
The post VIDEO: Moishele Alfonso on the new book of I. L. Peretz stories for students appeared first on The Forward.
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VIDEO: Peter, Paul and Mary’s “Light One Candle” — in Yiddish
If, like me, you enjoy listening to old recordings of the iconic folk group Peter, Paul and Mary, you may want to check this out: a new Yiddish version of their Hanukkah song “Light One Candle,” sung by another talented trio — Rabbi Avram, Elisha and Sarah Mlotek. (A transliteration of the lyrics appears beneath the video below.)
The three siblings are the grown children of Zalmen Mlotek, musician and director of the Yiddish National Theater Folksbiene, and his wife, Debbie Mlotek. Rabbi Avram is a writer, Elisha is a filmmaker and Sarah is studying music at a conservatory in Israel — and just became a mom.
Their singing is backed up by C. Joseph Lanzbom on guitar and Elisha on percussion.
The original song, which was written by Peter Yarrow, became an anthem for the Soviet Jewry movement in the 1980s, symbolizing their struggle for freedom. It was translated into Yiddish by the theater producer Moishe Rosenfeld and Avram Mlotek.
“‘Light One Candle’ was one of our Bubbe’s favorite songs every time we got together for a Hanukkah sing-along,” Avram said. Their Bubbe was the renowned scholar of Yiddish song, Chana Mlotek. For many years, she and her husband, the Yiddish cultural activist Yosl Mlotek, ran a column about Yiddish songs and poetry in the Forward.
Although Hanukkah is still a month away, Bubby Chana’s grandchildren had a meaningful reason for publishing it now: This week marks her yortzeit.
TRANSLITERATION
Eyn likht shaynt far di heldishe kinder
A dank vos dos likht geyt nit oys
Eyn likht shaynt far di payn un di laydn
Di sakone’z geven azoy groys
Eyn likht flakert far korbones un laydn
Az yoysher un frayhayt zol zayn
Eyn likhtl flakert far khokhme un visn
Far frayhayt un sholem zol zayn.
Lesht nit di likhtlekh oys!
Zey flakern shoyn doyres-lang
Lesht nit di likhtlekh oys!
Balaykhtn durkh undzer gezang!
Eyn likht flakert tsu gebn undz koyekh
Az eybik mir’n blaybn getray
Eyn likht flakert far mentshn vos laydn
Oykh mir zenen nisht geven fray
Eyn likhtl flakert far zise khaloymes
Tseteyln zol undz nisht der kas
Un eyn likhtl flakert tsu haltn tsuzamen
Mit sholem un mer nisht kayn has
Lesht nit di likhtlekh oys!
Zey flakern shoyn doyres-lang
Lesht nit di likhtlekh oys!
Balaykhtn durkh undzer gezang!
Vos iz di mayse vos iz azoy tayer
Vos lebt eybik in undzer flam?
Vos iz di shvue tsu fargangene doyres
Az es lebt undzer folk, undzer am?
Mir kumen, mir geyen, mir hofn, mir gloybn
Az yoysher vet vern der klal
Dos iz der viln, dos iz di shvue
A shenere velt iberal!
Lesht nit di likhtlekh oys!
Zey flakern shoyn doyres-lang
Lesht nit di likhtlekh oys!
Balaykhtn durkh undzer gezang!
The post VIDEO: Peter, Paul and Mary’s “Light One Candle” — in Yiddish appeared first on The Forward.