the staff of the Ridgewood blog
Teaneck NJ, the Ridgewood blog had previously reported that Bischoff’s Ice Cream on 468 Cedar Lane ,Teaneck closed after 88 years:
Posted on the Bischoff’s Ice Cream Facebook page on May 10th :
Hey, friends… we have some news…
We’re coming back.
On May 26, after almost six agonizing months without Bischoff’s ice cream, we will reopen our doors. You won’t believe what we have in store for you.
As of now, we’re planning to be open for 15 weeks, from Memorial Day weekend to Labor Day, on a pop-up, takeout-only basis.
If things go the way we hope, we’ll shut down in September and then begin a complete renovation of the restaurant, with the goal of reopening in Spring 2024. This will be a reimagined Bischoff’s, rooted in its rich history, but ready for another 90 years in the center of town. A true community space with a revamped restaurant and a full-on coffee shop.
For that to happen, we’re going to need your help.
Here’s what you need to know for now:
While owner Steven Mather fires up the ice cream machines in the basement, he’ll be handing the keys to the kitchen over to the celebrated Rony Alvarado of Rony’s Rockin’ Grill in Bergenfield. (Don’t worry, rockers: the grill isn’t going anywhere. Rony can multitask.)
Chef Rony’s fans know why his burgers were rated the No. 1 in the state by the The Record newspaper, and why his restaurant is perennially listed in 201 Magazine’s “Best of Bergen.”
During the 15 weeks of the pop-up, Rony will be serving a limited menu, with classic sliders, his own special sliders, veggie burgers, hot dogs, and… French fries and onion rings. Yes, you can finally get fries at Bischoff’s.
We’ll also be sponsoring events in the courtyard over the summer, teaming up with youth and community organizations to bring the whole town together. It will be a taste of the future Bischoff’s.
What will Bischoff’s become if we’re able to raise the money we need to reopen in the Spring?
* A stunning, completely renovated restaurant, with Steve’s ice cream and Rony’s food.
* A full coffee bar. The candy counters are already gone and in their place will be the space you’ve long wanted in Teaneck: a place to bring a laptop or a book and enjoy coffee and tea drinks while snacking on pastries from local bakers.
* A true community space worthy of Teaneck’s artistic legacy, with a stage and sound system. We’ll host music and arts events for people of all ages and talent levels, from the beginners to the pros.
How did we get here?
When Steve and his mom, Anita, announced they were closing in December, they thought this was really it. Their fourth-generation family business, which opened in New York in 1890 and moved to Teaneck in 1934, was a victim of time, a changing marketplace, and the pandemic.
As thousands of Bischoff’s fans came to say goodbye and stock up on as much ice cream as they could carry, they kept asking versions of the same question: “Isn’t there some way…?”
A group of Steve’s friends, all local dads and longtime Bischoff’s fanatics, wondered the same thing. But they quickly recognized it would take something radical.
On a cold December morning, hours before Bischoff’s was due to open, the team gathered at the restaurant—Chef Rony, Ed Pierce, a Broadway show designer, and T.J. Quinn, an investigative reporter with ESPN–and pitched their vision to Steven and his mother, Anita. Maybe there was a way…
What if… Rony came in as a partner to take over the kitchen? With a new menu that reflected that balance of past and future, providing some old favorites, but with his signature sauces and spices?
What if… they ripped out the 50-year-old candy counters and replaced them with a coffee bar?
What if… They could raise the money to give the restaurant the total renovation Steve had dreamed about for years, taking it out of the ‘90s and bringing back the feel from the ’30s?
And what if… the new partners could help Steve turn Bischoff’s into something more than a restaurant?
What if it could be a true community space for Teaneck, a town with unmatched diversity and an unmatched history as a home for artists? It would be a Bischoff’s with a stage, lights, and top-flight sound system.
A place where middle school musicians could show off to their families and neighbors.
Where a 10-year-old guitar student could find the courage to play in front of a crowd for the first time.
Where a fourth-grade art class could show off its work and see it on display for a month.
Where a high school student could recite her original poem.
Where t-ball players could eat sundaes at a table next to the high school basketball team.
And where, as always, a family could celebrate every event with the same legendary ice cream North Jersey residents have enjoyed since Babe Ruth was still in pinstripes.
An exhausted Steve listened. The idea was overwhelming, but it also fit with what he had long wanted for the restaurant himself. He was also a longtime friend and fan of Rony’s and loved the idea of teaming up. On that December morning, Steve said he needed to focus on closing Bischoff’s at the end of month, and then take serious time to explore whether it would be worth the time and effort.
Six weeks later, Steve called T.J. and said, “Let’s try.” The team threw itself into weeks of research, exploration and meetings. Ed went to work designing a pop-up worthy of a Broadway opening.
Every time they shared their vision—Steve’s ice cream, Rony’s food, a full coffee shop, a community space—the response was the same: how could you not? Finally the four men agreed: there was a way.
We have several goals for the pop-up: first, we want ice cream. We need ice cream. But we’re also buying time to raise money and show potential investors and patrons what their support can help build.
You’ll be able to walk in, order a favorite scoop, or try a new one. You can get a package, maybe two Rony’s sliders with a side of fries and a pint of chocolate fudge brownie to go. You can come see the vision for the new Bischoff’s.
How Can You Help?
We quickly raised the money to reopen for the summer, but we need your help for the full vision to take life. We’ll have two ways to invest, the first for larger contributors, the second for the hundreds of people who asked if they could contribute to a fund to keep Bischoff’s alive. We’ll have more information in the coming weeks.
If we get the support we think we’ll have, then we’ll have the money and the mojo to reopen for good in the Spring.
If we fall short, we’ll know we gave it everything we had.
But we have a feeling we’ll see you again in the Spring.
The Team
Steven Mather is the owner and face of Bischoff’s, the great grandson of Albert Bischoff, who immigrated from Germany and opened his first store in New York in 1890. Steve is the man who makes the ice cream that made Bischoff’s one of GQ Magazine’s “10 Ice Cream Shops You Need To Visit” in the United States. He’s partial to chocolate fudge brownie.
Rony Alvarado is the owner of Rony’s Rockin’ Grill, voted as having the best burgers in New Jersey by the The Record newspaper and a perennial winner of 201 Magazine’s “Best of Bergen.” He’s a black raspberry fiend.
Ed Pierce is a TONY-nominated Broadway show designer, the owner of Ed Pierce Studios in New York City, and a longtime Teaneck resident. He’s a mint chocolate chip man.
T.J. Quinn is a reporter for ESPN, a longtime Teaneck resident, and the father of three Teaneck High School grads. Like Steve, he’s also a chocolate fudge brownie maven.
Yay!