Oren’s Daily Roast departed from 28 (or 31, depending on the source) Waverly Place before 2019, so we can’t blame the closure of this coffee place across from Washington Square Park on Covid.
But the fact that a new occupant for the ground-floor space in this lovely 1930 apartment building hasn’t moved in yet might be coronavirus-related. (It’s not the best time to open a business, unfortunately.)
In the meantime, the faded lettering of a previous tenant’s sign has come back into view—the Waverly Smoke Shop.
The name has an old New York ring to it; I can imagine cigar store Native American statues guarding the door. (Alas, I don’t see any in this 1940 tax photo of the corner of the building.)
But the shop existed until at least 1991, when the New York Daily News noted that the store had become popular because it carried the NYU tank top Ellen Barkin’s character wore in the movie Switch.
Now, if only I could make out the faded outline of the store sign next door. It looks like “Eing—” and then I just can’t figure out the letters.
[Third image: NYC Department of Records and Information Services]
Tags: 28 Waverly Place, 31 Waverly Place, Faded Signs Waverly Place, faded store signs NYC, Old Signs Greenwich Village, One University Place, Waverly Smoke Shop Sign
Ephemeral New York 
September 28, 2020 at 10:35 am |
Lingerie?
September 28, 2020 at 11:52 am |
that’s so cool to find that old lettering, I hope the mystery gets solved
September 28, 2020 at 1:51 pm |
The faded letters look like “lingerie” to me. Not smoke shop-related. Maybe from an earlier shop?
September 28, 2020 at 2:07 pm |
Is the sign SINGER, perhaps sewing machines??
Heather Hellman Principal
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September 28, 2020 at 2:27 pm |
Definitely “Singer.” Perhaps a sewing machine image or Singer logo to the right?
September 28, 2020 at 2:53 pm |
Eing, perhaps the first part of the last name “Eingber”. Ingber is a common last name in NYC, so the Waverly Place ignorance could be an alternate spelling
September 28, 2020 at 4:27 pm |
Maybe it spells lingerie.
Judith
On Mon, Sep 28, 2020, 3:04 AM Ephemeral New York wrote:
> ephemeralnewyork posted: “Oren’s Daily Roast departed from 28 (or 31, > depending on the source) Waverly Place before 2019, so we can’t blame the > closure of this coffee place across from Washington Square Park on Covid. > But the fact that a new occupant for the ground-floor space in” >
September 28, 2020 at 4:28 pm |
Maybe it spells Lingerie.
September 28, 2020 at 6:59 pm |
I thought it spelled “Singer” as well, but I definitely like the idea that a lingerie shop was next door to the smoke shop!
September 29, 2020 at 4:24 am |
Maybe it says “ZINGER”?
September 29, 2020 at 9:46 am |
The endless uncovering of old store front signs brings back NYC romantic nostalgia past. I wonder what will be said 100 years from now when they uncover old Starbuck’s, Duane Reade and Banking signs?
September 30, 2020 at 12:47 am |
I think they’ll wonder why we were so obsessed with overpriced coffee!
February 14, 2021 at 5:50 pm |
Definitely says “Singer” – possibly sewing machines?
May 27, 2021 at 9:43 pm |
My father lived on the 19th floor in that building (1 University Place) for a little over 30 years.
November 29, 2021 at 12:00 pm |
Has to be “Singer.”
January 6, 2022 at 12:35 am |
Not “Singer” because there’s an “L” in front of it. Also, “singer” wouldn’t be centered in the space. There has to be at least 2 more letters for it to fit.