Haig Schneiderman, the owner of Knish Nosh in Rego Park, is thankful that no one was hurt while his shop was burglarized in the middle of the night on Tuesday, Feb. 22, and grateful for the community’s outpouring support and generosity as the shop looks to bounce back from the incident.
“What matters is that everyone is safe,” Schneiderman said.
Schneiderman runs the long-standing Jewish kosher shop, located at 98-104 Queens Blvd., with Chef Ana Vasilescu, making standard and cocktail-size knishes, latkes, pastries and more.
At around 5 a.m. on Wednesday, Schneiderman says he received a phone call from police officers at the NYPD 112th Precinct about the incident. According to police, an unknown individual broke the store’s front door and window with a concrete cinder block and entered the premises. The person stole a cash register containing approximately $100, police said.
It’s the second time this year someone has attempted to break into the shop, Schneiderman said.
“One guy was caught on camera. He came in front of the window and looked inside, then he disappeared and went around the side where they found the cinder blocks,” Schneiderman said. “They came back, and boom, they came in and grabbed the register and went out the door.”
Following the incident, Schneiderman replaced the broken glass door and window the next day. However, it took him a while to purchase a new register, he said.
“I couldn’t find registers anywhere, but I got lucky going to a Brooklyn register company, and found one there,” Schneiderman said.
In terms of safety, Schneiderman keeps pepper spray behind the counter and always locks the back door gate. He is also planning to install a gated door in front of the store.
Michael Perlman, who is the founder of the Rego-Forest Preservation Council, created a fundraiser on Facebook to support Schneiderman.
Currently, Perlman has raised $1,300. He hopes to hit $2,000.
“It’s a beautiful feeling of community and it shows how many people cherish Knish Nosh. They always give back to the neighborhood and certain people who contacted me aren’t even customers. They just felt passionate about supporting the cause,” Perlman said.
Vasilescu thanked the community for their outpouring support and generosity.
“When people heard what happened, they came out and helped. I thank everyone and god bless them all,” Vasilescu said.
Knish Nosh has an extensive history in the community. It was established in 1952 by its original owners, and Schneiderman, who has frequented the shop since 1976, purchased the spot in 2003.
The bakery is known for its delicious variety of knishes, as well as soups, salads and dishes such as stuffed cabbage and corned beef.
“Our customers are regulars that have come in over the years. It goes back to generations and now we have the kids coming in,” Schneiderman said. “We’re alive, well and focused.”
Moving forward, Schneiderman is looking to expand the business nationally, he said.
“Right now, we’re doing it in a small way. There’s a big demand for our product, and there’s not too many of us that make this type of thing,” Schneiderman said. “We’ve been very successful, and we love to make people very happy.”
