{"id":159283,"date":"2026-03-10T15:54:31","date_gmt":"2026-03-10T15:54:31","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ny\/159283\/"},"modified":"2026-03-10T15:54:31","modified_gmt":"2026-03-10T15:54:31","slug":"normas-corner-shoppe-to-close-down-by-end-of-march-after-14-years-as-a-popular-ridgewood-gathering-spot-qns","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ny\/159283\/","title":{"rendered":"Norma\u2019s Corner Shoppe to close down by end of March after 14 years as a popular Ridgewood gathering spot \u2013 QNS"},"content":{"rendered":"<p>\t\t\t\t<img width=\"1200\" height=\"900\" src=\"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ny\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/03\/IMG_1441_1772566895423-1.jpg\" class=\"crop-center wp-post-image\" alt=\"IMG_1441_1772566895423\" decoding=\"async\" fetchpriority=\"high\"  \/>\t\t\t<\/p>\n<p>Courtesy of Norma\u2019s Corner Shoppe<\/p>\n<p>Norma\u2019s Corner Shoppe, the popular caf\u00e9 in <a href=\"https:\/\/qns.com\/neighborhoods\/ridgewood\/\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\" target=\"_blank\">Ridgewood<\/a> that\u2019s been a neighborhood cornerstone for 14 years, announced that it will close at the end of this month \u2014 allegedly due to persistent complications with its electric kitchens.<\/p>\n<p>After almost a year of working with Con Edison and licensed electricians to figure out the cause, Norma\u2019s owners stated that it is no longer feasible to remain open until this summer, the estimated time when experts believe the problem will be solved.<\/p>\n<p>The owners, Crystal Williams and Denise Plowman, confirmed the decision to QNS. They say they have already alerted staff that Norma\u2019s Ridgewood location at 59-02 Catalpa Ave. will serve its last customers on March 29, as the sudden onslaught of electrical equipment malfunctions has adversely impacted the business.<\/p>\n<p>Norma\u2019s has been a popular Ridgewood caf\u00e9 since Plowman and Williams, both single mothers, used their personal savings and opened the store in 2012. Named for Williams\u2019 late grandmother, the shop started with a \u201cDIYed\u201d counter to sell espresso and pastries, eventually growing and expanding to another location in the Hudson Valley in 2022.<\/p>\n<p>Since opening, Norma\u2019s has expanded to offer a wider variety of food and drinks and upgraded its equipment to keep up with demand.<br \/>\n<img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"size-medium wp-image-601925\" src=\"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ny\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/03\/IMG_4440_1772566912279-1.jpg\" alt=\"\" width=\"525\" height=\"700\"  \/>Courtesy of Norma\u2019s Corner Shoppe\n<\/p>\n<p>While Norma\u2019s hasn\u2019t officially issued a public statement announcing the closure, rumors spread on social media after two former employees alleged that managers were receiving tips intended for employees. Williams stated that Norma\u2019s pays all employees over the minimum wage plus the full tips owed; neither employee who made the allegation responded for comment.<\/p>\n<p><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"size-full wp-image-601926\" src=\"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ny\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/03\/IMG_5958_1772566901767-1.jpg\" alt=\"A Con Edison emergency service truck parked out front of Norma's Corner Shoppe.\" width=\"1024\" height=\"768\"  \/>A Con Edison emergency service truck parked out front of Norma\u2019s Corner Shoppe. Courtesy of Norma\u2019s Corner Shoppe<\/p>\n<p>Williams did not want the situation to overshadow the closure, and reiterated her gratitude to the neighborhood and community, focusing instead on the many good years spent in Ridgewood.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cWe aren\u2019t focusing on any sadness. We want to express our gratitude [to Ridgewood] for the time we\u2019ve been gifted. We know we are lucky to have had the years we\u2019ve had,\u201d Williams said. \u201cRidgewood has been unbelievably supportive of us over the years, and we\u2019ve made beautiful memories. We want to cherish and honor those.\u201d<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"Courtesy of Norma\u2019s Corner Shoppe Norma\u2019s Corner Shoppe, the popular caf\u00e9 in Ridgewood that\u2019s been a neighborhood cornerstone&hellip;\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":159284,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[36],"tags":[98,100,99,1417,310,9,24,65682,65683,63,10100],"class_list":["post-159283","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","category-brooklyn","tag-brooklyn","tag-brooklyn-headlines","tag-brooklyn-news","tag-closure","tag-daily-newsletter","tag-new-york","tag-new-york-city","tag-normas","tag-normas-corner-shoppe","tag-nyc","tag-ridgewood-newsletter"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ny\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/159283","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ny\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ny\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ny\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ny\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=159283"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ny\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/159283\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ny\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/159284"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ny\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=159283"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ny\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=159283"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ny\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=159283"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}