On Friday the family who owns the property that features the beloved “Ada’s,” named after Ada Cantavero who ran a penny candy and newspaper shop there for many years, announced the property was for sale.
The property features a two-family house, in addition to the historic building that houses the eatery.
Greenwich Free Press chronicled the painstaking and historically accurate renovation of the “Ada’s” building that originally served as a post office during the town’s horse-and-buggy-days.
In 2016 the family rented it to Mike Pietrafeso for his Ada’s Coffee + Kitchen.
The property listed by Cheryl Makrinos of Sotheby’s for $3,250,000. It features an oversized ½ acre lot a stone’s throw from the Riverside Train Station.
In a press release on Friday, the family said they had not initially intended to sell the property.
This Place Matters Contest, 2017. Third place Finley Marshall and Lucinda McCall outside Ada’s in Riverside, Photo by: Carrie Wallace via Greenwich Historical Society
“Weeks ago, we all witnessed the social media buzz as news spread about the current chef and leasee of Ada’s Kitchen + Coffee moving on,” they wrote. “With that our family started to receive unsolicited phone calls about the availability of our beloved clapboard and gingerbread shingle building.”
They family said they were fully committed to signing a new tenant and delivering ’75-years of Ada’s in 2025,’ once they were approached, they began to rethink their plans.
“Before inking a private deal, we decided to publicly list the property for sale. The people of Riverside are extremely passionate about Ada’s, and we believe there is someone here in the community who will appreciate and nurture this property just as we have.”
The family said a sale would represent not just the end of an era, but the beginning of a new chapter for both their family and the property itself.
See also:
Ada’s Kitchen & Coffee on Riverside Ave to Close