Stanley Zabar, principal owner of Zabar’s, the iconic Jewish deli on Manhattan’s Upper West Side, which his parents founded in 1934, died on Monday. He was 94.
On Tuesday, the eatery stated that Zabar was a “quiet force behind our family business.”
“Stanley spent decades working with his brother Saul to build upon and carry forward the vision of their parents, Louis and Lillian Zabar,” it said. “Often working behind the scenes, Stanley’s legal and financial acumen was vital in shaping Zabar’s into a beloved New York City institution.”
Zabar’s noted the philanthropy of Stanley and his wife, Judith, including “generously supporting Hunter College, the New York Public Library, Symphony Space, NYU Langone Health and the Careers through Culinary Arts Program.”
“Stanley’s greatest devotion was to his family,” it said. “A lifelong New Yorker, he and Judith raised their family on the Upper West Side, deeply embedded in the neighborhood that generations of Zabars have called home.”
“He will be remembered for the business he helped build, the countless opportunities he created for others and his unwavering dedication to his family and community,” it said.
Julie Menin, first Jewish speaker of the New York City Council, thanked Zabar “for the bagels, the babka and the sense of belonging you and your family have given Upper West Siders for decades.”
“May his memory be a blessing,” she wrote.
