RIP, Assouline & Roth?
The gourmet grocery seems to be out of business.
Philly caviar-pusher Assouline & Roth seems to be gone.
The phone is shut off, the business at 2050 Richmond St. is dark, and an e-mail sent from its Web site bounced. A rep of the company hosting its Web domain said it was out of business
Joel Assouline started the gourmet grocery, previously and more popularly known as Assouline & Ting, in 1980 in the basement of his Center City apartment building. He converted a black VW bug into a "mini-truck," from which he delivered smoked salmon and caviar to a handful of area restaurants. (Ting was an old buddy and never had an interest in the business.)
After many years at Third and Brown, and briefly on Delaware Avenue, it moved to Fifth and Vine a few years ago.
There was a shop in the Fourth Arrondissement in Paris for a spell, as well as stands in Liberty Place and Philadelphia International Airport.
Assouline sold the business last year.