In New York City, restaurants open and restaurants close. Some are in operation longer than others, making them iconic. So when they shutter, like Gray’s Papaya in the West Village abruptly did this week, people collectively mourn these establishments and use it as an opportunity to lament about gentrification, the dying of old New York, and how much better things were when the availability of cheap, late night hot dogs was more abundant. ANIMAL popped inside the storied fast food joint and documented its final moments. Check back every Friday for a new photo essay! (Photos: Aymann Ismail/ANIMALNewYork)
