Gothamist
A non-profit newsroom, powered by WNYC.
Gothamist
Listen Live
Food
Guss' Pickles' Proud Name Will Die In The Move
By
John Del Signore
Published Jul 31, 2009
Modified Jul 31, 2009
Share
FacebookTwitterRedditEmail
Never miss a story
Email address
By submitting your information, you're agreeing to receive communications from New York Public Radio in accordance with our Terms .
By
John Del Signore
Published Jul 31, 2009
Modified Jul 31, 2009
Share
FacebookTwitterRedditEmail
We rely on your support to make local news available to all
Make your contribution now and help Gothamist thrive in 2026. Donate today
Gothamist is funded by sponsors and member donations
Not only will pickle purveyor Guss' Pickles be moving from its longtime Lower East Side home to Brooklyn, but it'll be losing its name, too! Co-owner Pat Fairhurst has revealed that according to the terms of a prior lawsuit settlement, she's required to relinquish the name if she does pickle business anywhere else. It's a little complicated, but in 2006 Fairhurst got into a legal fight over the Guss' name with Steve and Andrew Leibowitz, a father-son team who run United Pickle in the Bronx and tried to open up a pickle shop named Guss' on Long Island. Lawsuits and counter-lawsuits ensued, with both parties asserting their right to the Guss' legacy—which stretches back to Isidor Guss, a Polish immigrant who sold pushcart pickles and later opened up the LES shop. But Fairhurst, who has owned Guss' since 2004, doesn't seem worried about dropping the historic name; she tells the Daily News, "It doesn't matter what our name is. People are going to know where I'm going. I'll put whatever I want on the sign, and they'll still come because it's our pickles they want."
Tagged
borough park
guss
Lower East Side
move
name
pickles
John Del Signore
Originally from the Albany area, John Del Signore has called NYC home since 1995. In addition to his thousands of meticulously-crafted bespoke blog posts for Gothamist, his writing has also been published in The Awl, Deadspin, The Nervous Breakdown, and performed at The Brick Theater in Brooklyn.
Read more
Gothamist is funded by sponsors and member donations
Gothamist is funded by sponsors and member donations
MORE food
Where are the cheapest drinks in NYC? A new report details the city's average prices.
The median price of a cocktail in the city is now $16, and $9 for a draft beer.
By
Hannah Frishberg
Published Oct 19, 2026
North African restaurants are rare in NYC. These 10 are the best.
Egyptian, Moroccan, Algerian and Tunisian food is delicious but underrepresented in the city.
By
Robert Sietsema
Food
North African restaurants are rare in NYC. These 10 are the best.
Egyptian, Moroccan, Algerian and Tunisian food is delicious but underrepresented in the city.
By
Robert Sietsema
10 dishes that demonstrate the delicious diversity of curry in New York City
By
Robert Sietsema
Frozen yogurt is back in New York City. So are the super long lines.
By
Sonia Rao
5 NYC banana puddings as good as Magnolia's
By
Hannah Frishberg
Never miss a story
Catch up on the most important headlines with a roundup of essential NYC stories, delivered to your inbox daily.
Sign upEmail address
By submitting your information, you're agreeing to receive communications from New York Public Radio in accordance with our Terms .