The NetCost supermarket at 1029 Brighton Beach Avenue, just east of Coney Island Avenue where Brighton Beach Avenues escapes from under the Brighton el (B, Q) into fresh air still bears the illuminated words “Theatre” on a marquee, which is unusual for a supermarket but not for a movie theater, which NetCost used to be.
The handsome Moderne building opened as the Oceana Theatre in 1934, with Joan Crawford in “Dancing Lady.” (Crawford did a number of musicals in her early career.) The independent movie house was taken over by the Century Theaters chain. By the 1970s it had been divided into 4 screens and later it was further divided into six screens. In the 2010s, it was no longer showing movies but became home to a number of different Russian supper clubs (the scene in Brighton Beach could be quite lively, I’m told) named the Atlantic Oceana and then the Millennium.
By 2016 NetCost, an upscale supermarket specializing in Eastern European and Russian gourmet goods, had moved into the space. Here’s a Yelp review:
I always stop by when I’m in the neighborhood, simply for their beautiful produce. Some highlights: Russian cucumbers, fresh dill, radish and heirloom tomatoes. They always have the best dark purple Washington cherries that crunch when you bite them, so sweet! There is an abundance of fruits that are difficult to find in most groceries like lychee, sour red and yellow cherries, mulberries, kumquats, and black plums. You can find dried barberries, good for heart health. Of course there is ajvar, and many jams. There are shelves of healthy fruit juices like sour cherry, elderberry, cornell cherry, these are all very high in antioxidants. I am happy that they have some packaged baked goods from Baku bakery (no shaker bura but they have the mutaki, which are similar). I treat myself to a little soda every now and then and they have the usual pear, and tarragon sodas. The freshly baked breads are a delight, so many dense dark seeded breads. Of course there are many Russian goods, and all very cheap.
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4/28/21