Binghamton’s Iconic Sharkey’s Restaurant Building Sold

The site of the now-closed Sharkey’s Bar & Grill in Binghamton has been acquired more than two years after it was put on the market.

The popular First Ward restaurant closed its doors in November 2020, almost 73 years after it opened on Glenwood Avenue.

Co-owner JoAnn Sharak said the transaction was completed last week. In discussing the sale, she said “it’s a mixed feeling… but everything has to end.”

The building housing the restaurant and an adjacent parking lot on Hazel Street were sold to Maria Houmbavlis. She has operated Piccolo’s Cafe on Main Street on the city’s West Side for many years. Reached at that business Tuesday afternoon, Houmbavlis said it hasn’t been determined what will be done with the former Sharkey’s property.

Peter and Victoria Sharak opened Sharkey’s in December 1947. The place became noted for its spiedies, city chicken and clams.

JoAnn Sharak has plenty of fond memories of Sharkey’s. It’s where she met Larry, her future husband of her in the late 1960s when she stopped in with a few friends.

In recent years, JoAnn operated Sharkey’s with her sister-in-law Marie. After coping with a Covid-19 shutdown and other challenges during 2020, they decided it was time to retire.

They had hoped to sell Sharkey’s to someone who would continue to operate the establishment in the tradition set by the Sharak family over the years. They were unable to find a new owner who would do that.

Now, the future of the site where Sharkey’s stood for nearly three-quarters of a century is uncertain.

Contact WNBF News reporter Bob Joseph: bob@wnbf.com. For breaking news and updates on developing stories, follow @BinghamtonNow on Twitter.