Brasserie Persil closing in Oceanside

Brasserie Persil will serve its last coq au vin next week. Sixteen years after it opened on Long Beach Road in Oceanside, owner Hasan Balkas is bidding customers adieu on Sept. 14.

"It’s not just one reason," Balkas said. "It’s so many things together." Like many other owners who have recently made the difficult decision to close, he cited the economy and the rising cost of doing business. But his location — an unprepossessing storefront on a busy stretch of Long Beach Road — presented a special challenge:

"I can’t really be a high end restaurant here in Oceanside," he said. "I didn’t want to price myself out of reach of my customers so I haven’t raised prices in the last three years. And my profit margin just can’t support that."

Hasan bought Persil (French for "parsley") in 2012, four years after it was opened by Peter Oktas and the chef, Julio Velasquez. This was a second venture for the partners, who opened Sage Bistro in Bellmore (2006-2019), Sage Bistro Moderne in Woodbury and Aperitif in Rockville Centre. (Velasquez is now the chef at LB Bistro in Long Beach.)

Once Persil closes, Balkas will focus all his energy on The Wine Cellar Oceanside, which opened primarily as a wine shop in 2014 but has since segued into whiskey and tequila. He also presides over the Long Island Whiskey Society, a Facebook group "for enthusiasts, connoisseurs, and newbies alike."

Brasserie Persil, 2825 Long Beach Rd., Oceanside, 516-992-1742, persilrestaurant.com. Open Tuesday to Thursday 4 to 10 p.m., Friday to Saturday 4 to 11 p.m., Sunday 3 to 9 p.m.