We are probably all familiar with the hustle and bustle of the Bronx happening outside of campus gates — horns honking, trains passing, people walking and something always going on. But with all the vibrancy that takes place on the streets that surround our school, it can be easy to forget that many local businesses, who lost customers during the pandemic, long for some of that hustle and bustle to visit their stores. And although we all frequent the Casas, Avenue Gyros and Estralitas of our beloved Arthur Ave., it’s not just the restaurants who need business post-pandemic. One local business I would like to highlight in this article is a florist called Mt. Carmel Flower Shop, which you will find if you venture a few steps past Arthur Ave. to 634 E 187th St.
Right across the street from Fresh and Healthy, Mt. Carmel can save you a trip to the city when you’re in a pinch on special occasions and act as a way for you to support a local business. Forgot it’s your anniversary tomorrow and don’t have time to take the MetroNorth into Manhattan? Just remembered that your boss put you in charge of picking up decorative flowers for a faculty meet and greet? Have a boring dorm room because you had class during the poster sale outside McShane center? No worries; walk a few blocks from campus and you will have all you need. Whether you’re thinking of ways to let your special someone know you care, searching for high quality flowers for your next big event or trying to find creative ways to spice up a dull space, Mt. Carmel’s your place.
The shop has been serving the Bronx community for 27 years — 13 years on Hoffman St. and 14 years in its current location — with a small footprint, but lots of character. When you enter under the red awning, you will probably be greeted by the smile of a lovely woman named Patricia, one of the shop’s owners, and, if you’re lucky, by Lia, a gentle cat who resides in the store’s right corner and doesn’t mind when new customers come in to say hello. Mt. Carmel offers a wide selection of flowers like roses, hydrangeas, baby’s breath, peonies, irises, sunflowers, tulips, daisies and lilies — of which Patricia’s favorites are peonies and hydrangeas. Roses are their most popular sale, which you can buy for about $35-$40 per bouquet, depending on the season. Flowers can be a bit pricey anywhere you go, but the shop understands; they are willing to help us out by charging no tax for Fordham students! If you’re looking to keep it simple, you can buy flowers in singles or bunches, like my roommate and I did when we purchased baby’s breath to act as the centerpiece of our windowsill in our Alumni Court South dorm room.
If you’re searching for something a bit fancier, you can also buy bouquets or arrangements — Mt. Carmel offers round boxes with red roses, heart-shaped arrangements with sunflowers, wedding bouquets with white roses, centerpieces with 100 or more flowers and even some arrangements that include huge teddy bears for special occasions like Valentine’s Day. Mt. Carmel pieces together these arrangements with special care, and the combination of high-quality flowers with deeply listening to customer-specific requests results in a product that makes people exclaim, “This is just what I wanted!” These handcrafted masterpieces that come from the garden, to the shop counter, to the world are a clear expression of the owners’ experience and commitment to detail. Anyone who sees the final products would be able to appreciate the particular placement of each flower, the decisions about which color carnations would best accent a red rose and the finishing touches like ribbons and decorative butterflies that piece everything together.
For 27 years, Mt. Carmel has been spreading joy, putting smiles on peoples’ faces and restoring peoples’ faith that the little things do make a difference. The shop has been more than a small building near Arthur Ave. that customers walk in and out of; it has been a vessel for people in the Bronx community to show their care for one another. With continued support from Fordham students and the rest of the Bronx community, the Mt. Carmel Flower Shop can continue to thrive and make a difference from its little corner of the world.
