Mystery New Jersey deli closes, Makamer Holdings says in SEC filing

The small, money-losing New Jersey deli that was once the sole asset of a publicly traded company with a bizarre market capitalization of $100 million has been sold and closed, according to a regulatory filing.

Your Hometown Deli in Paulsboro, New Jersey, had been “temporarily closed” on June 19 while its management sought a new buyer, Makamer Holdings said in a filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

On July 1, Makamer sold the deli’s remaining inventory for $700. And then on Aug. 9, the company “disposed of its subsidiary Your Hometown Deli, LLC for a price of $15,000, consisting of $5,000 to be paid in cash and a $10,000 note receivable,” the filing said.

Makamer, a bioplastics startup, merged with the deli’s owner, Hometown International, earlier this year.

“After carefully evaluating its prospects, the Company’s new management has determined to sell Your Hometown Deli and its assets and focus on the business operations of Makamer as the Company’s business going forward,” the regulatory filing said.

“The delicatessen ceased its operation following the merger,” it said.

The phone number of the deli, which had just $25,004 in sales 2021, was out of service Monday when CNBC called it.

Online, the restaurant is listed as “permanently closed.”

Hometown International was previously headed by Paul Morina, a Paulsboro high school principal and wrestling coach in Paulsboro.

The company drew widespread public attention in April 2021 when the hedge fund manager David Einhorn in a client letter noted the disparity between the deli’s decidedly modest sales and Hometown’s sky-high stock market valuation.

“The pastrami must be amazing,” Einhorn cracked in that letter.

Makamer Holdings said it is now focused on making biodegradable resins to replace existing petroleum-based plastics.

For the three months ended June 30, the company reported a net loss of $9 million, which it attributed to the closing of the deli and the transition to bioplastics.

The last publicly known trade of Makamer stock was a sale of 300 shares for $9 per share on July 22. The company has a market capitalization of $327 million at that share price.