Holsten's diner from The Sopranos

Holsten's Brookdale Confectionery is the ice cream parlor and diner featured in The Sopranos.

It is located at 1063 Broad Street in Bloomfield, New Jersey.

Although the establishment appears in only one scene, it serves as the setting for the show's series finale.

The booth used by Tony Soprano remained in the diner until March 2024, when it was sold at auction for $82,600.

Final scene

In the final scene of the series, Tony enters Holsten's for a family dinner and sees that he is the first to arrive.

After taking a seat at a booth, he selects the song "Don't Stop Believin'" by Journey on the jukebox. His wife, Carmela, joins him shortly afterward.

A character credited as the "Man in Members Only Jacket" enters the diner moments before Tony's son, A.J., arrives. While the family waits for Meadow, the man sits at the counter and repeatedly glances at them.

Tony's daughter, Meadow, is running late due to a doctor's appointment to switch her birth control medication.

The family shares a basket of onion rings, one of which Tony eats whole before remarking that they are the "best in the state."

Eventually, the man at the counter stands up and walks past the booth into the restroom on the right.

Tension builds as the scene cuts to Meadow struggling to parallel park her Lexus IS250 outside. After hitting the curb while reversing, she attempts the maneuver again.

Once Meadow parks and heads toward the entrance, the bell rings, causing Tony to look up. The music stops abruptly, and the screen cuts to black. Ten seconds of complete darkness and silence follow before the credits appear.

This marks the last time the audience sees Tony Soprano.

The ending of The Sopranos was highly controversial, as many fans were confused by the sudden cut to black.

Some believed their televisions had broken or the cable had cut out.

Although the most popular theory suggests the man in the Members Only jacket killed Tony after exiting the restroom, the meaning of the final scene remains a subject of debate.

Legacy

Strubbe's Ice Cream Parlor originally opened at the site in 1939. Although Holsten's markets itself as an ice cream parlor, the menu features dishes such as burgers, sandwiches, onion rings, and french fries.

The owners have said that fans often visit to order a plate of onion rings "for the table."

Holsten's also appears briefly in the 2021 prequel film The Many Saints of Newark, in a scene where a young Tony smokes outside the diner.

Following the death of actor James Gandolfini in 2013, Holsten's paid tribute by reserving the booth where the final scene was filmed. Management placed a "Reserved" sign on the table for several days as fans visited to leave flowers and pay their respects.