Zora Dora's Popsicles Has Left The Building - Closes After 20 Years - Makes Lewd Mara Lago Comment

Zora Dora’s, the micro-batch popsicle company located at 201 Main Street, the last of the affordable storefronts formerly owned by the Piccone’s (Mr. Bell’s Unisex Salon, John’s Shoe Repair) before they sold to new owners who gradually raised the rent on each tenant and displaced residential tenants in the back apartments (Miss Vickie and a veteran), has closed.

Katie from A Little Beacon Blog posing for Zora Dora’s photo shoot for Hudson Valley Magazine in May 2016.

Creator and owner Steven Astorino confirmed to A Little Beacon Blog that he moved out of his shop completely: “Twenty years, and I have been blessed with the opportunity to serve and get to make great fans and friends 🧡.” ALBB’s publisher Katie sat for a feature of Zora Dora’s when Hudson Valley Magazine profiled him in May 2016, when they needed a happy customer sit in the photo.

Steven told 101.5 WPDH that “he was never interested in the business aspect of the store, but rather the joy of having a creative outlet for something that he was good at and truly enjoyed.” He continued: “Once the cost of doing business became less joyful, he knew it was time to move on. The business owner cites monetary issues and personal time as reasons for closing Zora Dora's at the end of the summer [2025].”

During the winter, Zora Dora’s was known to sub-lease the space to other makers who transformed it into pop-up shops. One such shop was Cherry Bomb a decade ago, which brought together many makers who forged relationships for years onward.

Steven fashions his popsicles after the Mexican style called “Paletas,” which are made from fresh fruit or creamy bases. A graduate of the Culinary Institute, he served in “major hotels in NYC and Miami, FL,” according to his website.

While ALBB was covering the protests in Beacon during the Black Lives Matter movement in 2020, while community members were protesting against police brutality nation-wide after George Floyd’s killing in Minneapolis, MN, Steven commented on an article, asking readers: “What do you want the police to do? Give the criminals lollypops?”

Dana Barrett, the Fulton County the Fulton County Commissioner, vowing to stop the raid of the 2020 elections by the federal government. Zora Dora commented on this post: Shut up and comply” followed by “Kinda like mara lago”

Last month, while the federal government raided an election center in Fulton County in Union City, GA, Dana Barrett, the Fulton County Commissioner representing District 3, which includes all of Buckhead and parts of both Sandy Springs and Midtown, published on her Instagram, calling it “political theater at its best,” as she pointed out that the federal government was distracting the nation from illegal and brutal ICE raids. She vowed to do everything in their power to “put a stop to this.”

Zora Dora’s Instagram account commented on her post twice, saying:

“Shut up and comply” followed by: “Kinda like mara lago.” ALBB verified that this @zora_dora account was the same as the Beacon Zora Dora account run by Stephen.

A reader of ALBB sent in a screenshot of the comment to alert us to it, and said: “I thought his statement was crazy. I like the popsicles there, but I’m not going back. It’s so sad.”