Asian guy inside said they were also the only gun store in NY city.
Not quite true. There is another gun store in NYC that caters to civilians as well as LE, which is
DF Brothers & Sons, located on New Utrecht Avenue under the D train line. (The car-train chase scene from the movie
The French Connection was filmed all along this line)
Very large and spacey interior with a lot of handguns, rifles and bows as well as knives, clothing, literature and gun maintenance supplies. The owner is very friendly and I have done A LOT of business with him and his family members who also work the counters. One year ago, a brazen thief walked into DF, pepper-sprayed Frank Taormina, the owner, and then shattered the pistol display case with a hammer. When he tried to grab a couple of handguns inside the case, Mr. Taormina drew his own concealed handgun and blasted the robber in the shoulder. He fled empty handed and left a blood trail but made a getaway in a vehicle. No word if he ever got caught but I don't think any guns were stolen, thanks to the quick actions of Mr. Taormina.
This is the article in connection with the robbery:
http://www.nydailynews.com/new-york/nyc-crime/wounded-crook-bolts-store-article-1.3285522
There is also another gun store at the very far end of Chinatown almost by the Metropolitan Correctional Center (where Bartleby, Melville's autistic scrivener was confined) called
New York Iron Works. But this one caters only to law enforcement.
And then in Glendale, Queens, there is
S&S Firearms, who primarily deals with Civil War reproduction black powder firearms, various assorted military surplus uniforms and gear from the Civil War all the way to Iraqi Freedom and Afghanistan. And they still got some items left over from the liquidation of Bannerman's formidable estate from the 50's to the 90's.
So that rounds out to at least 4 gun stores in the New York City area. Three of which caters to civilians. There may be more that I don't know of, but I have done business with all three.
Jon Jovino's was originally owned by an Italian family but it later sold the business to a Chinese family in the late 1990's, who continue to operate the store to this day.