Dispensary Review: Torches Catches Fire

Torches, a new Manhattan retail cannabis outlet, says much about changing cultural norms in New York City by its mere location. On 42nd Street just off Fifth Avenue, it occupies the building that was from 1930 to 2020 the Nat Sherman Townhouse—a landmark purveyor of hand-rolled cigars and other high-end tobacco products. It finally closed three years after the Nat Sherman company was bought out by industry giant Altria. This was just as the cachet of the cigar, long a symbol of indulgence for the city’s elite, was being dethroned by cannabis.

An indoor balcony overlooks the central room lined with glass display cases. Budtenders are ready to make sales behind a counter leading to what had been the humidor. Offerings include dried flower, pre-rolls, edibles, vapes, concentrates, tinctures, topicals and accessories—produced by everything from big multi-state operators to local mom-and-pop enterprises.

Showing me around, Torches team member Jonathan Santana says, “We take pride in offering what we believe is the best cannabis menu in the market—diverse, high-quality and built for every type of consumer.”

Santana also emphasizes a sense of pride in the location. “After Nat Sherman closed in 2020, the building remained vacant—a historic Midtown space frozen in time. We took over the property in mid-2022 with a vision to breathe new life into it while honoring its legacy.”

From the ex-humidor, Santana takes me to a downstairs space that they hope to turn into a consumption lounge—which it was for the high-end cigar set back in the day. He shows me shelves of small, box-like personal lockers where the clientele could keep their stash of tobacco and booze. Each is emblazoned with the holder’s name—including ex-mayor Rudy Giuliani, actor Robert John Downey Jr. and hip-hop talent manager Paul Rosenberg. One is labeled simply “The Legend.” Santana surmises with a smile that it might have been Frank Sinatra’s.

After overcoming some “regulatory hurdles” (including a wait until an injunction on new cannabis licenses in New York state ran out), Torches opened as Polanco Brothers Cannabis Dispensary in March 2024. It rebranded as Torches that July, “once our brand vision was complete,” Santana says.

This includes some ambitious interactions with New York cultural icons. “We’re working with Knicks Film School to host a live podcast and cross-collaborative event in the coming weeks,” referring to the independent and well-regarded podcast hosted by Jonathan Macri, offering in-depth analysis, interviews and discussions focused on the New York Knicks. “The partnership merges cannabis culture with New York sports and storytelling in a way that feels organic and exciting. We’ll kick it off with [veteran Knicks star] Iman Shumpert, and we hope to feature other players as they step into or expand within the New York cannabis market.”

Santana and the three Polanco brothers (all named confusingly José) were all born in the Dominican Republic, and all grew up in the same neighborhood of Jamaica, Queens. “We have been friends since middle school,” Santana says.

License-holder José A. Polanco expounds on the Torches vision: “We want to build on the history of the building, do something with that elegance, but still in a cool and down-to-earth kind of way. It was a very exclusive space, but now it’s more about inclusivity, bringing together everyone who’s united by cannabis.”