Surprises and contentious moments abounded at last night's Community Board 2 meeting. Biggest of all was the curve ball thrown by the Martignetti brothers. Seems they want to split their liquor license and hold onto the basement club while giving over the ground floor to Cafe Noir... Except it's not Cafe Noir! Instead, Burak Karacam, managing partner of Pera, was before the board to apply for the license the Martignettis want to relinquish on the first floor - in addition to applying for a license for a new Pera at 54 Thompson. The folks from Cafe Noir were nowhere in sight and didn't answer the call, likely signaling the end of the road for that rumored takeover.
Unfortunately for the attending brother, Tom Martignetti, the knives came out almost immediately. After several minutes explaining the idea of splitting a license and then bringing in someone else to run the restaurant independently, we witnessed a fascinating (not) discussion of ingress and egress. But lo the board was confused by this idea of two separate joints. Who's the other guy (Burak) and is this legal they asked. How did you get a license in the first place - did you apply as one entity, etc etc. Poor Tom stumbled along as they failed to grasp what he was saying - he didn't express the idea clearly enough to my mind but I still understood the point A vociferous board member signaled it would be a rough ride though, launching into a speech that there were too many liquor licenses in the area and that even if they rescinded one, they should not issue more than a beer & wine license. Then came the neighbors.
Unfortunately for the attending brother, Tom Martignetti, the knives came out almost immediately. After several minutes explaining the idea of splitting a license and then bringing in someone else to run the restaurant independently, we witnessed a fascinating (not) discussion of ingress and egress. But lo the board was confused by this idea of two separate joints. Who's the other guy (Burak) and is this legal they asked. How did you get a license in the first place - did you apply as one entity, etc etc. Poor Tom stumbled along as they failed to grasp what he was saying - he didn't express the idea clearly enough to my mind but I still understood the point A vociferous board member signaled it would be a rough ride though, launching into a speech that there were too many liquor licenses in the area and that even if they rescinded one, they should not issue more than a beer & wine license. Then came the neighbors.
The neighbors typified the sorts of people you get in these meetings - often educated and with money, sometimes longtime holders of apartments far below market. One guy, clearly a crazed Soho resident, went on at length about how his hood was being destroyed by people who, as he put it, know people and get bad things done. "Who do these people know?," he cried. The crowd actually applauded. The guy then said, "I always get applause in these meetings but nothing ever changes."
But we digress. Two women spoke against the Martignetti "scheme" as they quickly termed it - one called it "illegal" and a "bait and switch." They are both neighbors who clearly dislike what the area has become. While Tom wore a pained expression, one woman recounted a horrific scene of a near riot at 218 Lafayette - something I don't recall reading in the papers - and how the area has gone to shit. Tom was close to exasperation and explained that was not his establishment. But no one cared, and in the end, the entire escapade looks to go down in flames. As one woman put it, you make all your money in the club and not in the restaurant so you want to give the restaurant to your friend. Based on the board's reaction, that's not gonna happen.
A sidenote from this misadventure - they were complaining about the club opening at 11pm, puke on the sidewalk and packs of people clogging the area. Well the Martignettis are going to keep the club open no matter what. The board was completely sidetracked by their own stupidity and a couple of complainers from the fancy Police Building. You can split the license or not but in the end, the club will still be there. Brilliant.
Other interesting tidbits:
Michael Huynh (various Bao joints) is opening what he calls a noodle shop at 120 Christopher Street and is looking for a beer & wine license, which is what the former occupant Mama's Mudsliders had. Huynh gets extra points for naming his company Pho Real dba Pho Sure.
BCRE is developing a hotel at the spot of the old Moondance diner and wants to have a roof bar, bar in the courtyard and outdoor seating and a cellar restaurant. They seem to have gone above and beyond to work with the neighbors who generously want them to have their outdoor seating closed at 8pm. How thoughtful. Oh and some were concerned the noise from the 22nd floor roofbar would travel over to Varick Street. Yes, people are that nuts.
Don't Tell Mama, a "piano bar" wants to take over the space formerly occupied by horrific clubs Pink Elephant and Manor at 73 8th Avenue. They would have cabaret and piano players, not a club so the neighbors were ecstatic to be rid of clubs right? Uh, wrong. The neighbors want nothing in that space except "dry goods" and were out in force to oppose any liquor license there ever again. We are rooting for the piano bar because as the owners put it, they're dying off and where would we find the next Bette Midler? Indeed.
Looks like someone is after the Sheridan Square space - we didn't catch the names of the potential proprietors but they want to stay open until 4am and were short on menu details. A woman on the board immediately smelled a bait & switch 'bar pretending to be a restaurant' scenario. Their fate is unknown at this point but let's face it, it's Sheridan Square. Gonna take a lot to make anything work there.
And for some comic relief, there was the odd and sad showing of a gentleman associated with 54 Watts aka a Hampton Inn. Seems they had their license denied by the SLA on a technicality and they were back in front of CB2 with a new one that had the same issues as the old one. (They have a roof that partially opens, a big no no to the board.) They were raked over the coals and the lawyer just said he was going through the motions before pleading his case to the SLA.
Notable cases laid over: Mondrian Soho, Jane Street Hotel, Soho House
But we digress. Two women spoke against the Martignetti "scheme" as they quickly termed it - one called it "illegal" and a "bait and switch." They are both neighbors who clearly dislike what the area has become. While Tom wore a pained expression, one woman recounted a horrific scene of a near riot at 218 Lafayette - something I don't recall reading in the papers - and how the area has gone to shit. Tom was close to exasperation and explained that was not his establishment. But no one cared, and in the end, the entire escapade looks to go down in flames. As one woman put it, you make all your money in the club and not in the restaurant so you want to give the restaurant to your friend. Based on the board's reaction, that's not gonna happen.
A sidenote from this misadventure - they were complaining about the club opening at 11pm, puke on the sidewalk and packs of people clogging the area. Well the Martignettis are going to keep the club open no matter what. The board was completely sidetracked by their own stupidity and a couple of complainers from the fancy Police Building. You can split the license or not but in the end, the club will still be there. Brilliant.
Other interesting tidbits:
Michael Huynh (various Bao joints) is opening what he calls a noodle shop at 120 Christopher Street and is looking for a beer & wine license, which is what the former occupant Mama's Mudsliders had. Huynh gets extra points for naming his company Pho Real dba Pho Sure.
BCRE is developing a hotel at the spot of the old Moondance diner and wants to have a roof bar, bar in the courtyard and outdoor seating and a cellar restaurant. They seem to have gone above and beyond to work with the neighbors who generously want them to have their outdoor seating closed at 8pm. How thoughtful. Oh and some were concerned the noise from the 22nd floor roofbar would travel over to Varick Street. Yes, people are that nuts.
Don't Tell Mama, a "piano bar" wants to take over the space formerly occupied by horrific clubs Pink Elephant and Manor at 73 8th Avenue. They would have cabaret and piano players, not a club so the neighbors were ecstatic to be rid of clubs right? Uh, wrong. The neighbors want nothing in that space except "dry goods" and were out in force to oppose any liquor license there ever again. We are rooting for the piano bar because as the owners put it, they're dying off and where would we find the next Bette Midler? Indeed.
Looks like someone is after the Sheridan Square space - we didn't catch the names of the potential proprietors but they want to stay open until 4am and were short on menu details. A woman on the board immediately smelled a bait & switch 'bar pretending to be a restaurant' scenario. Their fate is unknown at this point but let's face it, it's Sheridan Square. Gonna take a lot to make anything work there.
And for some comic relief, there was the odd and sad showing of a gentleman associated with 54 Watts aka a Hampton Inn. Seems they had their license denied by the SLA on a technicality and they were back in front of CB2 with a new one that had the same issues as the old one. (They have a roof that partially opens, a big no no to the board.) They were raked over the coals and the lawyer just said he was going through the motions before pleading his case to the SLA.
Notable cases laid over: Mondrian Soho, Jane Street Hotel, Soho House
Leave a comment