3,000-square-foot bar/restaurant "with an occasional D.J." apparently moving forward on Avenue B

Last September, I noted that a new bar/eatery was coming into the dormant spaces at 14-16 Avenue B at Second Street...



Yesterday, work on the exterior began...






Back in January, Rebecca Marx at Fork in the Road reported that Beltrami Foods, an Italian restaurant, will open here. As she noted:

According to Cristiano Morroy, one of the restaurant's owners, Beltrami will be open from morning to night, with breakfast, lunch, and dinner menus. The chef will be Morroy's mother, a professional chef whose food reflects where she lived and worked in her native Italy. The restaurant's menu will have a strong southeastern accent, as Morroy's mother spent time in towns like Apulia and Otranto, both located in the heel of Italy's boot.

Although this is Morroy's first restaurant in New York, he already runs a catering company that does a lot of work in the fashion industry. His mother, he says, is quite well-known back in Italy, having cooked for both Mick Jagger's and Willem Dafoe's wedding party.

Two quick comments:

1) Jagger and Dafoe?!
2) Can Second Street between Avenue A and Avenue B possibly support another Italian restaurant? Especially with yet another one coming to Second Street and A? (And, more important, can this section of Avenue B support any more bars...?)

Back in February, the CB3/SLA folks denied Beltrami a license.... Here's how Eater reported it:

A yet-to-be-named group surfaced with a proposal to utilize the old Butterfly space, a stone's throw away from Sigmund, for a 3,000 square foot Italian restaurant, catering company and lounge "with an occasional D.J." This scenario sounds familiar - and the residents didn't hesitate to show their fresh battle scars from the throes of Le Souk, China 1 and Carnivale, all restaurants-gone-clubs that they say wrecked havoc on the peace and quiet in their 'hood. Needless to say, this was too much for CB3 and the community representatives to stomach, and after a lengthy dispute of pros and cons, the motion was denied.

As EV Grieve reader Mediainski commented back in February:

I love the claim of an "occasional DJ." In other words, this place is going to be blaring loud music every night!

Also! The denied transfer (from the former Butterfly at 14 Avenue B) led to an epic David McWater outburst at the meeting. The Lo-Down had all the details.

The current liquor license for this location is inactive...