EV Grieve reader Creature sends along these photos of the Cuban-flavored Cienfuegos space... The big transformation comes with the main space — El Cobre — on the ground floor. The owners have decided to change concepts. As Eater pointed out in November, the new space will house an English fish and chips restaurant called Gin Palace, "focusing on gin cocktails and old style English pub fare."
No word on an opening date. There's no mention of this development on the Cienfuegos website.
17 comments:
Is it me, or is this spot cursed? Seems like whatever opens there just never fits in. That having been said, ever since A Salt & Battery closed, I've been looking for good fish & chips.
There's already an "English pub" on 2nd ave at 4th street, called Queen Vic. I'm generally not a fan, though I applaud the fact that the words "artisanal," "local" or "organic" don't appear on the menus (at least from my memory). I hope this place will at least follow suit in that regard.
And nobody goes to Queen Vic, just like nobody will go here.
not sure i understand people's gripes with 'local' and 'organic' food. Being a blog that has a lot to do with the local character of a neighborhood, I would think people would be in support of local farms and sustainable agriculture...
anon 7:40 - based on who's involved in it, it'll most likely have $12 cocktails, so it'll be packed every night.
it was that half-way decent italian place for quite a while...but fish and chips and gin? Really? I think they should just start selling drink tickets for the whole neighborhood, like one giant boozer amusement park.
East Village Eats
The first thing I thought when I saw this was that that spot is 'cursed' too.
Wonder what was there before Avenue A was gentrified?
i really hope the fish and chips are good.
Dan - "organic" is a myth - companies can call anything they want organic since the FDA doesn't have any guidelines for it. Along with the buzz words artisanal and local, each word adds about $5 to the price of a meal.
Anon 7:40 - agreed; Queen Vic sucks and so probably will this place.
When I first read this item, I thought, Oh great, just what we need: GIN. It'll be 18th century England all over again on Avenue A! But gin is a really tough sell. It tastes like pine needles! And it's too highbrow now, no way are the frat douches and woo-woo girls going to drink gin all night.
I'm not sure this place is gonna work. I mean it *could* ... but the moneyed EV drinking crowds seem too juvenile for it.
You can also get fish 'n' chips at Percy's on Avenue A at 13th.
wow. that sounds truly disgusting. much like the patrons i'm sure will fill such a place.
double yuck.
Isn't this space where Pisces was for many years???Pisces rocked. It was the first restaurant in the EV to serve monk fish in a red wine reduction sauce without any woo woo. I miss them.
@Anon 12:44 - here is a photo of this corner from 1904 (during a funeral procession for the General Slocum disaster).
http://tinyurl.com/7lu89dw
I can't see the sign for the business on the corner (under the two American flags), but it looks to be similar to its neighbors, the jeweler and meat market.
Great find Goggla!
I love fish, chips and gin. Can't wait to check it out!
This Gothamist article from a year ago shows exactly the audience they are trying to attract, the Breukelen / Brooklyn gin drinkers.
http://bit.ly/fHjVAr
abord,
I'm pretty involved with a lot of local food organizations and farms, and while I understand some restaurants probably can't justify their food sources, i frequent many restaurants that can and do (especially in NYC)
And while some, or most, local foods can be more expensive, the mass-produced, hormone-ridden alternatives are all owned by essentially three enormous companies, supported by a number of politicians who have their hands in the money pot..
Plus, I can buy Nature's Path cereal (which I consider to be a pretty reputable, organic company) at Whole Foods for $3, whereas any equivalent sized Kellogs, etc box at Keys Foods is nearly double the price...
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