Monday, September 19, 2022

On tonight's CB3 SLA committee docket: Balkan cuisine for the former Starbucks on 2nd Avenue

Here are several more applicants seeking new liquor licenses during tonight's CB3-SLA docket... the virtual meeting starts at 6:30. This is the Zoom link.

• Sugar Mouse LLC, 101 E 10th St (op) 

Sugar Mouse is the name of the concept proposed for the NE corner of Third Avenue at 10th Street, in space (pic above) that TD Bank previously used before downsizing

The bar, offering pizza and snacks, will feature a variety of table games (foosball, billiards, shuffleboard, etc.). The hours are daily from 2 p.m. to, depending on the night of the week, 1 a.m. to 3 a.m. Read more on the application here

Ownership also operates Sour Mouse on Delancey, billed as "the Hottest underground social club in the LES." 

We've heard from several residents who live nearby with concerns about the business,  particularly the late-night closing times. Flyers on the block noted (in all caps): "Nothing less than the quality of life on these streets is at stake."

• Lava Ground LLC, 4 St Marks Pl (wb) 

There's not a lot of information about the bar concept proposed for the lower level of 4 St. Mark's Place near Third Avenue. 

The unnamed establishment will offer bar food such as wings and beef patties with daily hours of 10 a.m. to 4 a.m. According to the questionnaire, which you can read here, the owner previously worked as a security guard and now owns a beverage company.

The space was previously (and briefly) an outpost of the Wanyoo Cyber Cafe. 

• Balkan Streat (Wolf of 3rd Ave LLC), 145 2nd Ave (wb) 

A fast-casual restaurant called Balkan Streat is in the works for the NW corner of Second Avenue and Ninth Street (the former Starbucks).

As the name implies, owners William Djuric and Jason Correa plan to provide a menu with food from the Balkans. (The questionnaire here includes a sample menu.) According to his bio, Djuric, who worked at Gramercy Tavern and Momofuku Ssam Bar, decided to "pursue his dream of opening a Balkan restaurant that would be inspired by his [late] father's Serbian heritage and childhood summers spent in Yugoslavia." 

The restaurant has proposed daily hours from noon to 11 p.m., with a 2 a.m. close on Friday and Saturday. 


This storefront has remained empty since Starbucks closed in April 2019.

• El Primo Red Tacos (El Primo Red Tacos NYC LLC), 151 Ave A (wb) 

The Miami-based taco shop is back on the agenda this month without the full-liquor ask.

There are still concerns from neighbors about the use of the backyard space here.

• Corp to be formed by Ronan Downs, 210 Ave A (op) (Public input occurred on this item in August and in September will only have committee discussion)

Also returning: The bar-tavern concept from a management team led by Ronan Downs, whose numerous credits include Becketts Bar & Grill down on Pearl Street.

You can read the questionnaire here

Several applicants have looked at this space on the northeast corner of Avenue A and 13th Street since Percy's Tavern closed in 2017. 

13 comments:

Anonymous said...

Yay to Balkan food in the neighborhood!
We need some new diverse international foods here, urgently.

dwg said...

RE: Ronan Downs- 210 Avenue A. This is the old Percy's Tavern space which was the source for noise and neighborhood disruption from their opening night with a live band. This block already has 6 bars, not 6 bars within 500 feet- 6 bars on the same block. The last thing we need is a 7th!!!!!

Anonymous said...

Closer to Orchidia’s Ukrainian/Italian food than anything else that’s been here.

Anonymous said...

The corner former-TD Bank-spot should NOT get a license. And if I lived upstairs from that location, I'd be looking to break my lease.

And I suppose they'll want an outdoor dining shed due to "hardship" as well?

IMO, this whole application should get a very clear turn-down by CB3/SLA. We are saturated on 3rd Ave. and of course the Ainsworth space is just waiting to be 'revived' by someone, b/c we don't have enough ways or places to get drunk around here.

Wish NYC would designate a PARTY PIER (hey, Eric Adams, I'm giving you an idea you can run with!), where people can drink, vomit, woo-woo, and whatever, very far away from residential areas. It's an idea so logical it will never happen, though.

Anonymous said...

Long-ago Orchidia was here with Ukrainian/Italian food. The Balkans are basically most of the countries between Ukraine and Italy, so a Balkan restaurant here is almost like a reincarnation of Orchidia.

Anonymous said...

Sadly 10:06AM it's a great idea but they (CB3/SLA and Real Estate Corps.) already have a designated party area and it's out neighborhood done without our full knowing what's in store consent and without any real concern for the people who actually live here

Anonymous said...

10:06 Totally agree.

Anonymous said...

I wish I'd known (way back when) that this area would be turned into a massive drunk-o playground central. Because then I'd have bought the building I live in (when its price was super-cheap).

And today I'd sell that building and I'd use the money to move to a civilized neighborhood - somewhere near Bloomberg's townhouse, or maybe UES with a view of the river or something. Any place, really, that isn't our existing dumping-ground, drunk-o, woo-woo, vomit-fest, too-stupid-for-words entitled-bro Shangri-la.

Anonymous said...

Jukebox & pizza? Loved that place as a kid.

Anonymous said...

What part of “oversaturated by bars” doesn’t CB3 understand?? Who are there people working for? Not us who *live* here!

Anonymous said...

I attended the CB3 meeting about the 10th Ave 'sugar mouse' establishment. The owner was caught violating the terms of his other liquor license by promoting pub crawls. In addition, TWO DOZEN members of the community stayed until late to speaking against the application and ONLY ONE person (a friend of the owner who knew him personally) spoke for it.

Despite that, the CB3 members approved the application which was a bit of a shock and a headscratcher.

The two CB3 members pushing for approving were two young women that thought it'd be 'fun space' to hang out with and not once did they acknowledge the numerous concerns voiced in the meeting by the community members. This is not a way to make decisions for the community, and is clearly an issue of the CB3 boards getting filled with unelected officials that are confused about their purpose sitting on those boards.

If a liquor application adds nothing to the neighborhood (culturally or functionally) but significantly deteriorates quality of life for long term residents (the ones who vote, not students) IT SHOULD BE REJECTED.

Anonymous said...

@9:06am: That pretty much is a complete travesty of what the meeting and having people speak SHOULD represent. WTF is wrong with CB3? I don't understand why young "members" who just want to have their version of "fun" get to determine that all of us have to live in a bar-soaked HELL.

It seems CB3 is completely owned by people who are NOT the people who live here (and who genuinely care about the quality of life here).

NYC IS DEAD said...

70% of the storefronts on Third Ave between 11th and 10th Street are empty. It is a complete blight.