[Updated] A look inside the former Acme Bar and Grill

As we first reported back in March, Acme Bar & Grill on 9 Great Jones Place closed ... After three other media outlets confirmed the closing, owner Bob Pollock apparently changed his mind that same day, telling Grub Street "[W]e are not closing for good. We need to renovate this place after 25 years ... the fans of Acme please be patient we'll be back after a few months."

Then! Two months later came word that people behind Indochine and Kittichai were taking over the bi-level space for a fall opening...

Hey, it's fall, right? We have no idea what concept they all decided on... but it won't be anything like Acme, of course... Goggla took a look inside last evening ...

Updated: Eater reports that the new owners went before CB2 last night. Per Eater: "While the pair was certain about hiring a new chef and making revisions to the menu to have a family style restaurant, the board was not impressed that the details had not been completely figured out."

They were told to come back next month.

Surprise! Acme Bar and Grill won't be reopening as you probably figured

As we reported back on March 15, Acme Bar & Grill abruptly shuttered after 25 years of serving Creole/Southern-style cuisine on Great Jones. However, after reportedly firing the staff without any notice, Acme owner Bob Pollock quickly changed his mind, saying that he would reopen after a renovation.

Apparently he changed his mind again. According to Grub Street:

We hear that Jean-Marc Houmard, Michael Callahan, and Huy Chi Le — the team behind Indochine and Kittichai (and also involved with Bondst and Republic) — have grabbed up the bi-level space ... The trio is mulling concepts for a restaurant to open in early fall.

Here are some photos of the space from March 31:

A look at the more 'contemporized' Acme Bar & Grill

A few weeks ago, we first reported that Acme Bar & Grill was closing after 25 years on Great Jones Place. Then! Owner Bob Pollock apparently changed his mind...

Pollock told the following to Rebecca Marx at Fork in Road on March 16:

When it reopens, Pollock says, "it's not going to be the roadhouse look anymore. It will have a more contemporized look. Warm and at the same time contemporary. When you go in there, you'll have the reminiscence of Acme. It'll be on the walls."

After taking a look inside yesterday, it doesn't seem likely that any former regular would even recognize the walls...

Previously.

A new look and new employees for The Acme Bar & Grill

About this time yesterday, we were told that the venerable Acme Bar & Grill on Great Jones was closing after 25 years. As we pointed out, Fork in the Road and DNAinfo also verified that the restaurant was history. But then! Owner Bob Pollock left a comment at Grub Street late yesterday afternoon saying they would just be closed for renovations.

Rebecca Marx at Fork in the Road tracked Pollock down today to see what is going on here:

"I know this is insane," Pollock says of the sudden closure. "But we had to make some drastic changes." The almost 25-year-old restaurant, he explains, "was built on a shoestring" and has long been in dire need of renovations. "A new HVAC, kitchen, exhaust system" are among the structural updates he'll be making during Acme's closure, which he estimates will be a few months.

And then there are the updates to the restaurant's staff. "We're dealing with a problem right now at the bar where employees didn't come in and didn't know what was happening," he says. "We had a bunch of drunk employees in the place." He pauses. "They've been loyal employees for years. We just need some changes."

Can he elaborate upon why he's rewarding their loyalty in this manner? "I don't know what to tell you." Another pause. "It's become a little sloppy."

And!

Pollock is hoping the food will attract "new faces and new money," though he claims he'd like Acme to remain "a neighborhood bar" and to retain its clientele. Whether his current customers will recognize the new Acme remains to be seen: When it reopens, Pollock says, "it's not going to be the roadhouse look anymore. It will have a more contemporized look. Warm and at the same time contemporary. When you go in there, you'll have the reminiscence of Acme. It'll be on the walls."

Would any former Acme employees like to chime in? (grieve98@gmail.com)

[Photo via Gothamist, who has more on this story here.]

On second thought: Acme will just be closed for a few months of renovations now

This is all rather strange.

Earlier today, when a reader called the Acme Bar & Grill to ask about lunch hours, he or she was told that the restaurant had closed.

Fork in the Road confirmed this in a follow-up item:

So we called the restaurant and confirmed that unfortunately, it has indeed closed.
"We were here too long and there just wasn't enough business," Tony, the general manager, told us. "It's sad but true."

Patrick Hedlund at DNAinfo also got the confirmation. "The restaurant's manager Tony, who declined to provide his last name, confirmed the closure by phone but refused to elaborate on the situation."

However! Apparently not all Acme employees were made aware of the owner's plans. In a post from 6:30 tonight, Grub Street reports that Acme owner Bob Pollock commented, "[W]e are not closing for good. We need to renovate this place after 25 years, the place was built on a shoestring 25 years ago and needs a major over hall as the Board of Health would want me to do and the fans of Acme please be patient we'll be back after a few months."

There is a permit pending with the DOB for "RENOVATION OF EXISTING RESTAURANT."