SRO Pizza is apparently DOA on the Bowery

Perhaps to the surprise of no one, SRO, the pizza speakeasy with a $38 prix-fixe menu at 334 Bowery, has apparently closed for good. We noticed that the space has been dark of late. The SRO phone is out of service. A sign on the door (under the guise of Bowery Pizza) suggests that people try the newish stunt burger joint PYT next door...



One upset Yelp reviewer noted that SRO was closed on Dec. 16. We checked in with an SRO media rep who gave us information in the past. The PR firm no longer represents the restaurant.

While people generally seemed to like the pizza, the prices were too high and the concept too gimmicky. (When SRO opened last January, patrons had to enter a door marked "no vacancy" from the adjoining restaurant.) Plus the whole SRO connection to the Bowery's past was tone deaf.

Anyway, let's see if we have all this straight about the address: The space between Bond and Great Jones was home to Forcella Bowery for nearly three years until November 2014 … only to be replaced in December 2014 by the tapas-friendly Espoleta, which closed six months later to make way for Gia Trattoria. They quickly closed. That address is now PYT.

Meanwhile, in the adjacent space to the south, Slice of Naples remained open even after Forcella shuttered. (Same ownership!) That was until pizzaiolo Giulio Adriani converted the space to SRO in January 2015. Last June, the Bowery Pizza sign appeared. At that time, we thought that SRO had closed. However, the aforementioned rep told us that "while it appears that SRO has shuttered, it is indeed still operating, and quite successfully!"

Next!

[Updated] Giving 334 Bowery another go with pizza

We've lost track of the comings and goings at 334 Bowery. Let's take inventory with the help of Eater and BoweryBoogie: The space between Bond and Great Jones was home to Forcella Bowery for nearly three years until last November … only to be replaced in early December by the tapas-friendly Espoleta, which closed six months later to make way for Gia Trattoria.

Meanwhile, in the adjacent space, Slice of Naples remained open even after Forcella shuttered. That was until the owners converted the space to SRO, a pizza speakeasy that debuted in January with a $38 prix fixe menu that included an appetizer, pizza, dessert and three beverage pairings, as Eater reported.

Now it appears SRO has closed as well. There's a sign up for Bowery Pizza. Perhaps this will be more of a takeout-friendly place.

Anyway, by our count, that's six restaurants for 334 Bowery since November: Forcella, Espoleta, Gia Trattoria, Slice of Naples, SRO and Bowery Pizza.

Updated 6-18

The folks from SRO left this in the comments...

While it "appears' that SRO has shuttered, it is indeed still operating, and quite successfully! Due to overcrowding inside our former 12-table restaurant on the weekends, we finally decided to take over the larger dining space in the back and continue to operate as a pizza speakeasy, serving the incredible pies of our pizzaiolo, Giuio Adriani. The dining room capacity has now tripled and is much more comfortable, and our menu has also expanded — serving both the $38 pre-fixe menu, as well as pizza, appetizers, and dessert a la carte.