On the CB3 agenda tonight: AMA Raw Bar on Avenue B, The Pineapple Club on 6th Street

There are several items of interest on tonight's CB3-SLA docket. Here's a look at two of the applicants:

• 190 Avenue B

A restaurant going by AMA Raw Bar is in the works for the former Kingsley space between 11th Street and 12th Street.

The food here is described as "Asian seafood," per the questionnaire posted to the CB3 website. The applicant, listed as Harvey Woo, plans to use the backyard garden. In total, there are 30 tables for 64 guests as well as a 10-seat bar. The proposed hours are 4 p.m. to 2 a.m. Monday through Thursday; until 3 a.m. on Friday ... with an 11 a.m. open on Saturday and Sunday.

Kingsley closed back in early September without any notice to patrons after three-plus years in business.



• 509 E. Sixth St.

The Pineapple Club will be bringing "American Polynesian" cuisine to the former Out East space here between Avenue A and Avenue B.

The public questionnaire on the CB3 website shows that the two-level space will have 40 tables seating 101 guests, with another 20 seats for the bar. The proposed hours are listed as 5 p.m. to midnight on Tuesday and Wednesday, with a 4 a.m. close Thursday through Saturday, and 10 p.m. on Sunday. There's also a brunch service on Saturday and Sunday.

The questionnaire doesn't mention the background experience for the applicants — listed as Travis Odegard, Panos Kourakos and Nazar Hrab.

There's also a sample menu with the online questionnaire ...



Like Kingsley, Out East quietly closed... the space went dark in December 2017 after eight months serving a seafood-centric menu from the proprietors behind places like Beauty & Essex and Stanton Social.

Tonight's CB3-SLA committee is at the Perseverance House Community Room, 535 E. Fifth St. between Avenue A and Avenue B. You can frontload at Sophie's or the Ace Bar on the block.

Former Kingsley space now for rent

Kingsley went dark back in early September without any notice to patrons — at the restaurant or online — here at 190 Avenue B between 11th Street and 12th Street.

Someone emptied out the restaurant in late December, and the for rent signs arrived this past week, officially closing the book on Kingsley, which served "seasonal, local ingredients with a contemporary French-American menu," per its website.

Chef-owner chef Roxanne Spruance opened the space in December 2015, and received some attention given her past work in well-regarded kitchens such as Blue Hill and WD-50.

The restaurant took over the space from Back 40, which closed in December 2014 after seven years in business. Chef-owner Peter Hoffman told Eater that "a difficult landscape and lease uncertainty" led to the closure. Not sure if we ever moved past the "difficult landscape."

Kingsley remains dark on Avenue B

[Photo from Sept. 15]

Kingsley, the restaurant from chef Roxanne Spruance at 190 Avenue B, has not been open in the past month here between 11th Street and 12th Street.

The closure has drawn the attention of several residents who live nearby, with one noting inactivity inside dating to the middle of September. (One EVG reader has seen several potential diners peering inside the darkened space on recent weekends in search of brunch.)

There's no mention of a closure on the Kingsley website or social-media properties, which haven't been updated since Sept. 7. No one returned an email or Facebook message; an email to Spruance from an address posted on her Facebook page bounced back as undeliverable. Calls to the restaurant refer people to the website; there isn't any way to leave a voice-mail. The restaurant is also no longer taking reservations.



Yelpers are reporting that the restaurant is closed...



On the topic of Yelp, one would-be diner described her recent dining disaster while Kingsley was shuttered...

Last night, Saturday Sept. 22, we had a long anticipated birthday dinner booked at Kingsley. One person flew all the way in from San Francisco for the event. We arrived at exactly on time at 7:30 pm for our reservation and the place was CLOSED. No note on the door, no phone call in advance....nothing.

Opentable even emailed us the day before confirming our table. We were not the only people with a reservation standing outside on the sidewalk wondering what the hell was going either. Unacceptable and inexcusable. We had to scramble to find another place to eat at the last minute.

An entire day later no one has reached out to us with an explanation or apology. Just terrible. Obviously we will NEVER be back. Shameful.

Kingsley, serving "seasonal, local ingredients with a contemporary French-American menu," per its website, opened in December 2015, and received plenty of attention given Spruance's past in kitchens such as Blue Hill and WD-50.

The restaurant took took over the space from Back 40, which closed in December 2014 after seven years in business. (Chef-owner Peter Hoffman told Eater that "a difficult landscape and lease uncertainty" led to the closure.)

Said one neighbor and EVG reader: "[Kingsley] seemed to be doing pretty good business... it would be a shame if they’ve closed their doors."

Openings: Hou Yi Hot Pot, Kingsley

Hou Yi Hot Pot is now open at 97 Second Ave. between East Fifth Street and East Sixth Street...



This is the second location for Hou Yi Hot Pot, which also has a spot on Hester Street in the northern fringes of Chinatown. Serious Eats called Hou Yi "comfortable and friendly" and "This is your Manhattan Chinatown go-to for hot pot."

And at 190 Avenue B between near East 12th Street, Kingsley, a seasonal French-American restaurant, opened this past Wednesday...



Here's the Times with some thoughts on the restaurant:

Three spaces — a dining room with a long bar, a loungelike area and a back room, all softly done in neutral tones — serve the same menu that the chef Roxanne Spruance delivers from her semi-open kitchen. She worked at Blue Hill, WD-50 and Alison Eighteen. Gallic touches show through in roasted bone marrow with shallots and tarragon, monkfish with melted leeks and a chicken thigh napoleon.

Kingsley's website is here and the menus are here.

The previous restaurant at No. 190, the 7-year-old Back Forty, closed for good after service last Dec. 21.

Previously on EV Grieve:
Modern American in the works for former Back Forty space on Avenue B

A look at Kingsley, opening this fall on Avenue B

A look at Kingsley, opening this fall on Avenue B

Just checking in on Kingsley, the new, 65-seat restaurant in the works at 190 Avenue B between East 11th Street and East 12th Street.

Kingsley is scheduled to open this fall. The restaurant has a website here and Facebook page.



Here's the restaurant's description via Facebook:

Our focus is seasonal, local, market-driven, contemporary French-American cuisine. The menu, cocktail program, and wine list are dynamic and unique, to complement the atmosphere. All dishes have interesting juxtaposition of flavors and textures, while still being balanced and reminiscent of classic dishes and tastes. The goal is delicious, inspired, and creative food and drink.

Chef-owner Roxanne Spruance's resumé includes working in the kitchen with Wylie Dufresne at the late WD~50 on Clinton Street. (You can read the rest of her bio here.)

The previous restaurant at No. 190, the 7-year-old Back Forty, closed for good after service last Dec. 21.

Previously on EV Grieve:
Modern American in the works for former Back Forty space on Avenue B