Avant Garden reopens in new Avenue A home

Avant Garden is up and running at its new home, 95 Avenue A at Sixth Street.

As reported in March, Avant Garden was leaving its home of eight years around the corner at 130 E. Seventh St.

Ravi DeRossi, the owner of Overthrow Hospitality, told us that Avant Garden is one of the busiest restaurants in his plant-based portfolio and that they've outgrown the 28-seat Seventh Street space with a small electric kitchen.

On the second level of 95 Avenue A, Avant Garden now has double the space for diners and an expanded wine-spirits list. This corner building also houses Overthrow's Amor Y Amargo. The upstairs last hosted the pop-up concept Café de L’Enfer, an absinthe and champagne cocktail bar.

June 24 marked Avant Garden's last day on Second Street. (The address is on the rental market.)

After the relocation, multiple EVG readers noted the Department of Transportation posted a "Termination" notice on Avant Garden's curbside dining space on Seventh Street... dated July 5.

Michelin named Avant Garden one of NYC's five best vegetarian restaurants, including Overthrow's Cadence and Soda Club.

During the first months of the pandemic in 2020, Avant Garden provided free plant-based meals to anyone in need. 

&Beer is a new pop-up concept on 7th Street

Ravi DeRossi's vegetable-centric Overthrow Hospitality has introduced a new concept on Seventh Street... last week saw the debut of &Beer at 21 E. Seventh St. between Second Avenue and Cooper Square.

The 14-seat counter space will host a rotation of pop-ups throughout the year — beginning with Mushrooms & Beer, led by Avant Garden chef Juan Pajarito. 

Per Overthrow:

&Beer will, naturally, offer a diverse selection of beers on-tap alongside bottles and cans curated by Proletariat's cicerone Ramon Manrique Hung, plus a selection of natural wines, paired alongside a mushroom-focused menu consisting of 12 offerings, all featuring mushrooms in various forms. The team has worked with local purveyors like Smallhold and Mushroom Queens to devise the focused menu.

The new spot is adjacent to Proletariat, which moved here last summer from St. Mark's Place. 

Hours: Tuesday-Saturday from 5-10 p.m.

Avant Garden is on the move

Avant Garden, considered the crown jewel of the Overthrow Hospitality plant-based portfolio, will be relocating from 130 E. Seventh St. between Avenue A and First Avenue in the months ahead.

"After eight years in business, Avant Garden is still one of our busiest restaurants at Overthrow Hospitality," Ravi DeRossi, the owner of Overthrow Hospitality, told us in an email. "The 28-seat space with its tiny electric kitchen just isn't able to meet the demand anymore so we will be moving into a new and bigger space."

No details just yet where the new Avant Garden will live ... or the exact timing. 

"We do not expect there to be any lapse at all between the closure of the current location and the opening of the new location," he said.

The listing (PDF here) at Meridian Capital Group notes a June 1 possession date. The asking rent is $8,500 a month.

Michelin named Avant Garden one of NYC's five-best vegetarian restaurants, a list that includes Overthrow's Cadence and Soda Club.

During the first months of the pandemic in 2020, Avant Garden provided free plant-based meals to anyone in need. 

The 3rd annual Mask-Querade taking place on 7th Street this Oct. 30

East Village restaurateur Ravi DeRossi's Overthrow Hospitality group is once again hosting a Trick-or-Treat Halloween festival for children ages 12 and under on Seventh Street between Avenue A and First Avenue.

The third-annual event takes place on Oct. 30 from 1-3 p.m.

Details via the EVG inbox...

Come join the East Village for an afternoon of fun-filled trick-or-treating! Now in its third year, Overthrow Hospitality's Maskquerade offers an afternoon of trick-or-treating to over 1,000 neighborhood children — plus treats for adults, bag-decorating stations and more. 

Hosted on Seventh Street, Overthrow Hospitality transforms the open street into a Halloween scene with the help of a 12-foot skeleton, lifesize dragon, cobwebs galore and more. 

Residents interested in helping out on Oct. 30 can sign find a volunteer sign-up here. Donations are also being accepted via a GoFundMe here. Candy donations can be made directly at Amor y Amargo, 95 Avenue A at Sixth Street, during business hours.

Overthrow has five establishments on this block of Seventh Street: Cadence, Ladybird, the Fragile Flour, Rabbit and Avant Garden.