Not a lot of information about what's next for these 2 former East Village bars

This past weekend someone removed the handpainted Grassroots Tavern sign from here at 20 St. Mark's Place between Second Avenue and Third Avenue...



Kind of surprised no one tried to take it earlier (it was bolted into the wall pretty well). The bar closed after 42 years on New Year's Eve.

As previously reported, the new owner of the bar is Richard Precious, who operates the mini chain of Irish-style pubs called The Ginger Man (including the one on 36th Street).

To date, not much has been made public about his plans for the space. In addition, not much has happened inside the space (aside from some minor clean up and keg removal). An EVG tipster recently found the door open, and ventured inside.

I went over and spoke to one of the guys inside. I asked him when are they going to open. He said kind of laughing "April or May. You know how it is." I then asked are they going to use the name Ginger Man or Grassroots. He said no to Ginger Man and possibly for Grassroots. I have no idea what is the guy’s position in the organization, so you never know what’s really going to happen. To be continued.

---

And over at 120 1/2 First Ave. between Seventh Street and St. Mark's Place... the for rent sign has been removed from the former International Bar (the asking rent is $9,955) ...



According to one former employee, a bubble tea shop is moving in. Now this has not been confirmed ... and could merely be a sarcastic (yet seemingly probable) response ...



The latest iteration of the International Bar closed this past Thanksgiving. (Non-renewal of lease, via landlord Steve Croman.) The bar merged with its sister saloon, the Coal Yard, one block to the south between Seventh Street and Sixth Street.

H/T Steven!

Last call at the Grassroots Tavern

The Grassroots Tavern closed in the early morning hours on Jan. 1, ending a 42-year run at 20 St. Mark's Place between Second Avenue and Third Avenue...


[Top 2 photos Sunday night by Peter Brownscombe]

EVG Facebook friend Jil Derryberry shared these photos from Sunday night...







Despite its appearance, the popcorn machine was not as old as the bar... I'd been there several times in past years when a new machine arrived on the scene...











And the mystery cabinet behind the bar... I always wanted to rifle through the shelves and discover some old menus and bills ... I only ever saw John Leeper go in there looking for aspirin...



As previously reported, the new owner of the bar is Richard Precious, who operates the mini chain of Irish-style pubs called The Ginger Man (including the one on 36th Street).

Someone in the women's room made some suggestions for Precious...



No word on when the new venture might open here. They'll likely be making modifications in this landmarked building, and to date, there aren't any work permits on file with the city.









Previously on EV Grieve:
An end of an era at the Grassroots Tavern

RIP John Leeper

RIP Bob Spedalere

20 St. Mark's Place, home of the Grassroots Tavern, has been sold

Your chance to live in this historic home above the Grassroots Tavern on St. Mark's Place

New owner lined up for the Grassroots Tavern on St. Mark's Place

After 42 years on St. Mark's Place, the Grassroots Tavern closes on New Year's Eve

Year-end closures: The Grassroots, Paquito's, Noho Star and Republic

[20 St. Mark's Place the other morning]

The Grassroots Tavern
The 42-year-old bar at 20 St. Mark's Place between Second Avenue and Third Avenue is closing after service on New Year's Eve. The owner of the bar was also the owner of the building and apparently sold the business without getting a favorable rent, according to some insiders. A "rent increase" is the official reason for the closure. The owner of the Ginger Man on 36th Street is taking over the space in 2018.



Paquito's
The 25-year-old Mexican restaurant at 143 First Ave. near Ninth Street shuts down tomorrow. However, Paquito's will maintain a to-go counter and delivery service in the space next door to the restaurant. The owners didn't provide a reason for the closure.

Noho Star (and the Temple Bar)
Both establishments on Lafayette Street will close after service on Sunday, as Jeremiah Moss first reported. There weren't any official reasons given for the closures of Noho Star (opened 1985) or the Temple Bar (1989).

Republic
The 20-year-old noodle shop is closing this weekend on Union Square. A steep rent increase is reportedly behind this shutter. As Eater noted about Republic and soon-to-close Blue Water Grill, "these restaurants contribute to the neighborhood increasing in value, which in turn causes landlords to raise rents to unsustainable highs once a lease is up."

After 42 years on St. Mark's Place, the Grassroots Tavern closes on New Year's Eve

[Image via]

The Grassroots Tavern will close after service on New Year's Eve, according to a post on the bar's Facebook page this past Thursday night

This development comes after the news last week that a new owner is set to take over the bar at 20 St. Mark's Place between Second Avenue and Third Avenue.

Richard Precious, who owns the mini chain of bars called The Ginger Man (the one on 36th Street opened in 1996), is expected to appear before the CB3-SLA committee tonight for a new liquor license for the Grassroots.

The questionnaire on file at the CB3 website doesn't mention what the new bar might be called or what type of modifications may occur at the Grassroots, which opened in 1975. There is mention of serving "casual restaurant fare." (A tipster shared a copy of the menu submitted with the plans. It appears to be the same menu as the Ginger Man on 36th Street.)

In January 2016, Klosed Properties bought the landmarked 20 St. Mark's Place from Jim Stratton, who is also the majority owner of the Grassroots. At that time, as previously reported, a source said that the bar had a lease for the next five years, with an option after that for renewal. According to public records, Klosed Properties paid about $5.6 million for the building, which includes a 2nd-floor co-op that also served as an art studio.

Stratton told Bedford + Bowery that the rent had just become too high. "We were not forced out by any means, it would just have required a radical change for the business and the way we operate. We basically decided we had to throw in the towel." (Several GR regulars wonder why Stratton, as the seller of the building, didn't negotiate a favorable lease for his bar.)

A retail listing for 20 St. Mark's Place made the rounds this fall...



The asking rent was $25,000.

Updated 8:30 p.m.

According to attendees at tonight's meeting, the committee issued an approval — with stipulations — for this application.

Previously on EV Grieve:
20 St. Mark's Place, home of the Grassroots Tavern, has been sold

Your chance to live in this historic home above the Grassroots Tavern on St. Mark's Place

New owner lined up for the Grassroots Tavern on St. Mark's Place

An end of an era at the Grassroots Tavern

RIP John Leeper

RIP Bob Spedalere

[Updated] New owner lined up for the Grassroots Tavern on St. Mark's Place

An applicant is expected to appear before the CB3-SLA committee this month for a new liquor license for the Grassroots Tavern at 20 St. Mark's Place.

According to the questionnaire (PDF here) posted for the public on the CB3 website, the applicant is Richard Precious. The paperwork describes this as "a sale of assets."

Precious started a mini chain of bars called the Ginger Man in Texas in 1985 (named after the J.P. Donleavy novel). He opened a Ginger Man on East 36th Street near Fifth Avenue in 1996. (He sold the Texas bars in 2000. There are also Ginger Man bars in Greenwich and Norwalk, Conn.)

The questionnaire does not specify if the basement-level Grassroots space would be renamed or renovated. There's a mention of food ("casual restaurant fare"). The proposed hours remain roughly the same (4 p.m. to 4 a.m. Monday through Friday instead of the current 3 p.m. to 4 a.m.), but with an earlier start on Saturday and Sunday (1 p.m.). The live jazz performances on Sunday evening will continue, per the questionnaire. (And it looks as if the lone TV will remain.)


[EVG file photo]

No word yet when — or if — the change in ownership will occur and what type of modifications may occur at the Grassroots, which opened here between Second Avenue and Third Avenue in 1975.

As for what might be in store, here's an overview of the NYC Ginger Man via New York magazine:

As much a pub as a Mercedes SUV is a jeep, the Ginger Man feels like Euro Disney's vision of the classic Irish watering hole. Nothing is done in half measures, whether it's the mind-boggling selection of beers and single malts or the JFK, Jr.-look-alike bartenders. And while the clientele is all business during the day, this vision of J. Press heaven loosens its tie and kicks off its heels at night. On a recent visit, suit-and-tie singles, post-MSG sports fans and an impromptu wrap party for an off-Broadway play co-existed peacefully, with more than enough wandering room and cozy corners for all.

A change in the GR status quo isn't a big surprise. In January 2016, Klosed Properties bought the landmarked 20 St. Mark's Place from Jim Stratton, who is also the majority owner of the Grassroots. At that time, a source with some background of the deal said that the bar had a lease for the next five years, with an option after that for renewal.

However, there have been unsubstantiated-to-date rumors in circulation that the current incarnation of the Grassroots would close before the end of its current lease.

Meanwhile, several applicants had been looking at opening a bar-restaurant in the upstairs space that previously housed Sounds. However, those plans never materialized.

The December CB3-SLA committee meeting is Dec. 11 at 6:30 p.m. at the Perseverance House Community Room, 535 E. Fifth St. between Avenue A and Avenue B.

Updated 12/7

The bar's Facebook page announced tonight that the Grassroots will close after service on New Year's Eve. More to come...

Previously on EV Grieve:
20 St. Mark's Place, home of the Grassroots Tavern, has been sold

Your chance to live in this historic home above the Grassroots Tavern on St. Mark's Place

The Grassroots Tavern now opens 1 hour earlier

EVG and Grassroots regular Riley McCormick notes that the bar at 20 St.Mark's Place between Second Avenue and Third Avenue is now open one hour earlier ... 3 p.m. ... still with the $2 pints (of Bud/Bud Light right???) ... and now also offering — heh — white peach sangria.

Not sure how this compares just yet with the Great Changing of the Old TV Set in 2011.

20 St. Mark's Place, home of the Grassroots Tavern, has been sold

[Image via LoopNet]

For months now we've been hearing that 20 St. Mark's Place was in the process of being sold.

And now details on the sale of the historic building between Second Avenue and Third Avenue are public. Real Estate Weekly noted last week that Klosed Properties is the new owner. There wasn't any mention of the price. According to public records, it appears that Klosed Properties paid about $5.6 million for the building, which includes a 2nd-floor co-op that also served as an art studio.

We don't know too much about this real-estate company. Among their newer properties in their vast portfolio: 837 Second Ave., which was home until last spring to the original, 90-year-old Palm Restaurant. As several news outlets reported, workers wiped away the Palm's iconic murals and magazine covers that lined the walls last August. Klosed principal Steven Kachanian told The Real Deal the following about the Palm space in August: "We're working with some high-end tenants looking to do some major work to the property."

So what does the sale mean for the lone tenant at No. 20 — the 40-year-plus old Grassroots Tavern? They are staying put. The bar's majority owner, Jim Stratton, also owned the building. According to a source with some background of the deal, the bar has a lease for the next five years... with an option after that for renewal.


[An early morning look at the Grassroots from last month]

The other retail tenant in the building, Sounds, closed in October after 36 years in business. (Sounds owner Brian Fair died in early December after a short stint in the hospital.)

20 St. Mark's Place, known as the Daniel LeRoy House, was built in 1832. It received landmark status in 1971... and added to the National Register of Historic Places in 1982. (Find more history of the Greek Revival house here.)

Previously on EV Grieve:
The last record store on St. Mark's Place is closing

So long Sounds

RIP Brian Fair, owner of Sounds

Your chance to live in this historic home above the Grassroots Tavern on St. Mark's Place

[Via Wikipedia]

There's a new listing for a home at 20 St. Mark's Place, above one of our favorite places, the Grassroots Tavern ... (and above Sounds) ... and we always forget just how nice the residences are here...

Per the Douglas Elliman listing:

2 beds, 2 baths unit occupying entire second floor.
Apartment features North-South exposures with garden views and partial city views, 12 foot ceilings, formal dining and a grand living space with wide plank hardwood floors throughout, oak moldings, three fireplaces.

Price: $2.1 million. Here are a few photos...

In case you don't know this building's history ... No. 20 is The Daniel LeRoy House, built in 1832 and landmarked in 1969 ... and added to the National Register of Historic Places in 1982. The historical marker out front reads:

This mansion was once part of the row that lined the entire brickfront. With its arched Federal-Barqoue doorway, grand proportions and original wrought iron handrailings at the stoop, it is now a rare survivor of a type, which because of its great cost, was never common. The row, one of the few ever built in this style in New York, was constructed in 1832, by Thomas E. Davis, a speculative builder. No. 20 was purchased by Daniel Leroy, brother-in-law of Hamilton Fish and son-in-law of Nicholas Fish, whose nearby home at 21 Stuyvesant Street is also a landmark.

Something to think about over your next $2 happy hour pint...

RIP Bob Spedalere

A few friends of the Grassroots Tavern on St. Mark's Place passed along word that Bob Spedalere, a longtime bartender there, died last Thursday. He was 65.

We don't have a lot of details, though we understand that he had been in the hospital. There is a wake today at Provenzano Lanza, 43 Second Ave., from 2-5 p.m. and 7- 9 p.m.

It's likely that you saw Bob with his beloved dog Zach walking around St. Mark's Place ... or maybe even in the Grassroots. (Zack died several years ago.)

Been a difficult time for Grassroots regulars. John Leeper, another longtime bartender there, died last November.

[Photos via Facebook]

RIP John Leeper

John Leeper, who retired this past summer after working 24 years behind the bar at the Grassroots Tavern on St. Mark's Place, has died. Several EV Grieve readers passed along word. We understand that he died of a heart attack during the weekend. We don't know his age, but everyone's best guest is 75 to 80.

John just stopped by the bar last Thursday night, and was his usual self.

On Facebook, Grassroots regular Brian Cogan wrote the following:

John was a consumate storyteller. He WAS Grassroots for those of us early birds who sat and listened to him over a beer. Whether it was about Kansas, opera, or working for the Mob (briefly), John held us in the palm of his hand, before asking if we wanted another. And with him bartending, we always did. RIP John.

We don't have all the details about services. We understand that there will be a service in Brooklyn. He will be buried in a family plot in Kansas.

Previously on EV Grieve:
An end of an era at the Grassroots Tavern

An end of an era at the Grassroots Tavern

After 24 years behind the bar at the Grassroots Tavern on St. Mark's Place, John Leeper has retired. We've been trying to guess his age for years. Best guess is between 75 and 80.

His last day was Friday. We're told that a large contingent of regulars from the 4-9 p.m. shift — the times that John normally worked Tuesday through Saturday — were on hand to see him off.

According to an afternoon-shift regular, as John left the Grassroots at 9 p.m. for one last time, the entire bar sang "For He's A Jolly Good Fellow." He stood at the door with his wife, a high school teacher in Brooklyn. He had tears in his eyes. He waved goodbye and headed into the night.

Per the regular: "The Grassroots will never be the same."

Indeed. We've enjoyed his company through the years. John was always good with a story — tall tales or otherwise. We've heard amusing anecdotes about everyone from Joe Namath to Reggie Jackson to (rather randomly!) Claude Akins. He talked about running some after-hours joints in the West Village in the 1970s full of colorful characters, like Jimmy the Slabman.

He tended bar for Hilly Kristal in the early 1970s when Hilly had a place over on Sixth Avenue at Ninth Street. John followed him over here, working briefly at Hilly's on the Bowery, the bar that would later become CBGB. He had a few funny Hilly stories. But he was never nostalgic. Maybe a little too matter-of-fact at times.

John didn't have much patience for bar incompetence. You didn't want to be the person who walked into the Grassroots and ask what kind of beer was on tap when you're standing in front of one of the carefully placed beer lists on the wall. He particularly disliked when, say, four after-work types ordered a $7 pitcher of Budweiser. And all four people fumbled around their wallets or pockets looking for their $2 portion. Why doesn't one person pick up the round? He also lamented that no one read anymore, saying this while watching people who were by themselves at the bar playing with their various smartphones.

But stories and bar etiquette aside, he knew what to say when it mattered most. A job loss. A challenging situation at home. He often served as a father figure. We always knew where to find him. And it seemed like he'd be there forever.

[We thought we had some photos of John, though we couldn't find one. Photo here via]

A new era for watching TV at the Grassroots

So you know the Grassroots on St. Mark's Place had that lone TV leftover from, say, 1991 at the south end of the bar. Pretty much everything looked orange and green. And distorted. It was awesome.

However, a tipster notes that the owner installed a new 19-inch TV flatscreen TV this past Thursday...

Well, at least they still have the phone booth by the front door. (And never mind that the phone doesn't work.)

Out back at the Grassroots

The other day I caught a glimpse of the open space behind the Grassroots on St. Mark's Place... the door is always closed... used just as an emergency exit... I was surprised to see it open and took a quick peak ... Imagine the horror show out back if majority owner Jim Stratton ever decided to apply for an outdoor license ...




In any event, there are absolutely NO plans for this... it is a nice space, though...

New Grassroots sign is MIA

Just last week we pointed out the new sign for the Grassroots...



And, well, now it's gone... dunno if it was stolen... or there's some other logical explanation...

A new (old) sign for the Grassroots

Well, the old sign at the Grassroots on St. Mark's Place had been looking a little worn...



So, over the weekend, a nearly identical new sign went up...



No complaints here.