Mexican restaurant back on for 157 2nd Ave.?

[Photo yesterday by Steven]

A for-rent sign remains on display in the front window at 157 Second Ave., which was most recently Yuan Noodle.

And for a few days, there was a notice from the State Liquor Authority (SLA) about a new applicant seeking to sell liquor here between Ninth Street and 10th Street ...


[Photo Saturday by Steven]

In May, applicants from Butter Midtown — doing business as E&Y Hospitality LLC — received CB3's OK to open a Mexican restaurant here.

However, the SLA notice has since been removed at No. 157. So the Mexican restaurant's status remains unclear at the moment.

Despite the application on file at the CB3 website back in May, Yuan owner Jacob Ding told Eater that his restaurant was not closing. Yuan shut down nearly two months later after a year in business.

Previously on EV Grieve:
Yuan Noodle may be yielding to a Mexican restaurant on 2nd Avenue

Yuan Noodle has closed on 2nd Avenue

[Top 2 photos via Chris Rowland]

Yuan Noodle has closed at 157 Second Ave. less than a year after debuting to positive notices here between Ninth Street and 10th Street.

There are two signs on the front window. As of yesterday afternoon, one sign noted that the business was for sale (via Yuan's owner Jacob Ding, who's also a commercial real-estate broker) ... and the other one, upside down, noted a closing sale...



Upon opening last summer, Eater wrote that Yuan "is nothing short of spectacular." The New York Times praised Yuan's signature Guilin mi fen (rice noodles).

In recent weeks, Yuan started looking like a restaurant that was closing, offering 2-for-1 shot deals ...



... and signs for all-night happy hours and $25-all-you-can-drink specials...



Anyway, not sure what happened here. (There isn't any note about the closing on the Yuan website.) This has been a challenging space to make work. Biang! — the sit-down Chinese restaurant via Xi'an Famous Foods owner Jason Wang — closed here back in March 2017 after 15 months in business. The previous tenant, Wylie Dufresne's bistro Alder, closed after two-and-a-half years at the end of August 2015.

As noted before, if Wang and Dufresne, given their successes, couldn't make the space work ... not sure who can. Other recent restaurants here (before 2013) included Plum and Cafe Brama.

In May, applicants from Butter Midtown received CB3's OK to open a Mexican restaurant at No. 157. Given the business-for-sale sign, this deal apparently fell through.

Despite the application on file at the CB3 website, Ding told Eater in May that his restaurant was not closing.

Yuan Noodle may be yielding to a Mexican restaurant on 2nd Avenue

[Image via the CB3 website]

Applicants from Butter Midtown are looking to open a Mexican restaurant at 157 Second Ave. between Ninth Street and 10th Street.

The team behind the proposed venture, including Executive Chef Michael Jenkins and Beverage Director Eder Canseco, are expected to appear before CB3's SLA committee tonight for a new liquor license. This is described as a sale of assets. The current tenant is Yuan Noodle, which just opened last summer in the space.

The questionnaire on file at the CB3 website (PDF here) provides extensive details about the restaurant:

We believe our concept of American Mexican cuisine will bring a new variety of food to this neighborhood. In an area filled with primarily Japanese, Chinese, Taiwanese, and American restaurants within a two block radius, this will provide a unique option for local residences ...

Along with Michael’s concepts, Eder’s mom Rosa will be bringing in her Mexican taco recipes that offers a more traditional take. Rosa learned how to cook from her mother-in-law who learned from her from mother and grandmother. This dates back to over three generations of classic Mexican cooking. The Breukelen style for some dishes will include small touches to traditional recipes that feels like a home cooked meal is being served. The right balance in sweet and spicy in her mole and Pipian sauce recipes will be unique to the neighborhood.

The unnamed restaurant has proposed hours of 5 p.m. to midnight Sunday through Wednesday; until 2 a.m. Thursday through Saturday.

The address has been home to several high-profile restaurants in recent years. Biang! — the sit-down Chinese restaurant via Xi'an Famous Foods owner Jason Wang — closed in March 2017 after 15 months in business. Wylie Dufresne's bistro Alder, closed after two-and-a-half years at the end of August 2015.

Other recent restaurants here (before 2013) included Plum and Cafe Brama.

Upon its opening last summer, Yuan garnered positive notices. Eater declared that the rice-noodle dishes here were "nothing short of spectacular." The Times was also generous with the praise.

The CB3-SLA meeting is tonight at 6:30. The location: the Public Hotel, 17th Floor, Sophia Room, 215 Chrystie St. between Houston and Stanton.

Yuan Noodle in soft-open mode on 2nd Avenue

Yuan Noodle is getting ready for its grand opening at 157 Second Ave. between Ninth Street and 10th Street.

The restaurant is in soft-open mode for now...



Eater had more on the owners and concept back in May:

Former financier Jacob Ding is using family recipes to open a Guilin boiled rice noodle and dim sum parlor, after his wife told him she wished that type of restaurant existed.

Ding grew up in Guilin, China, where rice noodles reign. They’re thick and come with various topping such as roasted peanuts, scallions, chiles, and assorted pickles. Ding will serve his dry, as opposed to with soup, alongside a condensed gravy-like sauce and with options like roast pork and braised beef.

Yuan Noodle will also offer classic dim sum dishes, such as shumai, har gow, and vegetable dumplings.

Here's a look at the menu posted on the front window...





The address previously housed Biang!, the sit-down Chinese restaurant via Xi'an Famous Foods owner Jason Wang, and Alder, Wylie Dufresne's bistro.

Previously on EV Grieve:
Yuan Noodle in the works for the former Biang! space on 2nd Avenue