For lease signs arrive on the former Belgian Room and Hop Devil Grill spaces

[A few weeks ago]

A few weeks ago, we noticed that workers removed the wall that separated the former Ton-Up Cafe and Belgian Room on St. Mark's Place between Avenue A and First Avenue.

Some St. Mark's Place empty storefront watchers thought this work might indicate a new tenant was on the way in…

Apparently not. For lease signs arrived on the spaces yesterday… as well as on the adjacent Hop Devil Grill front door…



This is the first time that we've seen any for lease signs on the Belgian Room and Hop Devil Grill since the State of New York seized the sister bars back in April. The Ton-Up space at No. 127 has been empty since May 2014. (The for lease sign here arrived, before disappearing, last October.)

Previously on EV Grieve:
The Belgian Room and Hop Devil Grill closed for nonpayment of taxes

Selling off the former Hop Devil Grill

Sitting empty on St. Mark's Place

Sitting empty on St. Mark's Place

While there has been a taker for the former Luca Bar, the spaces that housed its neighbors on St. Mark's Place between Avenue A and First Avenue remain empty.

Back in April, the State of New York seized sister bars the Belgian Room and Hop Devil Grill. The Ton-Up space at No. 127 has been empty since May 2014.

We looked inside the other day and noticed that someone removed the wall that separated the Ton-Up space...



... and the Belgian Room... to perhaps make for a larger bar-restaurant concept some day...



We haven't spotted any for rent signs on either the Belgian Room or Hop Devil Grill. And there aren't any work permits on file with the DOB to suggest any incoming new business.

And some equal time to the ex-Hop Devil Grill ...



Previously on EV Grieve:
The Belgian Room and Hop Devil Grill closed for nonpayment of taxes

Selling off the former Hop Devil Grill

Old Hop Devil Grill to reopen today with a Southwestern flavor

The former Hop Devil Grill will reopen today, at least according to the sign on the front of the bar on St. Mark's Place near Avenue A....and their Web site:

Hey everyone, we'll be closed until December 3rd due to some renovations we are doing. As you know, or in case you didn't, we feature Southwestern cuisine on our menu, and so we are taking a little time to make our place a little more southwestern. Same excellent beer, sangria, margaritas and fine tequila. We'll see you in a couple of weeks. Happy Thanksgiving from everyone at Hop Devil Grill.

Yesterday, workers were busy putting the final fixins' on the exterior.





I took a quick gander inside...and saw the many taps still lined up along the wall...

Previously on EV Grieve:
RIP Hop Devil Grill

[Updated] DOH temporarily closes Hop Devil Grill and the Belgian Room

DOH inspectors came calling on St. Mark's Place Friday… and both the Belgian Room …



… and Hop Devil Grill were temporarily closed for the weekend for unspecified violations (the reports were not online just yet)…



Both spaces have signs on the door noting they are closed "due to electrical issues."


[Photo by Ted Roden]

There isn't any mention of the closures on either bar's website or social media accounts.

Meanwhile, Ton-Up Cafe, which is between The Belgian Room and Hop Devil Grill, is also closed…



Not much info on the sign on the door…



The cafe opened in April 2013 … and serves paninis named in honor of Johnny Cash, Chuck Berry and Elvis.

One of the owners here also operates Falanghina, the pizzeria which remains open at the former Whole Earth Bakery across the street.

Updated 5-13

The Belgian Room and Hop Devil Grill are BACK open.

Selling off the former Hop Devil Grill

In early April, the State of New York seized sister bars the Belgian Room and Hop Devil Grill on St. Mark's Place near Avenue A.

The bars will not be reopening. There's now a sign up on Hop Devil's front door, noting a Tax Compliance Agent's Sale on Thursday morning here at 125 St. Mark's Place…



There is not a sign up at the Belgian Room. (There is a flyer up next door at the former Ton-Up Cafe, the space that separates Hop Devil and the Belgian Room. Ton-Up has been on the market since the fall. Likely just some overzealous sign hanging on behalf of the State.)



Meanwhile, there still isn't any sign of life a storefront away at the Luca Bar. A Marshal's notice appeared on the door at 119 St. Mark's Place in late April.



Looking in, it appears that part of Luca's ceiling came down…



… and there's some mail too…



So that's four spaces among five storefronts here on the north side of St. Mark's primed for new businesses …

Previously on EV Grieve:
The Belgian Room and Hop Devil Grill closed for nonpayment of taxes

The Marshal seizes Luca Bar (again) on St. Mark's Place

RIP Hop Devil Grill

The Hop Devil Grill on St. Mark's near Avenue A is gone. Was way too bland and fratty for our liking, but they had some tasty suds on tap -- 31 or so on a rotating basis.



Looks like it will reopen....and be completely different. New concept? Why does this give us the fear?



They were shut down in February for allegedly serving minors; in July, they were reportedly denied a liquor license renewal due to prior violations for selling to minors.

P.S.
The Hop Devil Grill Web site was still up and running as of last night.

P.S.S.
Thanks to Jeremiah for reminding me in the comments that this space used to be Stingy Lulu's, which was there 1992 to, what, 2004? Hop Devil opened in March 2005.

Hop Devil Lounge vs. Hop Devil Grill

As you probably know, the owners of the Hop Devil Grill on St. Mark's near Avenue A remodeled the joint to rebrand as the Southwestern themed...Hop Devil Lounge. The Hop Devil redux opened on Dec. 3. Been meaning to stop by, sort of, purely for research reasons. But I did pick up the new menu! Which I compared to the old menu...which leads me to think...



...they cut back on their clip-art budget.

So, anyway -- there's a Southwestern theme...and burgers. And lots of beer.

Those Starbucks rumors continue to percolate on Avenue A and St. Mark's Place

[Photo from October]

Back in the fall, an EVG reader told us a worker was upgrading the electricity at 131 Avenue A ... because he said a Starbucks was going to be renting the former Nino's and Hop Devil Grill spaces on Avenue A at St. Mark's Place.

Meanwhile, last week, an Avenue A business owner asked us if we heard about a Starbucks opening on Avenue A. Now the rumor continues to pick up steam, as The Villager cites an unnamed source who tells the weekly paper: "I would say it’s a 90 percent certainty that Starbucks will be in the space."

Last fall, a tipster shared the flyer in circulation for the property...



At the time, a source with knowledge of the asking rent said that the corner space was seeking $15,020 per month and the inline storefront was going for $42,072 per month. The landlord was asking $52,000 for the combined spaces.

So far, there isn't any other evidence that this space has a tenant just yet. And Starbucks has been a handy rumored tenant in recent years ... for the corner of Avenue A and 11th Street and Avenue B and Fourth Street ... the contractor who said that a Starbucks was coming to First Avenue and 13th Street turned out to be correct, though.

James Morrissey, who owns The Late Late on East Houston and now VNYL on Third Avenue, had been after the spaces to create The Honey Fitz, a bar-diner-restaurant-cafe-networking space. Those plans never materialized early last year.


[Photo from yesterday]

To recap, Nino's closed in October 2015. As previously reported, owner Nino Camaj accepted a low six-figure amount to walk away from his remaining 10-year lease and surrender the pizza shop that he opened in 1989. He had been in a dispute with the landlord over back rent and a closure due to a gas leak in the building. Hop Devil Grill and its sister bar next door, The Belgian Room, were seized by the state in April 2015 for nonpayment of taxes.

Previously on EV Grieve:
A look at the retail listing for the northwest corner of A and St. Mark's Place

The former spaces for Nino's and Hop Devil Grill have been combined

Starbucks confirmed for Avenue A

It looks like those Starbucks-to-Avenue A rumors are true.

Recently issued work permits for 129-131 Avenue A show ...


[Click to go big]

Per the ALL-CAP DOB paperwork on another work permit for the address: "FILING FOR GENERAL CONSTRUCTION RELATED TO STARBUCKS BUILD-OUT."

It's not exactly clear where the Starbucks will go... there are multiple addresses — 125-131 St Mark's Place and 125-131 Avenue A — associated with the building on the northwest corner, and there are several empty storefronts within these addresses... including the former Nino's and Hop Devil Grill...



The original rumors had the Starbucks going into this prime corner space. (That makes sense.) Paper also just went up in the window of the former Yoshi Sushi...



None of the work permits posted on these storefronts list the Starbucks info. That's only online as of now.

It's also not clear what kind of Starbucks this will be. Last fall, the company announced plans to open up to 1,000 Starbucks stores "with a Reserve coffee bar experience" by the end of 2017. There are four newish locations in NYC of a Starbucks Reserve Roastery, including at 10 Waverly Place.

The architect of record for the Avenue A work was also behind the new Starbucks on Waverly Place as well as several others in the city.

In any event, this will be the first Starbucks to open in the East Village east of First Avenue, where there are locations at Third Street and at 13th Street.

As for the previous tenants here, to the usual recap: Nino's closed in October 2015. As previously reported, owner Nino Camaj accepted a low six-figure amount to walk away from his remaining 10-year lease and surrender the pizza shop that he opened in 1989. He had been in a dispute with the landlord over back rent and a closure due to a gas leak in the building. Hop Devil Grill and its sister bar next door, The Belgian Room, were seized by the state in April 2015 for nonpayment of taxes.

Previously on EV Grieve:
A look at the retail listing for the northwest corner of A and St. Mark's Place

The former spaces for Nino's and Hop Devil Grill have been combined

Those Starbucks rumors continue to percolate on Avenue A and St. Mark's Place

The former spaces for Nino's and Hop Devil Grill have been combined

In recent weeks the former Nino's Pizza storefront on Avenue A and St. Mark's Place has been blanketed in graffiti... making it difficult to see what might be going on inside the vacant space. (Not to mention the brown paper.)

The other day a worker wiped away part of the tags, offering a view of the interior...


[From St. Mark's looking north]


[From A looking to the west]

The wall separating the former Hop Devil Grill at 129 St. Mark's Place has been removed, creating one big(ger) space...



There are work permits, dated Oct. 14, on file with the DOB for "interior demo."

No word if there's a tenant for the space or if the landlord is just giving it the vanilla box treatment to show potential tenants.

James Morrissey, who owns The Late Late on East Houston and now VNYL on Third Avenue, had been after the spaces to create The Honey Fitz. Those plans were put on hold, though Morrissey told DNAinfo back in February the he "remains interested in the location, assuming all outstanding lease issues have been resolved."

A for rent sign (which arrived back in April) is barely visible now at the Nino's space...



Nino's closed in October 2015. As previously reported, owner Nino Camaj accepted a low six-figure amount to walk away from his remaining 10-year lease and surrender the pizza shop that he opened in 1989. He had been in a dispute with the landlord over back rent and a closure due to a gas leak in the building.

Hop Devil Grill and its sister bar next door, The Belgian Room, were seized by the state in April 2015 for nonpayment of taxes.

Lordy, he's STILL talking about the Hop Devil Grill

OK, OK...just a point of clarification after a conversation about the Hop Devil Grill closing with a friend. The Belgian Room, an extension of Hop Devil Grill at 125 St. Mark's Place, also closed. All part of the same deal: Will reopen on Dec. 3 with a new concept, management, etc.

The Belgian Room and Hop Devil Grill closed for nonpayment of taxes

The state's fluorescent SEIZED sticker arrived today at sister bars The Belgian Room and Hop Devil Grill on St. Mark's Place near Avenue A …



There isn't any other information about the situation at the moment…



So, for now, the two spaces remain closed. (These seizures aren't always permanent, as we saw at Sahara East, among other businesses.)

Hop Devil Grill says to have some Respect here on St. Mark's Place

[Click on image for a better read]

An EVG reader points us to an Urban Etiquette Sign on the door at Hop Devil Grill at 129 St. Mark's Place near Avenue A.

It reads in part:

Keep your voices down, keep your drinks inside, and in general treat this sidewalk like your mom's porch.

The people who live above your head have lived here for many years and deserve to enjoy peace and quiet while we all enjoy our party.

When you disrespect the tenants of this building you disrespect our business, our employees, and our neighborhood.

Have some common decency and keep yourself under control while outside the building.

We love you and want you to have a blast. Just do us a favor and do it in a way that doesn't ruin the night of the people who make this neighborhood awesome.

The former Nino's is for rent on Avenue A and St. Mark's Place

The for rent signs arrived Friday at the former pizzeria here on Avenue A and St. Mark's Place...



The listing isn't live just yet at the Jonis Realty site.

Perhaps then this means that the proposed cocktail bar-restaurant-grab-and-go-breakfast-place-co-working-freelance space The Honey Fitz is no longer in the works.

As you may recall, the proprietors, James Morrissey (The Late Late on East Houston) and Gerard McNamee (GM of Webster Hall), wanted to combine the empty Hop Devil Grill with Nino's for one large Honey Fitz. However, facing opposition from CB3 during the February SLA committee meeting, the proprietors withdrew their proposal. (BoweryBoogie covered the meeting here.)

The former Hop Devil space remains open... literally...



Maybe the Honey Fitz can work from just this space.

As for Nino's. The pizzeria had to close on Oct. 21 due to a gas leak in the building. On Nov. 17, Nino's received an eviction notice. Owner Nino Camaj had said that the gas was shut off in the building without any notice to him. In late November, Camaj's lawyers were reportedly in discussion with landlord Citi Urban Management to dispute the rent charged for the month during which they had to close due to the gas leak. Camaj still has 10 years left on his lease, and had been in court with the landlords.

But before the February CB3-SLA meeting, word came out that Camaj had accepted a low six-figure amount to walk away from his lease and surrender the space. The kitchen equipment was auctioned off on Feb. 22.

Nino's opened in 1989. (Nino sold the business in 2012, which produced a short-lived pizzeria. He returned and reopened Nino's in July 2013.)

Camaj told DNAinfo in February that he could no longer afford the $14,500 monthly rent. Camaj said that the rent for the corner space was $3,500 when he first opened.

Previously on EV Grieve:
The Honey Fitz in the works for St. Mark's Place and Avenue A (54 comments)

Gas leak closes Nino's for now

Nino's and Yoshi Sushi served with eviction notices on Avenue A

Encouraging signs at Nino's

Report: The Honey Fitz on hold; and RIP Nino's

Selling off Nino's

Belgian place now Latin

I've lost track of the changes that took place in the conversion from Hop Devil Grill to Hop Devil Lounge last December. Also affected in all this: The companion bar
next door, the Belgian Room.

Anyway, the Belgian Room is now the Latin Bar Lounge.



On St. Mark's near Avenue A.

New concept for Nevada Smiths includes record store paying homage to Thin Lizzy, plus a bar

[EVG photo from December]

An applicant was on CB3's SLA committee meeting docket in January for the former Nevada Smiths space at 100 Third Ave. between East 12th Street and East 13th Street.

However, the applicant was a scratch in the weeks leading up to the meeting. There wasn't much known about the plans for the football/soccer establishment other than that the name of Bruce Caulfield appeared on a notice with the application.

Since 2003, Caulfield (with two business partners) has run the train-themed Tracks Raw Bar & Grill in the LIRR level at Penn Station. He's also a partner in Harp Raw Bar & Grill on Third Avenue near Grand Central as well as a longtime NYC business owner.

Caulfield, a former Nevada Smiths partner, is back on the agenda for the February CB3-SLA meeting along with two other familiar names — James Morrissey (The Late Late on East Houston) and Gerard McNamee (GM of Webster Hall).

Morrissey and McNamee are elsewhere on the agenda with their proposed concept for The Honey Fitz, a restaurant-cocktail bar-freelance-work space in the works for the former Hop Devil Grill and the temporarily closed Nino's Pizza storefront on St. Mark's Place and Avenue A.

The plans for the three-level Nevada Smiths space are equally ambitious. According to public documents (PDF) on the CB3 website, the proposed venture is called Vinyl, which will be a coffee house, vintage vinyl record store and bar/restaurant all under one roof...



The record store will pay homage to Irish rock band Thin Lizzy... the record store and cafe would open daily at 10 a.m. ... with the bar/food starting at noon, with proposed closing hours of 4 a.m.




[Screenshots via the CB3 website]

The proposal also calls for "poetry & spoken word cultural events." No word on what will become of the 20 Plasma TVs and two life-size projection screens that arrived with the new Nevada Smiths, which opened here in April 2013. Nevada Smiths never reopened after the Marshal took legal possession of the business last September.

You can read the comprehensive questionnaire for Vinyl at the CB3 website. (PDF here.)

The SLA committee meeting is Feb. 16 at 6:30 p.m. in the CB3 office, 59 E. Fourth St. between Second Avenue and the Bowery.

Previously on EV Grieve:
Nevada Smiths is closed, and here's what's next

Those persistent rumors about 74-76 Third Avenue and the future of Nevada Smiths

The East Village will lose a parking lot and gain an apartment building

Here then, where Nevada Smiths once stood

The Marshal seizes Nevada Smiths on 3rd Avenue

[Updated] New life for the Nevada Smiths space on 3rd Avenue

East Village eatery odds-n-ends: French Creperie coming to St. Mark's; Rico getting evicted; people standing in line at Pulino's

Absinthe wine bar closed on First Avenue near Seventh Street back in November... the place became Lautrec Bistro.... now that place has closed... a new cafe is hoping to transfer the license here tonight during the CB3/SLA meeting... the new owners want to operate the garden... which has caused problems in the past...



As BoweryBoogie noted Friday, Pulino's finally outed its sidewalk cafe... and there were lines (and bare feet!)...



Officials served Rico, the hookah joint on Avenue C between Ninth Street and 10th Street, with an eviction notice... (They closed once and reopened about two months later back in 2008.)




Signs for a French Creperie have gone up on St. Mark's Place next to the Hop Devil Grill... replacing the boitique that closed here...




Workers removed the plywood at the Pita Pan Sports Grill on Second Avenue and Sixth Street...



And, I have no idea when this happened, but the McDonald's on 14th Street near First Avenue has a walk-up window now...