Last week, we reported on the significant restaurant carnage that has taken place of late in the East 50s. Now, from you, our beloved readers, we learn of several other closings in that neighborhood and nearby:
East 50s
· Bliss (on the verge of closing to make way for a condo)
· Hsin Yu
· Martell's
Elsewhere
· Pierre Au Tunnel
· Il Patrizio
Of these, Pierre Au Tunnel was the oldest, having been under the same roof with the same owners open since 1950. Il Patrizio, the latest of a great many casualties of 206 East 63rd St, was the youngest.
UPDATE:We are humbled by a savvy reader. She writes us to clarify a fact or two about the venerable Au Tunnel:
It has not, as you stated, "been under the same roof...since 1950." In fact, it was originally located at 306 W. 48th St., directly across the street from another French bistro, Du Midi, each owned by different Pujol brothers. Although I did eat at Au Tunnel in that location, my family was partial to Du Midi, where we ate countless times.So perhaps in the same neighborhood is more accurate.
I don't remember what year Au Tunnel moved to its current 47th St. location. But it was not long after Du Midi closed. I think that was sometime in the 1970's, when the owner died and his children chose not to maintain the restaurant. This differed from Au Tunnel and Rene Pujol (owned by another family member), which are both now owned and operated by the second generation.
