Snapped on the window of the very short lived Della Rovere: What happens when the money runs out before the buzz.
The abrupt closure of 7Square provides an opportunity to remind our would-be restaurateurs in the audience about the importance of a war chest. If you run out of money before the buzz has a chance to take hold, you are, in the parlance of the Shutter, doneski. Re 7Square's shuttering in particular, here are the factors that spokesman and evil genius Steve Hall pointed to:
Very high rent, and being the only food service in the hotel they had to serve breakfast, take care of room service and run the second floor lounge which added to labor and food cost. It seemed impossible to run a moderately priced restaurant serving good quality food when at the end of every month the owners had to put more money in, add to that the bills from Oceo that needed to be paid since ownership was the same corporation. There's just not enough foot traffic on West 49 street. Tourists mostly stick to the avenues, and except for pre-theatre the neighborhood is certainly not a destination for New Yorkers. We think the concept is great and we'd like to do the same restaurant again in a better location, but we don't have one at this time.In some ways, the 7Square shutter, with its good early buzz and strong showing from the chef, is similar to that of Della Rovere, which enjoyed a run of nearly four seconds in Tribeca in early 2005 and, per this newly snapped correspondent's photo, has now been repossessed by the landlord. Cash in the bank is all we're saying, friends. Just a little something for your Don't Let This Happen to You file.
· The Shutter: 7Square[~E~]
