LOWER EAST SIDE—Beloved Lower East Side institution Gertel's Bakery, open since 1914, will shutter this Friday. Rumors about the store's demise had circled for months; the reason for the shuttering is not yet known. What is known: that this will be a gigantic loss for the neighborhood. For the love of all that is good, holy and freshly baked, get thee to Hester Street asap. [Racked]
UPPER WEST SIDE—Something strange is going on at PD O'Hurleys. Sayeth a reader, "PD O'Hurley's, fine neighborhood Irish bar and grill on West 72nd, just off of Broadway, has been "kitchenless" for weeks. While the bar remains open (sans air conditioning) the kitchen is cold. Could it be DOH fallout, or are they remodelling? I asked management, and they shrugged." [EaterWire Inbox]
MIDTOWN WEST—The Hotel Empire could soon be sporting a swanky rooftop bar. A reader writes, "The renovated Hotel Empire on 63rd and Bway seems to have grown the foundation for a rooftop bar. A glass walled-railing has gone up around the perimeter of the roof and what could be a covered bar has sprouted in the SE roof corner. Anyone know when/if it's opening? If it is a bar, will they keep the HUGE Hotel Empire neon signs?" [EaterWire Inbox]
EAST VILLAGE—Will The Bowery Hotel, still coasting by on new venue buzz, ever unveil its much-ballyhooed second-floor bar? Cutlets has differing reports on the subject, as a rep for the establishment says that the bar will remain private, while a loose-lipped desk clerk says the spot will open to the public soon, possibly as early as July. [Cutlets]
