The Shutter: Cantina Gutted

Jason Swamy-owned project on Avenue B and East Third St. Cantina is not just shuttered—it's been gutted. We say this a lot around here but...place was doomed from the start. Exhibit A: Jason Neroni, the consulting chef just seems to leave a path of destruction in his wake, and from the beginning it was never quite clear how long he would be consulting/cooking in the kitchen. Exhibit B: The space. The restaurant in the space before, General Store, didn't fair too well either, and neither have a few others on the same strip (Carnevale excluded) trying to make those rents and attract a sophisticated clientèle. Exhibit C: On numerous spot checks in the months after the opening the restaurant was dark. In summation: inconsistent hours, little media attention post-opening combined with the Neroni factor and the south Avenue B hellmouth location meant this guy was a goner long ago.
· The Shutter: Provence to Close Saturday [~E~]
· Deathwatch: BarFry Closes [~E~]