15 Years Later: A Spy Bar Reunion

Some nightlife veterans have teamed up to celebrate the 15 year anniversary of the venerable Spy Bar tonight at Avenue. And why not? The space is credited with being the first to introduce bottle service to New York's nightlife scene, although the concept was originally concocted as a way to keep regular people out of a club rather than to pad the bottom line. Oh, how times have changed! And while most of the original Spy team is on the host committee (Kelly Cole, Wass Stevens, Lizzie Grubman, King), we couldn't help but wonder how Spy Bar owners Michael Ault and David Sarner felt about not being included?

When we last heard, Michael Ault was running multiple venues in South Florida and involved in a trademark dispute with the Griffin, while David Sarner had just finished a lengthy battle over the Pink Elephant name and was finalizing plans to open at a new location. But you would think they would want to be involved in this very special night, because after all, they did own the place!

One of tonight's organizers tells Eater that Mr. Sarner was excited about the event and will most likely be in attendance tonight and that his name not being on the invite can be attributed to human error. As for Mr. Ault, it seems that he doesn't stay in touch with the old Spy gang and was not part of the planning. That's a shame. But it does seem that there is genuine excitement for the reunion and that tonight could be a special night on 10th Avenue.
· Spy Bar Throws A Family Reunion [GOAG]
· Nightlife Coverage [~ENY~]