Continental, the East Village Dive Famed for Cheap Shots, Files for Bankruptcy

Continental, the former rock venue and long-running East Village dive, recently filed for bankruptcy. Ages ago, the bar was host to bands like The Ramones, Iggy Pop, and Guns N' Roses, but it replaced the stage with leather booths back in 2006. These days it's best known for its five shots for $10 deal, or for the to-do over its alleged racist door policy a few years back. The financial troubles, according to Crain's, stem from a lawsuit filed by PLK Vending over jukebox revenue (tragically enough, the jukebox was installed as part of the effort to class up the place, when the stage was removed). The bar ultimately had to pay up $49,762.96, and the suit, which dragged on for seven years, no doubt cost even more in legal fees.

This is, in fact, the second time the bar has filed for bankruptcy, the first being back in 2009. So who knows what will happen. Maybe it will pull through like last time, or maybe it won't. The owner, Trigger Smith, might want to consider starting a fundraising campaign like Manitoba's (which is in a similar boat), or at the very least rethinking the money pit that is the five shot deal.