Times Square fixture Carmine’s sues its landlord over rent debacle
Sprawling Times Square favorite Carmine’s has sued its landlord to stave off an eviction, the Real Deal reports. Carmine’s, a once-rollicking tourism magnet in Times Square, filed the suit after the restaurant’s landlord, Paramount Leasehold, filed a default notice over unpaid rent at the space. According to the notice, Carmine’s allegedly owes $2.9 million in rent and faces penalties “for failing to continuously operate its business,” the report states. In the notice, Carmine’s was given until Monday, January 11 to pay back the owed rent.
The Italian restaurant argues in the lawsuit that it cannot be in default because business has come to a standstill amid the pandemic, according to the report. Carmine’s alleges that Paramount Leasehold’s default filing constitutes commercial tenant harassment during the pandemic.
It’s a dire situation for the 480-seat Italian hot spot, which was formerly a money-making machine. According to a past Crain’s report, Carmine’s in Times Square was the second-highest-grossing independently owned restaurant in the U.S. in 2017. But the pandemic has devastated neighborhoods like Times Square which rely heavily on tourism and theater traffic that’s disappeared amid the public health crisis. Carmine’s has been closed for business since last March.
In other news
— Midtown Korean barbecue restaurant Yoon Haeundae Galbi has set up a 20-seat outdoor dining structure that allows servers to cook Korean barbecue tableside for customers.
— Quirky scoop shop Ample Hills is reopening inside Dekalb Market Hall in Brooklyn this Saturday. Free kid-sized scoops will be available to the first 50 customers, according to a company spokesperson. The location opens at 1 p.m.
— Two thieves assaulted a restaurant worker and stole outdoor heaters from Lower East Side Mexican restaurant La Contenta’s streetside dining area on December 29, Bowery Boogie reports.
— ABC restaurants, the upscale trio of establishments led by Jean-Georges Vongerichten, has constructed a joint, heated outdoor dining setup along 19th Street, between Broadway and Park Avenue, according to a restaurant spokesperson. Each restaurant — abc kitchen, abcV and abc cocina — is individually open for diners, but customers can also order from any of the restaurants and eat outside at the shared space.
— EV Grieve reports that the Bowery space that previously housed 26-year-old neighborhood hangout B Bar & Grill is now being converted into a 21-story office building.
— Weekend eating plans: