Classic East Village Greasy Spoon Stage Restaurant Is Closed For Good

Stage Restaurant is not coming back. The 35-year-old diner next to the Orpheum Theatre was forced to closed eleven months ago when a Con Ed worker found a gas connection in the building that was not up to code. The issue was discovered a week after the horrific explosion across the street that leveled three buildings. Con Ed shut off the gas to the building, and Stage was forced to halt all operations.

The owners started an online petition to rally support from the neighbors. The landlord, Icon Realty, tried to evict Stage on the grounds that the operators were responsible for the wonky gas hook-up, but the restaurateurs refuted those claims and filed a lawsuit. Now, after many months in the dark, the owners offer an update on Facebook:

The events of the year have been overwhelmingly devastating on us and we have decided to close the Stage’s door. Over the past year, we have resolved our dispute with the landlord and Icon Realty Management. Stage Restaurant never engaged in any wrongdoing; however, after our prolonged closure and because of the cost to make the repairs and expenses of reopening, we are sad to say that the Stage cannot reopen.

It has been our great honor and pleasure to serve and truly be a part of the community over the past 35 years.

No word yet on what will happen to this space. Please share any remembrances of this great New York institution in the comments.