MercBar is shutting the doors at its 2,000-square-foot Soho space after more than 20 years.
Restaurateur John McDonald, the owner of the two-story drinks spot at 151 Mercer Street, announced yesterday it will close – not because of lack of popularity, but because the structure is slowly collapsing. The walls are cracking and the floors are sinking, he said. McDonald, who also operates Lure Fishbar, leased the building from developer Andre Balazs and architect Campion Platt in 1993, back when they were constructing the Mercer Hotel. McDonald bought out Platt’s stake more than 10 years ago, the Wall Street Journal reported. He bought the building last year for $8.5 million, data from PropertyShark show.
“I just had to pick a day,” McDonald told the Journal. “I didn’t want there to be too much build-up. It’s drawing a line in the sand. For a lot of reasons you have to learn how to say goodbye to time versus letting it drag out.” [WSJ] — Mark Maurer