Florent diner to re-open with new name

The Meatpacking District’s beloved Florent diner will close on Sunday, but in a bit of good news for diner diners, it will reopen as R&L Restaurant, the restaurant that preceded the Florent. “We thought about having someone lease it but then I decided to just take it over myself,” said landlord Joanne Lucas. “It used to be my father’s diner before it was Florent.” The menu will be mostly the same and R&L Restaurant will employ Florent workers. But Lucas, who reportedly failed to get the rent she was looking for while shopping the property to retailers, could be keeping her options open.