Pier A is still closed and in flux

Harbor House, the current iteration of Pier A, which has had a tumultuous — some may say cursed — existence since its original use as the Department of Docks — is closed, though the Battery Park City Authority is working with the restaurant to see if there is a path forward. (BPCA leases Pier A from the city and then subleases it to the tenants.)

When I first started emailing the restaurant about the status back in early July the website was working, but not long afterwards it was taken down. (Seeing the St. Patrick’s Day poster still up at the entrance is a real downer.)

Pier A Harbor House was opened in 2014 by Peter Poulakakos, who took over the Harry’s restaurants from his father (including ours in the Goldman breezeway) and brought Stone Street back to life by opening several restaurants there between 2002 and 2005. He and his partners also co-own The Dead Rabbit (scheduled to reopen Nov. 2) and had its equally popular offshoot, BlackTail, at Pier A until January. He also has the lease on the former North End Grill with a promise of a white-tablecloth Greek for the spot.

The main run of the pier, which at one point had a self-serve sort-of operation, never seemed to be as full as it should be given that the location was great and the interior renovation was very well done with the center bar. The design made it seem less cavernous than a pier that size actually is, and instead was pretty cozy and festive. And you really couldn’t beat the upstairs deck on the western end for views, and the patio on the south side was special for a casual place — my son went to a fabulous bat mitzvah party there once and I was a little jealous.

It may be that locals never embraced the pier, and tourists didn’t know better?

 

3 Comments

  1. As a torist I visited Pier A religiously every time I visited New York – a fantastic spot – I hope they open it again, in some iteration that includes a bar, live music and food.

  2. We travel to New York at least twice a year. With each visit we made it a point to visit Pier A alone or to show it off to friends visiting with us. Beautiful views, the staff and food were always terrific. It has been sad coming to New York the past few years and not being able to stop in for at least a cold beer on a hot way exploring the city. Would love to know when it will be reopened.

  3. Went to Pier A Harbor House today and was so disappointed to see it closed. Wish it reopens again!

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