NEW JAPANESE COMING TO AZABU SPACE
More when I listen to the CB1 meeting, but a new restaurant is coming to the Sushi Azabu space on Greenwich and Laight. (The noted restaurant closed in January.) A quick google for the applicant turns up Wasabi Hospitality LLC points to the British fast food sushi chain Wasabi, or a small local chain of “Japanese-inspired” food in Canada… They have put off their hearing twice now.

LEONARD GOURMET IS OPEN
Thanks to J. for the shot: Leonard Gourmet on Broadway is now open. That stretch of stores, which had Prime Essentials, is slowly coming to life. 

FAMOUS SWEDISH CHEF WILL COOK AT SPOTIFY OFFICES
Pontus Frithiof, the Swedish chef and restaurateur, will operate an eponymous restaurant in the Spotify offices on the 72nd floor of 4 World Trade Center. He became famous in 1999 for Pontus in the Green House, which was named Sweden’s best restaurant. He has received awards such as restaurateur of the year, business restaurant of the year and awarded the Gastronomic Academy’s Gold Medal. Frithiof now runs several restaurants in the Stockholm area under the Pontus Group.

WONDER BAR TAKING FIVE & DIME SPACE?
An applicant called Wonder Bar is cued up on the CB1 agenda for this month for the Five & Dime space in the Woolworth Building at 8 Park Place. Rumor had it that the folks who are planning on a night club for the former Wooly space, on the other side of the building, also claimed this, but I guess not…