March 20, 2014 Restaurant/Bar News
Caviarteria used to have outposts all over—Beverly Hills, Vegas, the Soho Grand, and so on—but by the time Walter Drobenko took over the brand in 2006, it was mainly a mail-order operation. His plans to open a brick-and-mortar “Beluga Bar” and shop hit a speed bump when the economy tanked in 2008; the caviar market takes a bit longer than most to recover. “By 2013, we were ready to start looking for a space,” he says. “And then we heard this was available.”
“This” is the former home of Silver Lining jazz bar, downstairs in the Bogardus Mansion on Murray Street. The layout is basically the same: You descend a flight of stairs to find the bar on your right, with the rest of the room devoted to booths and tables. Panels of white fabric now hang between the booths: “We wanted to kick it up a notch, put our taste on it,” says Drobenko. There’s also a piano—for now, the plan is to have a pianist on Friday and Saturdays.
The full menu (pictured above) should be available in a week or two, when the kitchen is up and running; in the meantime, you can order the less complex caviar dishes. Drobenko has plans for a Champagne-and-caviar weekend brunch once the weather warms up—the manager referenced Bagatelle, which implies a certain level of energy—and catering is available, both in house and out. The new space’s retail case opens at 5 p.m., along with the bar, but if you have a caviar emergency during the day, you can always call 800-4-CAVIAR to have it brought right over.
Caviateria is at 75 Murray (between W. Broadway and Greenwich), 212-759-7410; caviarteria.com.
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Did the Silver Lining guys ever find another space? I thought they said they were interested in staying in the neighborhood (if possible). I loved that place but Caviarteria looks good as well.
I’m pretty sure we’d hear about it via Eater or Grub Street if Silver Lining had plans to reopen….
It sounds wonderful and looks great! I can’t wait to try it!