Hola, Patron

Remember Flavor? The martini bar whose arrival I announced last November? Well, it was open for approximately a week and a half, and then it closed. Whenever I walked past it, even when it was ostensibly "open," the grate was down. I'm not sure I ever saw anybody in there. It's been closed for good for a while now.

Ole?

So it wasn't a surprise when I walked past earlier this week and a brand new awning was up. Welcome, Patron Mexican Grill! If your cartoonishly bright primary color scheme doesn't get people in the door, nothing will. Best of luck in what is perhaps a cursed space (four-plus restaurants/bars in the four years I've been here...).

Goodbye, Bossa Nova; Hello, Flavor

A couple of weeks ago, I noticed Bossa Nova Brazil restaurant on Ninth Avenue between 51st and 52nd streets had closed and there was work going on in the space. I've been out of town for a week, but I walked by this afternoon and voila, we have a new player in the game. Behold, Flavor:

Swank

There was no menu up, but from a cursory glance, it looks like a martini bar (the martini glass motif, maybe?). A Google search yielded nothing; note to bar owners: naming your bar "flavor" doesn't exactly make it highly searchable. Regardless, she's definitely open for business. We'll see what comes of it.