Beloved West Village Diner Closes Today

Vanishing New York reports that the much-loved West Village diner Manatus will close tonight in the face of a rent increase to $50K per month.

This is a sad day for the Village. Manatus has been in business since the mid-1980s, catering to the local LGBT clientele, and it is the last affordable, down-to-earth place to eat in that hyper-gentrified plastic part of town. I had my last meal there a couple months ago and didn't know it. If the original rumor is completely true, then a Calvin Klein store is taking Manatus' place.

A decade ago I lived about 15 seconds from Manatus at the corner of Bleecker and there were days when I ate there more than once. Several of the storefronts on that block have been boarded up for months, perhaps as landlords await tenants willing to pay these gentrified rents. (Tipped by JMG reader Alison)