At The Florent World Premiere

Thursday night Father Tony and I attended the world premiere of Florent: Queen Of The Meat Market, David Sigal's documentary of the of famed Meatpacking District restaurant, its flamboyant owner Florent Morellet, and the incredible scenes staged almost nightly over the 25 years that NYC's night creatures inhabited the place.

On hand at the premiere was a who's who of Manhattan's downtown scene, including Michael Musto, Murray Hill, Penny Arcade, Edgar Rodriquez, Dirty Martini, Brian Griffin, Kenneth Walsh, Simon Doonan, and Jonathan Adler. One person I didn't expect to meet was openly gay DNC treasurer Andrew Tobias, who outed himself as a JMG reader.

The movie is a sort of tone poem to the now lost Meatpacking scene and the audience cheered every time a beloved Florent employee or patron appeared on the screen. But it's also a real history of NYC activism, AIDS, art, and nightlife. After the screening, everybody moved into a giant room next door where performance artists and Florent regulars Tigger, Penny Arcade, Murray Hill, and others did their thing on stage as we noshed, drank, and mingled far too late on a school night. I got to chat a chat times with director David Sigal (also a devout JMG reader!) and he seemed thrilled with his film's reception. Even if you've never lived in Manhattan, you should definitely find Florent when it appears at your local film festival.

RELATED: This week Gothamist posted a great interview with David Sigal and five years ago Towleroad published a lengthy profile on Florent. Father Tony's possibly NSFW slideshow from the premiere is here.

Florent: Queen Of The Meat Market

David Sigal's documentary Florent: Queen Of The Meat Market, premieres next Thursday, June 24th, at the NYC Food Film Festival. Get tickets here. Openly gay and openly HIV+ Florent Morellet's namesake Meatpacking District restaurant was long the post-clubbing meeting place for a spectacular hodge-podge of NYC's nightlife denizens, celebrities, and activists. The restaurant was forced out of business last year due the neighborhood's rampant gentrification. I loved that Florent posted his T-cell counts on the outside menu board, right above the daily specials.

Just Call It The Vanilla-Packing District

Remember the amusing flap of last month in which guests of the Meatpacking District's Standard Hotel were performing sex shows and porn shoots from the floor-to-ceiling windows of rooms overlooking the High Line Park? Remember how the Standard had been encouraging such performances on their Facebook page? Well, it turns out that's a one-way, hetero-only ride down Vanilla Street. Via The Villager:

Talk about ironic! The Standard Hotel, which has become synonymous with exhibitionism, as its naked patrons have been sexily steaming up its floor-to-ceiling, untinted-glass windows — in full view of parkgoers on the High Line — has now forced a leather festival to move off of W. 13th St. Robert Valin, executive director of the West Village Leather and Bear Street Fair (that’s bears as in hairy gay guys who like Bud and sports, not Yogi and Smokey) said, “The whole thing has been a complete nightmare for me.” The leather fest, planned for mid-October, won unanimous approval from Community Board 2 last year for the spot, and had been assured by the board that they would be grandfathered there and allowed to keep returning for years to come.

But Valin said the Mayor’s Office recently informed them that W. 13th St. was “not an option,” because the Standard Hotel doesn’t want the festival there, plus the Food Network is planning a big event in the Meat Market the same day. Valin said the Standard doesn’t feel the flagellation-friendly fest “fits the image of the hotel”; yet the leather group isn’t passing judgment on, and in fact supports, the hotel’s policy of “having sex in the windows — which is cool, which is fine with me, which I think is great,” Valin said.

Ironic, indeed. The only reason that the Standard even exists in the Meatpacking District is because of the nabe's edgy, hip reputation....something it got, in large part, because of the leather bars that used to dot the area. (Credit also goes to the Meatpacking's transsexual hookers, who have not, as of yet, planned a street fair.)

Just Your Standard Peep Show

The Meatpacking District's fancy new Standard Hotel straddles the also fancy, also new High Line Park, whose visitors have been treated to numerous sex shows from the windows of the hotel, including a few porn shoots. The New York Post is outraged:

Disgusted neighbors say they've seen men masturbating, professional porn films being shot and couples engaging in sex in full view of the stunning High Line park path running alongside. "That crazy kind of behavior is completely unnecessary," complained Bobby Shoule, 37, of Queens, the father of a 15-month-old daughter. Business neighbors also are disgusted. "I've seen a few porn shoots -- three dudes walking around a hotel room with cameras and lights filming a couple," said Joe, a manager at the next-door Brass Monkey. "I've seen at least 10 different people having sex. Saturday nights are the best time for the show."

The Standard's own Facebook page was actually encouraged the shows, although this message has now been removed:

"We encourage you to exercise your inner exhibitionist. Please share your intimate, and explicit photos with us -- those floor to ceiling windows aren't just for the views . . .whatever you do, just make sure the shots are HOT and that you get them to us in whichever way you can. It's all about sex all the time, and you're our star."

City Council Speaker and nudge Christine Quinn promises to crack down on the hotel. So. Anybody up for the High Line this weekend? Saturday looks good.

The Un-Closing Of Florent

After several hundred breast-beating and wailing posts from the gay and foodie blogosphere (including here on JMG), not to mention a zillion-word eulogy from the New York Times, today comes word via Eater that Florent is not closing this weekend after all. Except it is. But not really.

Though the MePa institution Florent will close this Sunday night, landlord Joanne Lucas has confirmed that she will reopen the space as R & L Restaurant, the restaurant that preceded Florent, just two days later. Lucas tells us that she initially shopped around the lease to a couple of retailers and eventually changed her mind: "We thought about having someone lease it but then I decided to just take it over myself. It used to be my father's diner before it was Florent."

And get this: she will be keeping pretty much the same menu as Florent and will keep on all the staff members that still work there. When asked why Florent isn't involved in the new evolution she responded, "Florent from what I understand is moving on to a new chapter in his life." Many will see this as a happy ending for the Florent saga. He may be gone, but the space will remain unchanged. Yet you still have to admit this was a clever move on Lucas' part, a way to rake in the revenue from an established restaurant at a time when even retailers aren't willing to pay the rent she was reportedly asking. This could be a temporary solution while she waits for a tenant.

What will Florent be like without its iconic namesake? No way to tell, but for now this is good news. And even if you aren't a foodie, you should really read the Times piece for insight into the formerly gritty and gay Meatpacking District, which these days is really good place to get run over by a strappy-sandled, stroller-pushing, Carrie Bradshaw wannabe.

The End Of Florent?

Rumors have been flying on the various NYC foodie blogs about the impending closure of Meatpacking District landmark 24-hour diner and beloved gay hangout, Florent. Owner Florent Morellet, the iconic "Queen of MePa" confirmed to the NY Observer this week that his lease is ending March 31st, quelling, a tiny bit, the panic of foodies who feared the closure may have come as soon as today.

Morellet, a vigorous NYC preservation activist, is also famous for being openly HIV+ and posting his t-cell counts on the daily menu board. He plans to fight his landlord, who is reportedly shopping the space for $70,000/month. Florent opened in 1985 when the Meatpacking District was still a barren wasteland populated by crackheads, tranny prostitutes, and crackhead tranny prostitutes.

Once home to gay institutions such as the Vault, the Cellblock, the Mineshaft, Alex in Wonderland, the Anvil and the Lure, today the Meatpacking District is the hottest neighborhood in Manhattan, chock-a-block with super high-end designer boutiques and velvet rope restaurants. Notorious 80's gay sex club, J's Hangout, is now a fancy eatery.

Last night Dr. Jeff visited Florent to grab the last t-shirt off the display mannequin and take the above photo of their long-time waitress. Visit while you still can.