New York Magazine is reporting that the East Village Yacht Club has closed--after their landlord doubled their rent to $26,000--and that a new coffee shop-by-day, bar-by-night called Arlo and Esme has already set-up shop in the space.

Calls to East Village Yacht Club yielded confirmation in the form of a recording that says, "Hello, you've reached Arlo and Esme."

The closure of EVYC comes as a major blow to Upper East Side boarding school grads-turned-investment bankers, who could finally relax at a nautically-themed bar in the East Village and play out their "Talented Mr. Ripley" fantasies.

No word on whether NYMag's report that the Yacht Club will reopen soon in a different locale has been confirmed.

(Photo borrowed from Gawker)

Nothing like news of a bar closing to start the week off. And this just in:

Celebrate the final week of PROOF. We will be closing the doors for good this Saturday night. So come down for one last happy hour this Thursday night starting at 6. We'll have 2 for 1 Absolut drinks, $3 Bud Lights and $5 Cosmos, Apple & Watermelon Martinis. From 8-11, we will have The Third Avenue All Star Band (formerly of Proof Tuesday nights) playing all your favorite cover songs. Come on down for one last drink at the old PROOF. See you then.

An inside source tells us the building was sold and the bar's lease was bought out. As of now, the owners have no solid plans to open another bar, but they may be rolling out something new later this year.

(Photo by Shanna Ravindra, New York Magazine)

In the wake of last weekend's midtown crane accident, New Yorkers pause to share fond memories of Fubar, the local bar that was destroyed in the crash. NY Times

The term drunkorexia--which was recently used by the NY Times to describe the growing number of girls who take the concept of "liquid diet" a bit more literally than the rest of us--is finally catching on. Mediabistro

Down by the Hipster has intel on the soon-to-open bar Antik, located in the Bowery locale formerly occupied by Marion's Marquee. "It is the latest creation from nightlife impresarios Larry Kramer and Craig Koenig, the team behind the rustic-lounge Retreat," they report. DBTH

Anthony Minghella--who directed such films as "The English Patient" and "The Talented Mr. Ripley"--has passed away at the age of 54. Page 6

Say goodbye to Twisted Burger and hello to Berry Bistro, which will make its case for a license to serve wine and beer at tonight's Community Board 3 meeting.

I pass by Twisted Burger at least once a day, and I never saw a customer in there, so I can't say I'm surprised. As of Saturday, when I snapped the above photos, the Twisted Burger awning was still up, but I guess the owners plan to open Berry Bistro fairly soon; they didn't appear to be doing too much work. No word yet on when they plan to open.

In other construction-related closing news, it seems that Avenue B spot Luca Lounge--owned by the same group as nearby Luca Bar and something called Masso in Long Island City (what, you've never been??)--is the latest casualty.

I live two blocks away, and I quite liked the spacious, more-shabby-than-chic Luca Lounge, but I always wondered how a place that big, which only drew a bar crowd on weekends, managed to stay alive. As of Thursday night the following sign was posted on the gate:

Luca Lounge is closed for renovations. We will reopen Spring [word blacked-out] 2008. Please join us at Luca Bar ... Thanks for your understanding, we look forward to see[ing] you in the near future.

So, what was under the blacked-out portion of the sign? Closer inspection revealed the word "summer," as in, "We will reopen spring/summer 2008." Maybe it's not permanently shuttered, but as we all know, when a bar suddenly closes for renovations and leaves open the possibility that it may remain "under construction" indefinitely, usually it's not because business was booming.

(Photo courtesy of Luca Lounge via LucaLoungeNYC.com)

Yesterday we reported that there seemed to be signs of life at recently shuttered bar and restaurant Gin Lane. Well, as promised, I did some investigating last night, and it looks like we can expect the place to re-open, with some changes. Word for word, the construction permit in the window says:

Alteration Type 2
Interior demolition to existing restaurant at basement and first floor; work to include removal of walls and plumbing fixtures, all as per plans. No change in use, egress or occupancy under this application.

That description makes it sound as though Gin Lane is simply renovating--remodeling the ladies room, perhaps. We can't say whether the ownership or overall concept will remain intact, but the language above seems to suggest that it will. Then again, given that the place was arguably doomed from the moment it landed on Eater's Deathwatch list, and was  struggling before it eventually closed several months ago, we have to hope that other changes are also underway.

Something appears to be happening at Gin Lane, the West Village bar and "restaurant" that shuttered several months ago, without so much as a window sign or explanation on their now-defunct website. Back then, no one but the bloggers seemed to notice, and even they didn't really care. Now, since our fancy offices are in Chelsea, I pass by Gin Lane on a daily basis, and in recent weeks, I noticed that the front door (not to be confused with the interior door that leads into the bar) has been wide open. I didn't bother to report this, but then this morning I caught a glimpse of a new construction permit hanging in the window, and snapped the above photo. At the time, I was in a moving vehicle and thus unable to inspect the sign--further intel is on the way, pending a walk-by later this evening. But perhaps we can expect to see Gin Lane: Version 2.0 in the not-too-distant future, or (much) better yet, something altogether new. Stay tuned ...

submercer (the lower level lounge at the Mercer Hotel) was reportedly closed (again) on Saturday night by the FDNY, this time indefinitely. Eater

Beatrice Inn, Dirty Jers style? Word on the street is that the Chelsea Hotel in Atlantic City has tapped Paul Sevigny and Matt Abramcyk of the beloved Beatrice Inn to oversee the hotel's new nightclub. Down By the Hipster

NY Magazine's Best of NY double issue is out this week, but no one cares--give us more Lindsay Lohan, dammit. New York Mag

Think that ID scanner just prevents 19-year-old jailbait from getting into Cain? Think again--it also records your information, which means that now if you stab someone outside a club you'd better get your alibi straight, because the coppers are coming. NY Post

And this just in...

After five-plus years of rocking Atlantic Avenue and entertaining thousands of customers and welcoming hundreds of great bands, Magnetic Field in Brooklyn will be closing its doors on March 31st. Co-owners Lee Greenfeld and William Crane would like to personally thank all of Magnetic Field's staff and patrons for their loyalty over the past few years, as well as all the numerous bands who have brought some truly tremendous and memorable performances to our stage...

The press release also indicates that the bar will go out with a big bang of final shows the last week of March. Check the website or the MySpace page for details.

One bar closes, another one opens...

(Photo courtesy of Magnetic Field)

Left: The scene at Stereo in the days before it got all murdery; right: The main floor at Canal Room

Last Thursday--after previous reports that a recent shooting in front of Chelsea hot spot Stereo had forced its temporary closure--Page Six ran the following item:

January 31, 2008 -- SHUTTERED hot spot Stereo has spun its last. Page Six has learned the West 29th Street club, which was closed by police this month, will not reopen at its current location. An insider said, "The NYPD allowed the club to reopen, but the landlord bought them out of their lease." Club trademark owner Michael Satsky and partner Brian Gefter split from other club partners and are close to leasing a downtown space for a new venue this year.

Well, we've received a tip that said "downtown space" is actually the club currently known as Canal Room. Though no one at either club could be reached for comment, our information comes directly from a reliable source in the nightlife industry, and was also independently confirmed by the owner of another unnamed Soho hot spot.

UPDATE: We've now heard directly from the owners of both clubs, who deny that Stereo is buying Canal Room. Read the latest here.  

(Photo of Stereo via Stereo NYC; photo of Canal Room via Off The Hook Entertainment)