Nolita mainstay Cafe Gitane has quietly closed after 30 years

"Another downtown institution has quietly bit the dust. Cafe Gitane, a longstanding bastion of Nolita cool, appears to have closed without warning on Mott Street, ending a more than 30-year run as one of the neighborhood's most enduring hangouts. The closure came to light late last week after reports surfaced that the space had been boarded up. Follow-up reporting from Eater confirmed the shutdown after staff at the cafe's Vinegar Hill location acknowledged that the original had closed."

"Lévy opened Cafe Gitane in June of 1994, before Nolita was even a recognized neighborhood-and business was so slow that he once sent his only waitress home mid-shift. (That waitress, Charlyn Marshall, later went on to record her first album as Cat Power.) Quickly, the French-Moroccan cafe became an unofficial living room for artists, models, musicians and restaurant insiders. David Bowie, Spike Jonze, Michelle Williams and Helena Christensen were counted as regulars."

Cafe Gitane on Mott Street closed without warning after more than thirty years as a Nolita fixture. Reports emerged when the storefront was found boarded up and staff at the cafe's Vinegar Hill location confirmed the original had shut; the restaurant's website is also offline and owner Luc Lévy has made no public announcement. Luc Lévy opened the French-Moroccan cafe in June 1994; early business was slow and one early waitress later became musician Cat Power. The cafe became a gathering spot for artists and celebrities and helped popularize avocado toast. Recent reporting revealed employee allegations of missing pay and unpaid wages.

Read at Time Out New York