File photo
Oct. 14, 2016 By Christian Murray
A new bar with a focus on craft beer is likely to open on Greenpoint Avenue where Nonna Gina, the pizzeria, was located.
The establishment, which is likely to be called Solid State, would be located at 43-24 Greenpoint Avenue and would “celebrate the growing resurgence in craft beer, wine and cider in New York City,” said co-owner Kristopher Medina, who spoke before a Community Board 2 Committee last night.
The venue would have a heavy Queens focus, with craft beer from many of the local breweries being on offer and some of the food being locally sourced. The menu would consist of small bites, Medina said, which would include pressed sandwiches and salads.
The bar would have room for about 50 seats and it would include a couple of pin ball machines. There are no plans for sidewalk seating.
Medina went before the City Services and Public Safety Committee last night with the aim of being approved to be open until 4 am, seven days per week. He said that his request was in line with the hours that other bars were permitted to operate.
But Medina got some push back from the committee that sought to clip back his hours.
“The difference between you and a couple of other places is that you are right on the corner immediately across the street—because of the angle—from a large apartment building and immediately south of you are six family houses.”
The board was also hesitant since Medina doesn’t have a track record of running bars in the neighborhood.
Medina said that he was prepared to revise his weeknight hours but wanted to remain open until 4 am on weekends.
The board, however, took a vote and unanimously decided to reduce his hours until 2 am seven days per week.
The board said that Medina could come back and request 4 am once he had developed a track record.
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46 Comments
Looks like its going to be a bodega instead. Thank goodness! Didnt need two bars right next to each other anyways.
I can’t stand craft beer.
Great idea!!! Open a bar next to a bar thats next to a bar/restaurant. What an incredible original idea!!!!!!!
My husband and I are super excited about this! We live right next door (as do a lot of other young people)
While we’re on the subject of Greenpoint Avenue excitement, can anyone explain the never-ending Chipichape block party to me? I don’t live above it so it doesn’t bother me, but I’m curious about how that scene came to be. Is it just a non-alcoholic outdoors neighborhood gathering spot?
Not so nice comments about Greenpoint Ave. Woodside Sunnyside it’s all the same
Is that side of the blvd even ready for craft beers?
Why not? Hopefully Firestone from Cali , been seeing them more often in the area
Station House in Forest Hills is worth checking out if you like FSW brews.
I’d say the Greenpoint Lounge right next door is better suited to that part of the neighborhood. This one might do slightly better than the Vivire bar just down the street which just closed BTW.
None of the old man bars like greenpoint do that much business. They wouldn’t survive if they tried to open with today’s rents. Old man bars should consolidate into one.
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The hipsters and yuppies are here. They walk right past Vivire on their way to the city or Brooklyn. Not sure how you get them to stay local.
“Not sure how you get them to stay local.”
You get them to stay by providing optionsnfor food, beverages, atmosphere and experience that they want. I went to Vivre several times a S wanted to like it but they did t have a clue what they were doing. The drinks weee poorly made, the staff was friendly but had little experience. Some say there was a great bartender that knew how to make drinks but she didn’t stay. They didn’t even have bitters. What kind of cocktail bar/lounge doesn’t have bitters?
Agreed. Vivire was a train wreck. I was served by a girl who I think was 17 there. Pretty awkward.
Maybe people around here don’t care if their bartender is a mixologist… They just want cheap normal drinks. If you can’t find good food here as it is then you don’t know anything about food. Please do keep foing to bklyn and manhattan, we don’t need sunnyside to be anything other than what it is.
Wasn’t Vivire’s original plan to show soccer matches? We were kind of excited about that…then they completely missed that year’s World Cup. Walked by hundreds of times but could never justify a reason to stop in. The Sunday jazz thing looked remotely interesting.
The place isn’t even that big and when the pizza place closed they said it’s only being given a 5 year lease. So why would anyone go in and invest any money constructing it for 5 years.
My friend was interested in the space also and said the rent is ridiculous and the landlord sounds like a real snake.
The idea sounds really moronic to me bar pinball paninis?
6 months at best like the one that just closed next to C Town.
Yep. Wonder why they didn’t just buy Vivire and then turn it to the concept they wanted.
Not is you are: (see comment above) Google Tommy, The WHO
that deaf dumb n blind kid
October 14, 2016 | 8:00 pm
pinball machines?! nice.
Nice. You open right next to an existing bar and put each other out of business. Stupid
Agreed about the landlord, what he did to the Nonna Gina owners was horrible. They moved to this country, sunk all their money into building out the space, and he just jacked the rent as soon as possible and kicked them out. It was a thriving business in the area with great food. Some will say ‘oh well that’s just business and the market’. But the question is always how much is enough and does the person have any care at all for the neighborhood? How could you do that so easily to a small business owner?
The lack of consideration and level of greed is phenomenal. I would run in the other direction rather than rent from this person.
Any business signing a less-than-10-year lease is crazy.
Simon and the Lessee had an agreement , that fell apart this had nothing to do with the Landlord, Simon was a manager for the Lessee
They should reconsider the name. It sounds like the name of a construction company.
I guess he hasn’t done his homework because the state will not grant a liquor license this close to the bar next to it. It’s a conflict of interest and if you can look at that lease this landlord is trying to get someone to sign you better have a damn good attorney my friend.
There is all kinds of hidden price increases he expects you to pay for. Be ready.
“It’s a conflict of interest”
You’re talking out of your ass.
isn’t this the same guy who owns the Peruvian restaurant?
pinball machines?! nice.
Well, hopefully it brings in some true micro-brews. Something is better then nothing
Boring
Do any members of the City Services Committee live in the apartment building or the houses mentioned? Do they know anyone who lives there? Did anyone from these structures appear before the Committee? Or is the disturbance they talked about just speculation pulled from the seat of their pants? The Committee’s decision to deny the applicant 14 hours f operation time and clearly arbitrary.
I only know what I see in this rag, but I’m starting to get the impression that whenever a bar/restaurant changes ownership the current board takes the opportunity to cut down its hours. I don’t know if there was personnel change or what, but it doesn’t seem incredibly cool to me.
Sounds like a cool place; hope it doesn’t bother the neighbors. Any word on a possible resurrection for Nonna Gina? I miss that joint so much.
I agree. They had the best pizza around. All others taste the same.
I know most that live north won’t go south to go to a craft beer bar. It’ not like that demographic is passing the place on the way home from work.
I don’t expect it to last long.
Sounds great but I just never understand the choice of location of some of these new businesses. Craft beer drinkers and small bites seem something more suited to the Sunnyside Gardens clientele.
Space is probably too expensive and if they’re coming from outside the neighborhood (seems likely in this case) they probably don’t think the 3 long blocks is a big deal.
This place sounds good but too bad Nonna Gina had to go. THey were quite good and always delivered fast.
Would be especially nice to see the former Murphy’s replaced with something like this. Wonder if it’s still tied up in court or what. Didn’t understand why Alcove didn’t take that space instead of the super cramped spot they’re in
You do realize there’s plenty of young people on the south side of town right?
Yep. Actually many more than the north side given the fact that there are more rentals on the south side. The north has gotten Brooklyn pricing, but the south, while overpriced as well, has gotten the actual Brooklyn wannabes. Watch how people exit the train at evening rush hour at 40th street.
Is there a non-trashy bar south of Queens Blvd? If so I didn’t get the news.
Sunnyside Gardens barely has enough people to support its own couple of new bars. The gardens are about 50 single family homes most of which are still occupied by old timers. Even if they were all Donald Trumps instead of just Trump voters, there aren’t enough of them to keep restaurants and bars open even if they go out every day. Hipsters and young people are actually moving into rentals on the south side at a greater clip, but there still aren’t enough yet to justify this bar, and they still go to Brooklyn or the city to go out. There will soon be a lot more though because they are taking almost every rental that becomes available. Craft beer bars aren’t for lawyers who dropped a million on a house and who will never have time to visit local bars anyway. They’re for young professionals who have roommates, overpay for apartments, and actually go out. The problem for businesses in all of Sunnyside is that Sunnyside is tiny and is bordered by the LIE, a cemetery, the LIRR, and an industrial wasteland. I’m surprised that Skillman Ave businesses survive at all given that they only have a single block of low density housing between them and wasteland. Same could be said of 48 Ave on the other side. Customers have to go out of their way to get to them.
Sunnyside Gardens has much more than 50 single family homes. It actually has about 1200 units, comprised of one, two and three family homes.
Agree
I’m a fat guy so I like to eat
You seem to be forgetting that directly south of Skillman are dozens of 8 and 9 story apartment buildings. It’s not like those few blocks of townhouses north is everyone who lives in walking distance.
I’m sorry you’re wrong on so many fronts. I don’t even think I have the time to address every point which needs correction.
Signed, a young person who lives in Sunnyside Gardens and loves craft beers and doesn’t make a million dollars a year.
Same, only I love craft beer AND pinball.
How many craft beers per night would you say you enjoy at Skillman Ave establishments? Would you enjoy any more craft beers there if you made a million dollars a year? They need 1000 of you. You’ve already walked to Greenpoint Ave for a drink. Skillman just isn’t central. Open things on Queens Blvd or just off it and its central to the entire neighborhood and in a place where a person like yourself, who might buy 2 sunnyside craft beers a week, would go anyway. Because right now, you get on the train and go all the way to the city to do most of your beer drinking. The commercial rents are too high and there are too many people that “like places but never have the time to go.” You have to consolidate and centralize those places for them to work.