Three Of Cups To Close After 26 Years In The East Village

EAST VILLAGE, NY — The longtime neighborhood restaurant Three of Cups will close its doors in April after almost 26 years in the East Village, the restaurant's owner announced Wednesday night.

The restaurant, located at 83 First Ave., first opened in the neighborhood in December 1992. The restauratn's last day will be April 1, owner Anthony Barile said in a Facebook post.

Barile said in the post that it was no longer sustainable for him to keep the restaurant open.

"The reasons are many that we are [closing] at this moment, with all of them meaning that I can’t sustain it any longer," he wrote.

The restaurant did not immediately respond to an email seeking more information about the reasons behind their closure.

Barile mourned the neighborhood spot, which specialized in Southern Italian cooking, and thanked the loyal customers who had patronized Three of Cups

"It’s the end of the longest thing I’ve continuously been involved with, almost 1/2 my life, nearly 26 years. My wife worked here before we were married, my children grew up playing here and my son has worked here with me for the last two years. Three of Cups is a big part of our home and lives," he wrote. "Three of Cups has always been a home for the unique souls of the East Village."

Dozens of locally-owned restaurants and businesses in Manhattan have shuttered their doors in recent years thanks to soaring rent costs. The East Village has been hit particularly hard, as numerous neighborhood businesses and restaurants have been forced to shut down.

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