Quatorze, Beloved Upper East Side Bistro, Returns After 2 Years

UPPER EAST SIDE, NY — More than two years after it was displaced from its longtime home, the popular Upper East Side bistro Quatorze Bis is reopening this week with a new location — and a new name.

Now known simply as Quatorze, the French restaurant will open its doors Wednesday on the corner of First Avenue and 82nd Street for takeout and delivery service.

The new spot is just three blocks north of Quatorze's longtime 79th Street location, from which it was displaced in December 2018 after a developer bought their building and revealed plans to demolish it.

"It’s been a journey," said Alex McNeice, the restaurant's managing partner.

The reopening, initially slated for summer 2019, was delayed by more than a year due to the pandemic, and the discovery that the new space — formerly occupied by the restaurants Grunauer Bistro and Primavera — needed more repairs than he and co-owner Mark Di Giulio had expected.

As McNeice and Di Giulio made the finishing touches on the new space, they made an ironic discovery: their former 79th Street home is still standing, two years after demolition permits were filed for the four-story building.

"It’s sad, honestly," McNeice said. "We could’ve stayed there."

In any case, Quatorze is looking forward, with plans to ramp up to seven-day-a-week service and begin indoor dining sometime after Valentine's Day, when the state allows it.

Sneak peak into #Quatorze’s new space on First and 82nd. So excited to welcome back a beloved restaurant into a new spot. Quartorze opens on Wednesday, Feb 3 for takeout and delivery! pic.twitter.com/4FeB0oN48e
— Tricia Shimamura (@Tricia4NYC) January 31, 2021

The menu will be the same as it has been since Quatorze first opened on 14th Street in 1984, plus a rotating list of daily specials that will soon be rolled out. The name, too, signals a return to Quatorze's roots — the "Bis" was only added when the bistro moved uptown in 1990.

McNeice said the new restaurant also serves as a tribute to Quatorze's co-founder, Peter Meltzer, who died in 2017.

"We’re doing this kind of in his memory," he said.

Quatorze, at 1578 First Ave., will be open 5:30 p.m. to 8:30 p.m., Wednesday-Sunday, with seven-day-a-week service to follow.