Caffe Vivaldi To Close After 35 Years In West Village

WEST VILLAGE, NY — The West Village staple Caffe Vivaldi will close its doors this month after a legal battle with its landlord Steve Croman, the restaurant and music venue's owner announced. The business first opened on Jones Street and Bleecker Street 35 years ago.

Caffe Vivaldi will close on June 23, owner Ishrat Ansari said in a statement posted to the business' website. Ansari said that "legal and financial difficulties with our landlord came to a head this spring," and that continuing the fight would be "self-destructive."

In an April blog post, Ansari shared that he suffered a stroke " after a long period of extreme and constant stress." Notorious landlord Steve Croman — who recently served prison time after being convicted of an illegal refinancing scheme — bought Caffe Vivaldi's building in 2011 and attempted to break a lease extension with the business the following year, kicking off a years-long legal battle.

Ansari thanked Caffe Vivaldi's customers and asked people to share their memories of the business on its website.

"We want to honor you, the people Caffe Vivaldi has touched and transformed, through music, through vision and ideas, through love," Ansari said in a statement. "Our community is strong as ever. And we want to remain engaged with all the many thousands of you."

Photo by Google Maps street view