There’s new life coming to the fabled Neary’s building at 358 E. 57th Street.
The team behind Mediterranean bistro Leonetta in Midtown South and Jack & Charlie’s No. 18 in the West Village are taking their next plunge in the sedate Sutton Place neighborhood with The Derby Club, on track to open as early as mid-September.
The 1,800 square-foot venue will be “more of an American tavern approach,” said executive chef/partner Ed Cotton.
“We felt like bringing a vibe similar to 4 Charles Prime Rib and Minetta Tavern downtown,” he said. “It’s kind of lacking in the area.”
Neary’s closed last summer after nearly 60 years there.
Cotton and partners Chris Coco and Craig Huston, the managing partner, signed a lease with Thomas and Anthony Martignetti, who bought the building from the Neary family last year for $3.2 million.
Huston said Derby Club wouldn’t look much like its predecessor but, “We kept the classic floor layout” with the bar in the same front location. “You’ll recognize it as the old Neary’s,” he added. It will have about 44 table seats plus seats at the bar.
The design will feature a mural by Philadelphia’s acclaimed Bird Studio of an historical landscape of Sutton Place and the East River.
The Martignetti brothers, who own East Pole on East 65th Street, were expected to open their own restaurant at the Neary’s site. Anthony told Community Board 6 in a liquor license application hearing last year that it would be a “modern version of what Neary’s was” with an Irish menu.
But they changed their minds. “They came to us after seeing our places and liked what we did,” Huston said.
Cotton said, “Opening The Derby Club in the historic Neary’s location is an honor. It has been a landmark for New York hospitality for generations and we’re proud to carry that legacy forward.”
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