Former Mission Chinese Landlord on Orchard Trying to Pitch Doomed Space for $10,000
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“The place needs work.” Yeah, no shit. That’s the understatement of the century regarding 154 Orchard Street, the former home of Mission Chinese Food. Drama at this address eventually led to Mission Cantina and lawsuits between owner Danny Bowien and landlord Abraham Noy, thanks in large part to a dangerous space with a terrible vermin infestation.
But the average Joe out there looking to carpet-bag in Hell Square might not be aware of the backstory here. We all know that a sucker will eventually snap up the below-grade space, which is now being peddled on the market. Asking price at the moment is at least $10,000 per month. There is also the possibility of combining with the upstairs space, formerly the Fox & Jane annex.
“[The space] has great potential if you know what you’re doing,” says the Craigslist post.
Yeah, the potential for failure.
No business owner in their right mind would open here right now. It’s not just the mice and rats from the construction site at 145 Ludlow that plagued the restaurant. The illegally enclosed 800 square-foot deck – a proverbial crown jewel selling point – remains a veritable death trap. As first reported in January 2013, the patio covering is a liability, allegedly composed of a flammable mix of plastic, wood, and tar paper. This area is a total liability.
Bowien filed suit against Noy last August for “leasing him the Lower East Side space when it was not actually up to building code, and for then refusing to make any repairs to it.” And let’s not forget the mouse infestation. The chef-owner seeks north of $500,000 in damages. Not to be outfoxed, Noy predictably filed a counter-suit last month. According to the New York Post, “Noy, in his countersuit, says Bowien not only was the one responsible for the vermin but also for a $164,000 tab in unpaid rent, taxes, water bills and other various fees.”
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