Rumor: Levain Bakery Headed to Bleecker Street for First Downtown Spot

When the remodeled and restored 59 Bleecker Street returns, word on the street is it’ll offer a pair of upscale retail tenants. Namely, Levain Bakery.

Founded on the Upper West Side twenty-five years ago by competitive swimmer friends Connie McDonald and Pam Weekes, Levain is a cafe famous for its six-ounce chocolate chip walnut cookie.

Levain certainly has the area covered, boasting four New York locations. This rumored bakery would be the fifth overall for Levain, and first for the downtown environs.

Purportedly joining Levain Bakery at the upscaled corner is another high-profile commercial tenant in Core Power Yoga.

Both tenants seem to fit the profile of the renovated property as illustrated in the project renderings.

The one-story corner building at 59 Bleecker was first constructed in 1921, and housed both a car service station and liquor store (at the same time). The structure was modified roughly sixty years later to include a second contiguous building. Landmark protections arrived in 1999 courtesy of the NoHo Historic District.

Three years ago, though, the Landmarks Preservation Commission approved plans by architects Beyer Blinder Belle to restore the existing building at 59 Bleecker, but also replace the non-original “garage” section with a one-story structure that includes aluminum and glass storefronts, plus fixtures for a “bracket sign” (homage to the old).