Now Reopened, Blue Moon Hotel Pins Survival on New Restaurant and Bakery
Photo: Blue Moon Hotel
The Blue Moon Hotel on Orchard Street hopes that diversification in its fifteenth year might bolster the bottom line.
As part of its reinvention (and reopening), the Settenbrino family is looking to become more than just a “museum hotel” by creating food and beverage options. Specifically, two onsite establishments – Settenbrini’s enoteca and the Sweet Dreams Bakery. Community Board 3 will hear the application for a beer-wine license next week.
In other news, there is also an official website that allows customers to book reservations directly with the hotel; Blue Moon also partnered with the hospitality-driven tech platform Jurny.
The hotel during the pandemic PAUSE
These enhancements are apparently part of a revival plan by the Blue Moon to rebound from years of decline.
The boutique hotel had been in complete disrepair and in major debt. Randy Settenbrino, who launched the lodge in 2006 at great personal cost, remains amidst a crowdfunding campaign to stay alive. (The property has been put up for sale many times over the years.) Since launching earlier this summer, donors together gave roughly $7,000.
“The journey toward overcoming the Pandemic was a baffling labrythine where all exits led to insurmountable walls,” Settenbrino told us in an email. “We regrouped and persevered to salvage and protect our beloved family legend.”
It remains strained by the initial monetary outlay to restore the building. The tax and expense burden compelled the owners to lease out the property to a hostel for the last five years, which Settenbrino acknowledged as an error in hindsight. That arrangement allegedly led to the disassembly and disposal of many fixtures and artifacts from the original renovation. Coupled with the pandemic-induced closure for sixteen months (and brief flirtation with becoming a homeless shelter), the costs of revival became nearly insurmountable.
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