House of cards
80 Washington Place, Ceres, Le Chêne, Birds, Willa, best Thanksgiving provisioning, MORE
REAL ESTATE • First Mover
Big bet
Three properties that came to market in the last 20 days in Greenwich Village.
80 Washington Place, situated in the middle of Greenwich Village and the NBA/mafia betting scandal, is for sale. The property, which last traded in the summer of 2024 for $17M after more than a decade on the market, listed this week for $22.5M.
Tabbed by the FBI as the allegedly setting of rigged poker games in last month’s indictment against 31 people (including Portland Trailblazers coach and NBA Hall of Famer Chauncey Billups), the property already had a storied past. It was previously owned by John Philip Sousa (and later, rented by Travis Scott and Kylie Jenner).
Rehauled in 2011 by design firm Clodagh, the 8700-SF house holds six bedrooms and nine baths (six full), plus 1566 SF of outdoor space. A double-height wall of windows frames the great room and a “private wellness level” features a gym, sauna, and its own terrace.
Melissa Olson of Elliman, who represented the buyer in the 2024 sale, has the listing. Along with that, two more Village properties for your consideration on this Fall Friday:
→ 25 5th Ave #8F (Greenwich Village) • 2BR/1BA, 988 SF condo • Ask: $2.295M • Gold Coast triple-exposure prewar • Days on market: 15 • Monthly tax: $1053 • Monthly cc: $1476 • Agent: Tania Isacoff Friedland, Compass.
→ 69 Washington Pl #3/4/5 (Greenwich Village) • 5BR/4.1BA, 8757 SF co-op • Ask: $6.25M • top 3 floors of 22’-wide Greek Revival with roof deck • Days on market: 17 • Monthly maint: $7881 • Agents: Mark Amadei & Jonathan Hettinger, Sotheby’s.
→ 80 Washington Pl (Greenwich Village, above) • 6BR/6.3BA, 8757 SF townhouse • Ask: $22.5M • built in 1839, media lounge features 700-bottle wine cellar, bar, and tasting lounge • Days on market: 3 • Monthly tax: $3525 • Agent: Melissa Olson, Elliman.
REAL ESTATE LINKS: First look inside the Flatiron Building condo conversion, giving downtown loft vibes • Sutton Tower crosses $150M sales mark for the year • On Upper East Side, Woolworth Mansion finds a buyer after 14 years on market • ABC No Rio’s new building tops out on Lower East Side.
Interested in getting your brand in front of FOUND’s very appealing audience in NYC and beyond? Hit reply or drop us a line at sales@foundny.com.
WORK • Friday Routine
‘Za boys
JULIAN GELDMACHER & JACOB SEREBNICK • owners/operators • Ceres
Neighborhood you work in: Little Italy
Neighborhood you live in: Downtown Brooklyn (JG), Jersey City (JS)
It’s Friday afternoon, how are you rolling into the weekend?
Every day our opening starts the same way: we get the dough going, then take a short walk to La Cabra coffee on Lafayette St. for iced hand brews and a pastry before the madness begins.
Any restaurant plans?
Friday nights for us are spent at the restaurant — working service, developing new ideas, and continuing to build our brand. We occasionally go out to eat on Saturday or Sunday. When we do, you’ll likely find us at Le Chêne, Penny, or Jōji.
Any weekend getaways?
Julian: My wife took me on a surprise less-than-24-hour trip to New Orleans for my 30th birthday and our first stop was Molly’s Rise and Shine, which was awesome. We stayed at The Celestine. I loved all the NOLA cliches: beignets, poboys, Crystal hot sauce, antiques, jazz, the accents.
Jacob: We plan to close for a week or two in December, and I’ll be spending that time in Lyon with my girlfriend skiing in the French Alps and gorging ourselves on Lièvre à la royale.
What was your last great vacation?
Julian: My wife and I were in Sicily for 24 hours a few months ago for a good friend’s wedding and had way too much fun dancing in a cave with all our friends until the wee hours of the morning. My tuxedo shoes might never recover.
Jacob: I’ve only taken one vacation in my adult life: Copenhagen. My favorite meal there was at Kadeau.
What’s a recent big-ticket purchase you love?
Julian: My wife and I recently bought an antique duck press (shoutout to Mark at Moss Antiques in New Orleans!). I haven’t had the chance to use it yet, but can’t wait for our next dinner party.
What product or service do you always recommend?
Julian: Anything and everything Antonio Ciongoli designs. He’s the founder of clothing line 18 East. Check them out around the corner from Ceres on Elizabeth Street.
Jacob: Shoutout to the parking garage down the street. Maybe if they read this, they’ll have my car ready for me when I actually need it.
BARS • First Round
Taking flight
A new jazz bar from Sip & Guzzle head bartender Steve Schneider, Birds offers immaculate vibes, acoustic perfection, and a weekend waitlist that can reach the hundreds.
It’s a brilliant concept from Schneider and team, a captivating West Village space that’s both intimate and energetic, composed of a dimly lit bar, cozy two-top tables, and plush banquettes. Every seat offers a prime view of the band. The bar program is equally impressive with its classics-only menu organized into three tiers — well, call, and premium, priced at $17, $20 and $23, respectively. A tight food menu offers items like oysters, steak tartare, and boquerones with romesco.
It’s not impossible to get in: Reservations go online at 630p for the 730p set and at 845p for the 930p set. Walk-ins are accepted all evening based on availability, starting at 5p. You’d be particularly hard-pressed to find a more ideal date night in Manhattan than an evening at Birds. –Lee Pitofsky
→ Birds (West Village) • 64 Downing St • Wed-Thu & Sun 5p-12a, Fri-Sat 5p-2a.
CULTURE & LEISURE • Sec 107 (Rivalries)
Nets v Knicks • MSG (Midtown South) • Sun @ 6p • sec 107, $738 per (lowest avail $166)
Islanders v Rangers • MSG (Midtown South) • Sat @ 7p • sec 107, $410 per (lowest avail $189)
Khruangbin • Webster Hall (East Village) • Mon @ 7p • preferred balcony, $556 per
CULTURE & LEISURE LINKS: Herzog & de Meuron ace revamp of the former Whitney (now Sotheby’s HQ) • You can now check out artwork from the Brooklyn Library • The best wine Substacks • The pure delight of joining a tennis team in midlife.
GETAWAYS • Upstate
Bright light, dark wood, can’t lose
At first glance, Willa in Millerton, NY, looks ordinary, with bland suburban interiors that include an array of fake florals hanging above a long dark wood bar and a scattering of hightop tables in the back. The food, however, is anything but ordinary. Ingredient combinations are as brave as they are assembled to perfection.
Chef Daniel Meissner boasts a team with roots and experience from The Culinary Institute of America down the road, and it shows. The plating is that of someone recently graded on it, precise and tweezered. Most everything on the menu is sourced from a nearby farm, especially appetizers, which are almost exclusively vegetarian. One exception: Vitsky Bakery bread toasted with a thick layer of butter and topped with an anchovy. The salad included watermelon, piel de sapo melon, and husk cherries in a dressing of its own juices. Hiding amongst the appetizer list is one pasta, easy to overlook but housemade and rich. At the end of summer, it was their take on a spaghetti alla Nerano, made with sungold sauce and Japanese eggplant instead of zucchini. It managed to be smooth and creamy without excessive dairy.
Among the small list of entrees, there’s always a burger and chicken (there are tavern undertones, after all). The intentionally simple burger, sourced from Kinderhook Farm, is smashed. The roast chicken is among the best I’ve ever had in a restaurant, smoky, crispy-skinned, with a rich jus that evokes Thanksgiving turkey. It’s served over potatoes, prepared differently per the season. For dessert, fluffy tiramisu had the texture of a custard.
Willa is the heart of Millerton. It’s the light at the top of Main Street, with waitresses who will remind you of your mom’s friends and a chatty bartender. In the end, the aesthetic shortcomings are part of its charm, since at the end of the day, Willa really just wants to be an excellent neighborhood joint, even if your hood is 45 minutes away. –Sylvie Florman
→ Willa (Millerton, NY) • 52 Main St • Tue-Thu 5-9p, Fri 5-10p, Sat 12-3p & 4-10p • call (518) 789-0252 to reserve.
GETAWAYS LINKS: In the Hamptons, Sagaponack General Store taking Thanksgiving preorders… Il Buco Al Mare is too • As shutdown continues, thousands of flight cancellations begin today • Dolly Parton’s new Nashville hotel opens reservations • 34 more homes on sale at Powder Haven, Reed Hastings’s private Utah ski resort.
GOODS & SERVICES • The Nines
Thanksgiving provisioning, Manhattan
The Nines are FOUND’s distilled lists of the best. Additions or subtractions? Hit reply or found@foundny.com.
