Celebrity Chef's NYC Restaurant Closes After 7 Months: Report

MEATPACKING DISTRICT, NY — Fatbird, the Manhattan restaurant from celebrity chef Cat Cora, closed its doors this month just seven months after it first opened, according to a new report.

Eater New York reported on Friday that the restaurant had closed, with the furniture packed up and the menus removed from its entrance. Patch was not able to contact Fatbird on Friday because its phone line was disconnected.

Cora, a former contestant on "Iron Chef America," helped to launch Fatbird Southern Kitchen and Bar, located at 44 Ninth Ave., in June. The restaurant, which serves fried chicken and upscale Jell-O shots, opened to mediocre reviews. A food critic for Eater New York excoriated the restaurant, saying Fatbird "flies and crashes" in the Meatpacking District."

In October, Cora filed a lawsuit accusing her business partners of bilking her out of $400,000 and blaming them for the restaurant's "lackluster performance." Cora alleges in the lawsuit that her business partners failed to pay any of the $400,000 they were supposed to in exchange for the use of Cora's name and image on Fatbird promotional materials.

Cora also accuses the Fatbird operators of running the restaurant poorly and serving items she had not approved.

"Fatbird has been operating the Fatbird Restaurant in a substandard manner, but Cora has received the brunt of the blame for the restaurant's lackluster performance," the suit says.

Cora is seeking the $400,000 she said she is owed plus interest and fees, along with other damages, in addition to an injunction that would force Fatbird to stop using her name and image with restaurant materials.

The lawsuit remains ongoing. Patch was not able to contact Fatbird's current management for comment on the suit or the restaurant's reported closure.

Cora says she has parted ways with the restaurant in a note on her website.

Image credit: Jason Kempin/Getty Images for Fatbird. Photo caption: Chef Cat Cora attends the Grand Opening Of Fatbird Restaurant at Fatbird on July 12, 2017 in New York City.