Restaurants & Bars
Iconic West Village Cafe Loup Seized By State Tax Department
The West 13th Street French bistro is a well-known literary haunt.
WEST VILLAGE, NY — Cafe Loup's story may be over.
The West Village bistro, a famed haunt of the literary community, was seized by the New York State Department of Taxation and Finance over unpaid taxes.
“This property has been seized for nonpayment of taxes, and is now in the possession of the state of New York,” according to a notice posted at the cafe’s entrance by the New York State Department of Taxation and Finance.
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The restaurant has four outstanding warrants totaling nearly 242,000 in unpaid levies, according to state records.
Founded in 1977, the French bistro first opened on West 13th Street near University Place before eventually moving down the block to 105 West 13th St. near Sixth Avenue.
Find out what's happening in West Villagefor free with the latest updates from Patch.
Over the decades, Cafe Loup became a neighborhood staple and grew to be a popular spot for the city's literary scene. The eatery boasted Paul Simon, Susan Sontag and Paul Auster as regulars.
It is unclear if the restaurant's closure is permanent. Patch did not immediately hear back from Cafe Loup's owner, Ardes Quinn, for a request for a comment.
Patrons flocked to Twitter to post tribute and memories of the cafe.
I can't imagine New York City without Cafe Loup.
— Sam Sifton (@SamSifton) September 19, 2018
In 1995 I sat for four hours, smoking, with Uma Thurman, at the table under the “seized” sign, for a Harper’s Bazaar profile. RIP Cafe Loup. https://t.co/3U0XHXa258
— Dwight Garner (@DwightGarner) September 19, 2018
I’ve said so many outrageous things at Cafe Loup with maybe every poet I’ve known in New York. People will say the food was bad but I never had it so. If they want to say New York is over I won’t be having that either.
— Alex Dimitrov (@alexdimitrov) September 19, 2018
Cafe Loup was my lodestar. The menu was incomprehensible, the martinis legion, the breadbaskets plentiful and the wine pours... generous really undersells it. I can't really even process this news.
— Reyhan Harmanci (@harmancipants) September 19, 2018
the only way to toast cafe loup would be to make an extra large martini with a second helping in the shaker with lynn yaeger and patricia clarkson
— E. Alex Jung (@e_alexjung) September 19, 2018
Lead photos courtesy of John Ortved
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