Odessa’s bathroom. (Photo: Bedford + Bowery’s Instagram)
After the Bedford + Bowery Bazaar on Saturday, we ended up stopping by Odessa Cafe Bar‘s last night after 48 years on Avenue A. Around 3 a.m. the place was buzzing with a very young crowd, though at least one member of the old guard had planned to pay his respects. Erik Foss, who was a bartender there before opening Lit and Fuse Gallery (the latter is also closing, on September 11), wrote on Instagram: “ODESSA , the bar I started out at in the east village is closing tonight for ever, so sad, and haden’t it been for this magical place LIT probably wouldn’t have existed.” Lauren Dillard (Lauren Flax‘s bandmate in CREEP) chimed in: “That’s where I would get perogies before I would Dj for the night at lit!”
Last month we tweeted a photo of the sign announcing the closure (“We are forever thankful for your support, loyalty and kindness,” the owners wrote) and readers were bummed: “No!!! Where will I get my beer/whiskey combos!” tweeted Alex Howie. “Dark side goes dark,” mourned Ilene Budin. The bar closed because of a 50-percent rent hike, owner Mike Skulikidis told DNA Info. The adjacent diner will remain open.
Of course, Odessa isn’t the only dive that has closed recently: we were also on hand for Motor City’s last night back in June. That bar just came back to life via a new music video filmed during its final days. Check out the latest from Labretta Suede & The Motel 6, a Kiwi band currently touring the U.S.: the bar gets lit on fire and the lead singer rocks an outfit that would give Motor City go-go dancer Anna Copa Cabanna (who recently appeared in a music video herself) a run for her singles.