Tomorrow Is Your Last Chance to Drink at Barramundi As You Know It

Much like the fish from which it takes its name, classic LES bar Barramundi is going through some changes. “The barramundi fish goes through these mutations occasionally,” says owner Tony Powe. “It changes its sex halfway through its life – it goes from male to female.”

Powe didn’t say which kind of changes were in store for the bar, but a Facebook message said, “We will be doing some re-modeling and re-inventing before reopening in April,” and noted that a couple of longtime bartenders were departing.

Tomorrow evening is your last chance to enjoy the bar in its current state. To mark the occasion, Powe has invited all the regulars Barramundi has accrued since opening in 1993 (it moved from 145-147 Ludlow to its current Clinton Street location in 2005).

Meanwhile, the cocktail bar above the space, 2nd Floor on Clinton, will remain open throughout the renovation. “Now it will feel even more like a speakeasy because you’ll have to enter through a construction zone,” Powe says. Though Powe, who took ownership of the neighborhood joint back in 2006, looks back fondly on his years as owner, the anecdotes themselves are a little hazy. “Do you expect me to remember that far back?” he jokes.