(Photo: Melissa Hom)
Paul Seres, an owner of The DL (and also of Rivington F&B, where Lady Gaga recently performed) tells us the drag cabaret will pop up on the club’s second floor while it looks for a new location.
The reboot will be overseen by Josephine and Robert Jason, the daughter and ex-husband of original owner Hayne Suthon, who opened Lucky Cheng’s in 1993 and died of breast cancer in June.
“They were running into problems on 52nd Street, the landlord kicked them out, and we went in and said it’s a great opportunity and a great brand, let’s keep the shows up and running as fast as possible,” said Seres. “So we’re doing a pop-up on the second floor of The DL and looking for a space that will be viable for them so that they’re not living for the rent and working for the landlord on 52nd.”
Per the partnership agreement, The DL will operate whatever permanent venue opens up while the Jasons handle back-of-house. At The DL, the shows will be “the same experience” as in the East Village and Times Square, though Seres expects the second floor (which accommodates dinner seating for 65) to make for “much more intimate” performances.
For now a three-course dinner and show will be offered Wednesdays and Thursdays at 7:30 ($40/person) and Fridays and Saturdays at 7:00 and 9:30 ($50/person). Reservations can be made at 212-995-5500.
Tomorrow’s debut dinner is fully booked, so you might want to wait till next Wednesday, when there’ll be a no-cover relaunch party on the roof. Lucky Cheng’s promises an “all-star line up of celebrity guests, burlesque performers and DJs.”
Asked whether the next permanent iteration of Lucky Cheng’s will be downtown, Seres said they’re looking “all over town” for something with at least 4,000 or 5,000 sq ft of space.