On Jan. 5, Le Cirque will close its doors at 151 East 58th Street in New York, Bloomberg News reported yesterday. After declaring bankruptcy in March, the restaurant’s inability to turn its finances around has come as something of a shock to many in the food world. “The rent was unsustainable,” says co-owner Mauro Maccioni. “So rather than harm the Le Cirque brand, NYLC [New York Le Cirque] decided to vacate the space. NYLC the operating entity is shutting down, but the Le Cirque brand will move on.” The company that actually owns the Le Cirque brand maintains 10 additional locations worldwide, including Le Cirque at the Bellagio Las Vegas and Le Cirque Signature Mumbai; in an earlier interview with Bloomberg, Maccioni noted that NYLC filed for chapter 11 in order to reorganize and protect the other leases.
