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Brooklyn bar Leyenda to close
Julie Reiner and Ivy Mix’s New York bar, Leyenda, will shut at the end of March after a decade in operation.
Last week, the Brooklyn-based bar took to social media to announce it would be closing on 28 March, but did not provide a reason.
The statement on Leyenda and Mix’s Instagram post said: “It is with a heavy heavy heart that I announce that Leyenda as we know it at 221 Smith Street will be shutting our doors just before our 10th anniversary at the end of March, 2025.
“I cannot express fully what Leyenda, our staff and our community has meant to me. This is my family. Leyenda was my dream and living that dream the last decade has been, well a dream.
“Latin American spirits are my passion, and to open a chapel that celebrates them has been my crowning achievement in my career.
“Leyenda is the legendary bar that is my baby and after 10 years, it’s time to say goodbye to Smith Street.
“The little bar that could, will be celebrating our life over the next two months featuring bartenders past and present. Stay tuned for weekly programming and many many photos walking down memory lane.
“To all of you who have supported us over the years, I am infinitely grateful. We all are.
“This isn’t the end of Leyenda. This is not goodbye / adios, this is a see ya later / hasta luego. This is going to be one hell of a despedida.”
Leyenda was formed by Mix, co-founder of Speed Rack, in 2015 alongside bar veteran Julie Reiner (founder of Clover Club). The venue focuses on Latin American spirits and has notched up awards from Tales of the Cocktail’s Spirited Awards and the James Beard Foundation.
Reiner took to Instagram to address the closure: “As hard as it was to make this call, we know that it is the right decision at this time.
“Less than 1% of bars make it to 10 years, and we are very proud to have hit this milestone.”
The bar announced the ‘Legends of Leyenda’ takeover series for its final months, with Ryan Liloia of New York’s Clover Club taking the helm on 10 February.
Other ex-Leyenda staff to take over the bar include Nik Sparks (18 February), Alisha Neverson (25 February), Jessie Harris and Garrett Borgeson (3 March), Leanne Favre (11 March), and Ivy Mix (19 March).
Across the pond, two London-based bars announced their closure last month: Silverleaf and Hacha Brixton.
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