A popular Upper West Side restaurant has abruptly shuttered after the owner suffered a bizarre, “life-threatening” accident in Mexico — and may be on the hook for more than $1 million in back rent, Side Dish has learned.
The Milling Room, known for its airy dining room and vaulted glass ceiling — closed unexpectedly in December after more than 12 years with as much as $1.2 million owed to its landlord, according to a source close to the situation.
When reached in Mexico, owner Luis Gonzalez declined to comment on how much he owed. He told Side Dish that he was forced to close following a mishap during an ancient temazcal ceremony, where participants enter a womb-like dark space with a fire and hot volcanic rocks, herbs and steam.
“It’s an ancient practice, and I’ve been practicing these ceremonies my entire adult life. But this one was not well managed. It was too hot and crowded, and I fell onto the red rocks. Luckily, someone pulled me out and I’m here to tell the story.”
He’s had 14 surgeries since then and burns over 30% of his body.
But the owner had stopped paying rent long before that, sources told Side Dish.
“The landlord thought it was better to work out a payment plan — the restaurant had been there a long time — instead of having a vacant storefront,” a source said.
The 7,000-square-foot restaurant space at 445 Columbus Ave. between West 81st and West 82nd Streets is now available for lease at $60,000 a month. A contract is out with a top restaurateur, said Rafe Evans, the broker of record, with Walker, Malloy & Co.
“The neighborhood will be very pleased,” Evans said.
Indeed, the team behind the popular Olio e Piu and Boucherie eateries is currently in talks to rent out the space and create a Boucherie Upper West Side, sources told Side Dish exclusively.
However, if the contract is not signed, there are “multiple other restaurateurs on standby,” the source added.
As for the back rent, Evans would only say: ” When people leave, there’s usually a back rent situation. ..You can’t run a restaurant from thousands of miles away.”
After closing in December, the Milling Room was slated to become Ashi, a Mexican restaurant from top Mexican chef Jesus Duron, a two-Michelin-starred chef.
“We were preparing to relaunch as another restaurant, Ashi, but I couldn’t materialize the change due to the accident,” Gonzalez said. “I was bedridden for four months. I had to take care of my health before anything else.”
The restaurant was going through a difficult time before the accident, Gonzalez said, as prices for everything from vegetables to meat were up “20% to 30%” since the pandemic.
“Honestly, right now all my strength and attention is focused on my recovery,” Gonzalez said. “I was head of the operation and largely MIA, and things took the course they took. I had to prioritize my time and financial resources for restoring my health.”
But Gonzalez’s former publicist has a different explanation for the very “charming” restaurateur.
“He’s in the wind,” said Ken Frydman, hired by Gonzalez to publicize Ashi. “Not only did he leave unpaid rent but he didn’t pay his PR guy. The last time I saw him was a couple of months ago.
“We sat on a bench on Columbus Avenue, and he said was going to buy a million-dollar apartment in Montreal the next day, and that’s the last I heard.”
We hear … that Yesterday’s, a new cocktail bar, has opened at 157 Bleecker St. in the former home of Carroll Place — to bring a fresh take on old-school bar culture. Think classic cocktails, wood-fired pizza, throwback music, and watch parties for the NBA playoffs and upcoming World Cup.
Spanning 6,500 square feet across two floors, Yesterday’s seats 150 people. It was designed by Yakka Studio, with leather booths, “book nooks,” and disco balls overhead.
