So apparently Upper East Side eateries Nello and Serafina are at war. According to the Post Nello Balan and his boys have gone and snatched up the 61st Street property where the posh-pizza joint Serafina has been spinning pies for more than a decade. What's worse, Nello bought the property for $21 million when the Serafina folk thought they'd already settled a deal to buy it for $19.5 million. But, this being a story about real estate in New York, the story does not end there.
See Nello, known for its absurdly expensive noodles a block north, is aiming to knock down the pretty ugly building at 29 East 61st Street in hopes of putting up a newer building with a cheaper Nello outpost and, maybe, a high-end hotel. But! In order to build up Nello is going to have to make arrangements to buy airspace from its neighboring buildings and you'll never guess who owns them. Oh wait, you guessed? Yup. The Serafina guys own both of 'em (they house two of their other restaurant concepts, Geisha and Manana).
You'd think the Serafina team would have learned their lesson by now. This isn't the first time that one of their restaurants has had to leave a lease due to a new building owner. After Astor Wines moved from Astor Place down to Lafayette and Fourth Street the Serafina that used to be located in that building had to move out as well. The pizza people, in the meantime, are contemplating putting a smaller Serafina in abover Manana at 27 East 61st Street.
Related: For an enjoyable variation on the women laughing alone salad meme please enjoy the many women eating Serafina food alone. Just click on any of the locations and you'll see what we mean. We're particularly fond of the main girl and this very hungry young woman.
