http://www.thevillager.com/villager_284/mixeduse.htmlThe whole Hog
Meatpacking District BBQ/biker bar the Hog Pit will open in new, larger space in the Flatiron District in as early as two weeks, marking the saloon’s successful secession from its increasingly upscale environs on Ninth Ave.
The new location — to be called Hog Pit New York City, at 37 W. 26th St. between Broadway and Sixth Ave. — will put more of a focus on food and expanding its Southern-style menu, said owner Felisa Dell on Monday, as she was busy setting up and interviewing new wait staff.
The 2,400-square-foot space — formerly occupied by seafood restaurant Black Pearl — will include seating for almost 90 in the dining room, plus an additional 20 or so at the bar. The restaurant will offer a late-night menu featuring favorites like ribs and mac ’n’ cheese, competing for customers with the critically acclaimed Hill Country barbecue directly across the street.
Dell said the Ninth Ave. location will still remain open until Dec. 24 when its lease is up, and that she had to scoop up the W. 26th St. space early to risk losing it to another tenant.
And what of the sawdust strewn-floored joint’s commitment to a decidedly unrefined appearance?
“We’re not going to have the same number of animal heads,” Dell admitted of the new space, which she described as “very woody.” “A lot of stuff over the bar was stuff customers gave us over the years. That has to happen slowly.”
