Lit Lounge in East Village is closing soon; Bushwick club still not open (but its cafe is)
East Village party palace and venue, Lit Lounge, will close sometime in the next two months after 13 years in business. EV Grieve noted last month that there was a big “FOR RENT” sign on the building and confirmation came Thursday (7/9) via Clubplanet.com who interviewed Lit owners Steve Lewis and David Schwartz:
Steve Lewis: What was the primary reason for closing and moving shop to Bushwick?
Erik Foss: The new East Village crowd and the flight of the creative types to creative Brooklyn . It was inevitable. NYC is an ever changing animal. I am just glad that I got to be here before downtown changed into what it is now.
David Schwartz: Ehh, not happy with the newbies in the East Village. Millenials don’t go out and the artistic ones left for Brooklyn digs 4 yrs ago.
In addition to being a place to dance and indulge in some late-night hedonism, their downstairs venue used to be home of the much-missed Precious Metal nights, as well as hosting lots of hyped shows during the “free Sparks” mid-’00s years.
Lit’s sister club in Bushwick is still not open but its restaurant component, Currant Cafe, is and has been for more than a year. Says Foss, “Lit Bk could open next week or in 3 months, it’s really a mystery as we have no real control of this last step.” Foss also told Clubplanet that Aaron Pierce, founder of Williamsburg’s soon-to-close Trash Bar, is now a part of the Lit team.
