You’d think Anthony Martignetti would be too busy with his impending nuptials to worry about renovations, but he and his brother Tom have closed Bella’s, the den of pheromones underneath Bar Martignetti, and will reopen it in September as the Magestic. Guest of a Guest’s premature nostalgia for the bar (it opened in 2006, after all) is almost too much to stomach — “I will miss the private parties in the booths, the spot of countless secrets shared, and the twirls to Journey on the dance floor.” What Rachelle Hruska fails to mention are the seemingly underage patrons that — by her own account — flooded the place. Have the Martignettis finally heeded Hruska’s advice to “switch their focus … and fast”? If so, we might expect either a cocktail reliquary along the lines of the nearby Randolph or something altogether more exclusive — perhaps along the lines of nearby Goldbar or Femme Fatale, which has shown few signs of life since it announced plans of reviving the Double Happiness space over a year ago. Either way, it’s a handsome space — with some serious airing out it could work well.
Bella’s RIP: 2006-2008 [Guest of a Guest]
