One of the West Village’s most prominent restaurateurs is currently gearing up to debut a brand new concept later this summer.
Natalie Freihon, AKA “Nat”, is a hospitality expert with years of experience in the industry, having managed recognizable New York icons like Double Crown, Freemans, Peels, and Mercat. Today, Nat is the managing partner of The Fat Radish and The Orchard, and founded her own hospitality company – Strange Bird Hospitality. Nat is perhaps best recognized by her popular restaurant Nat’s on Bank, a neighborhood restaurant known for serving elevated New York classics with a whimsical twist.
Now, Nat and the team at Strange Bird have revealed their intentions to open a brand new restaurant later this summer. The restaurant, which is called Nat’s on Bleecker, will be located (unsurprisingly) at 170 Bleecker Street, between Sullivan and McDougal. Nat describes her new project as a neighborhood restaurant that will focus on “nostalgic American classics, utilizing sustainably sourced ingredients.”
Moving into a light and airy space at the corner of Bleecker and Sullivan Street, Nat’s on Bleecker will be replacing Junzi Kitchen, which previously occupied the space. Junzi was a popular Chinese restaurant that was originally founded in New Haven, and while their Bleecker Street location has sadly closed, they still operate a few locations uptown that can be found on their website. Before Junzi, the space was known as Bamboleo.
The location is relatively spacious for the neighborhood, and offers about 1,700 square feet of space on the ground floor, as well as 750 square feet for the basement. Nat is also applying to develop a 500 square feet sidewalk cafe, which will enable the restaurant to seat a total of 49 guests at one time. Nat is currently in the process of applying for a liquor license, and is proposing operating hours of 11:00 AM – 12:00 AM from Sunday through Wednesday, and 12:00 AM – 1:00 AM Thursday through Saturday. Nat is hoping to have her new restaurant operational by this summer, and for more information you can follow Nat’s on Bleecker’s newly released Instagram page.
