🍻 Everybody loves Lucy's

Around 50 years ago, Ludwika Mickevicius left her home country of Poland to immigrate to New York City. She made the move in hopes of starting a better life for her family––her beloved husband and two children––arriving in New York with a little money and a dream.

• Ludwika started working at a small dive bar in the East Village near her apartment, and soon became a neighborhood staple. 
• The regulars got to know Ludwika and looked forward to seeing her friendly face at the bar. People in the neighborhood started calling her Lucy.

Fast-forward: The real story starts a decade later, when Lucy became the owner of the very same dive bar where she had worked since arriving in New York. She renamed the little bar "Lucy's," and spent the next four decades serving drinks and a smile to the neighborhood.

Lucy always paid for the space on a casual month-to-month lease, but after the East Village became one of the hottest neighborhoods in Manhattan and new ownership took over, Lucy soon realized that she wouldn’t be able to make rent.

• It broke her heart, but she announced she would be closing her doors.

The neighborhood, distraught by the dive’s possible closing, quickly rallied to try and save Lucy’s. That’s when Jon Neidich, CEO of Golden Age Hospitality, stepped up to the plate. 

• Neidich had lived above Lucy’s for years and sparked a friendship with the now 84-year-old; he had also been a bartender at Lucy's in the 90's. 
• The high-end night club director approached the new landlord and cut a deal to save the space––and he decided he wouldn’t change a thing.

“Places like Lucy’s are disappearing in New York, which is why I’m adamant this remains Lucy’s,” Jon said. “Luckily, I’m in a place in my career where I could take it over and help. Sure, if you want to order a martini here now, you’ll be able to get one. But we’re still using normal ice cubes here, not large ones.”

After some very basic renovations, Lucy’s reopened to the public last month. Lucy, of course, showed up in all her glory.

While Lucy has moved on to a happy and well-earned retirement, Jon is making sure the beloved East Village grandmother is taken care of, paying her a wage, benefits, and health insurance as well as a 20% share in the bar.

“Saving the bar was part of it, but it’s also about making sure Lucy still has a livelihood,” he told the NY Times. “As everyone says, what makes Lucy’s special is Lucy.”