Continental, the famous East Village bar where Iggy Pop, the Ramones and Guns N’ Roses all played, is closing after 27 years.
Owner Trigger Smith has enlisted rocker Jesse Malin to host the closing night on Dec. 15 with the help of veteran nightlife promoters Steve Lewis and Vito Bruno “to make the grand finale something extra special,” Smith told me.
The bar on Third Avenue just north of St. Mark’s Place stopped hosting live music in 2006 and became a no-frills dive bar.
A big sign on the facade promises “5 Shots of Anything for $12.”
But regulars remember the days when Steven Van Zandt, Patti Smith, Lenny Kravitz, Scott Weiland and Liv Tyler hung out there.
The one-story building and the shuttered McDonald’s next door are being razed to make way for a seven-story structure with two floors of retail and offices.
Smith said, “Closing down is heartbreaking, but it has truly been an honor running my club in the city where I grew up, and I’ve loved every minute of it.”