By Julie Shapiro
DNAinfo Reporter/Producer
SOHO — An undercover NYPD operation found underage drinking at four bars and restaurants in SoHo last week.
An 18-year-old girl and a 19-year-old boy had no trouble getting served at Felix, Boom, Cafe Noir and Via dei Mille on the evening of Aug. 5, said Capt. Edward Winski, commanding officer of the 1st Precinct.
Winski said he targeted those establishments, along with three others that passed the inspection, because of complaints from neighbors or due to a history of violations.
All four of the bars serve food and cater to a professional clientele.
Sabatino Gatti, 45, a manager at Boom on Spring Street, which features Italian entrees in the $20 range, denied that the restaurant served anyone underage.
“We card everyone — even older people with a walker,” he said.
Gatti said he was surprised to see an undercover operation, which he said happened more often back in the ’90s.
Thea Robles, 42, manager at Felix, a French bistro on West Broadway, said she served no one but regulars on the evening of the NYPD’s operation.
“We’re going to fight this if we have to go to court,” Robles said.
Workers at Cafe Noir, a Grand Street tapas bar with a $12 Bikini Martini, and Via dei Mille, a swank Italian restaurant on West Broadway that offers a $14 blood orange margarita, declined to comment.
All four bars face NYPD summonses for failure to check identification and for serving alcohol to underage patrons, Winski said.
Via dei Mille had a prior underage violation as well, and if they get a third one then the NYPD’s civil enforcement unit will go to court to shut them down, Winski said.
The State Liquor Authority, which worked with the NYPD on the operation, will also likely issue violations. A first-time offender would have to pay about $3,000, while those with previous violations could be in danger of losing their license, said Bill Crowley, an SLA spokesman.
Crowley said underage drinking is one of the most serious charges a bar can face.
“The SLA is committed to stopping the sale of alcohol to minors and cracking down on bars found violating the law,” Crowley said in a statement.
The three bars that passed the inspection were Greenhouse, the Varick Street club that has been plagued by other problems, including a shooting nearby last month; SOB’s, another Varick Street club; and KD Connelly’s restaurant and tavern on Murray Street in TriBeCa.
