HUNTERS POINT — The owner behind popular neighborhood watering hole LIC Bar will open a second space on Vernon Boulevard this spring — a gastropub that will serve dishes like house made pot pies.
Brian Porter, who owns LIC Bar as well as Parnell's Pub and Restaurant in Manhattan, plans to open The Gantry LIC at 47-02 Vernon Blvd., the space formerly occupied by Communitea, which closed this past fall. The LIC Post first reported the news.
Porter said the new bar will be a departure from LIC Bar down the road — a music venue that doesn't offer food — by being a gastropub that serves up "high end comfort food."
"We're going to put a lot of emphasize on food here," he said, but said the vibe won't be stuffy. "Without the white tableclothes."
He decided to open another bar in the neighborhood after getting several requests for food during events at LIC Bar, Porter said. The Gantry LIC will likely cater events there in the future.
The menu will offer small plates, with dishes like house made chicken, lamb and pot roast pot pies as well as salads. There will also be an emphasis on fish, he said. Drinks will include craft beers and cocktails.
Porter said he expects to open at the end of May or early June.
