MEATPACKING DISTRICT — Pastis may take over the recently opened gourmet shopping center Gansevoort Market, sources say.
An application for a liquor license for 54-56 Gansevoort St. in the Pastis name was submitted to Community Board 2's State Liquor Authority committee to be heard this month, but was withdrawn at the last minute.
Community Board 2 district manager Bob Gormley said the applicant did not provide a reason for the withdrawal.
But sources familiar with the potential deal said there has been interest on the part of the restaurant in taking over the massive historic marketplace that spans from 52 through 56 Gansevoort St.
"There are on-and-off conversations," said a person familiar with the possible deal who declined to be named while talks are ongoing. "I wouldn't call them hardball negotiations, but there are conversations."
The law firm managing the Gansevoort Street property declined to comment.
Restauranteur Keith McNally opened Pastis in 1999 at 9 Ninth Ave. It was a defining neighborhood landmark until it closed in February 2014, ostensibly for renovations.
But city records later revealed a Restoration Hardware would take over the restaurant's original space.
In an email, McNally told DNAinfo New York that he didn't "have much to say about this right now."
Management at Gansevoort Market did not immediately respond to a query, although petitions were circulating Monday morning requesting community support for an 8 a.m. to midnight beer-and-wine license for the shopping center.
In October, McNally told the Wall Street Journal that Pastis would reopen somewhere on Gansevoort Street, "around the corner" from its original Ninth Avenue home, in September 2016.