LOWER EAST SIDE — Days after being told its three-month wait for cooking gas would soon be over, The Lucky Bee has learned it will have to wait until June to have full access to kitchen appliances as Con Edison installs a new gas line, the restaurant owner said.
Co-owner Richard Noffs was relieved when a Con Edison rep on April 19 came by the eatery at 252 Broome St. to finally switch on gas service after a painstaking three months of cooking on induction burners — only to be told he would have to wait another few months to toss the electrical alternatives.
“I guess a little bit of gas is better than no gas,” he said. “But it’s really frustrating.”
Head chef and co-owner Matty Bennett can now use the stove and fryer for the first time since the joint’s January opening, but the grill and wok remain off-limits until the electric company installs new piping to accommodate the volume of gas needed to service the building, Noffs said.
The additional work will require ripping up the sidewalk outside the restaurant, said Noffs, and will not start until June.
The wait for partial service dragged on as the restaurant installed a new fire suppression system in order to be up to code. As soon as the FDNY signaled its approval of the new system, Noffs was told that Con Ed finally had the green light to restore cooking gas.
With partial service, the restaurant will be able to offer additional items not included on its “opening menu,” but the menu will remain severely limited without the grill and wok, Noffs said.
“Matty was looking forward to using the grill in the kitchen that he built, and was going to be able to do stir-fry on the wok,” he said. “He’s still going to be using electrical equipment.”
Con Edison was unable to say how long the additional work will take, but clarified that it is still evaluating the site.
“We are in the process of assessing the scope of work to safely install a new gas line at the location,” a Con Ed spokeswoman said.
