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Gramercy Bar Visana Busted for Serving Booze Without a License, NYPD Says

 Visana was busted for serving liquor without a license.
Visana was busted for serving liquor without a license.
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GRAMERCY — A bar with a long history of flouting state liquor laws was busted over the weekend for serving booze without a license, police said — ruining one blindsided patron's birthday celebrations in the process.

The State Liquor Authority in January chose to yank its license to serve liquor from Visana after months of violations had piled up against the speakeasy-style lounge at 321 First Avenue, SLA records show.

But that didn't stop the spot from illegally serving booze months later. The bar on Saturday was issued summonses when police discovered a liquor-stocked private party on the premises, according to Deputy Inspector Brendan Timoney, commanding officer of the 13th Precinct.

"They should not be serving liquor in there," said Timoney. "They were renting it out for private parties [but] they don't have a license."

That detail was not shared with patrons forking over thousands of dollars to drink at the unlicensed establishment, according to one angry visitor, who says she flew all the way from Georgia to celebrate her 40th birthday with family and friends only to have the the festivities brought to an abrupt halt when police showed up.

Shinika Tarver, who is originally from New York, said she was thrilled to return for her birthday celebration, explaining much of her family still lives in the city. After scouring potential venues, she booked a space at Visana in March, forking over $1,750 for a five-hour reservation.

Owner David Jaffee told her she could bring her own food and drinks, and so she coughed up an additional $1,100 for liquor and wine, she said. 

But roughly an hour after the party started, police showed up and told operators to lose the booze, and explained to a heartbroken Tarver that she had been swindled. 

"It was so embarrassing, it was horrible," she said. "I was so embarrassed, so appalled — I couldn't believe the situation."

When she reached out to Jaffee demanding a refund, the owner — who has been labeled an Airbnb “slumlord” and one of the “10 most hated people in New York nightlife” — told her he would only return the $250 she had put down as a security deposit, she said.

"He basically was like, 'Sorry, I can't do anything for you," recalled Tarver.

Tarver said she has hired an attorney and plans to sue Jaffee for the rest of the money and for damages. Many of the dozens of guests who flocked to the party had traveled from out of state, she said.

Visana had drummed up a reputation for illegal and disruptive behavior long before the SLA cut off its supply — the authority by April of last year had hit the lounge with 15 violations, including for overcrowding, failing to wrangle rowdy crowds, hiring unlicensed security guard and draining police resources.

Before that, police had busted the bar for hosting a party full of underage drinkers, which Timoney called the "last straw" for the troubled lounge, while neighbors had long complained the loud and unruly crowds kept them up at night.

The SLA's decision to ultimately strip the space of its license came after an incident in November 2016, when operators allowed the premises to become "disorderly," records show. The authority had also charged the operators with allowing dancing despite not having a cabaret license and not complying with building codes and fire and safety regulations, SLA records show.

Jaffee did not return a call requesting comment on the incident and Tarver's accusations.