CHELSEA — The storied Spanish restaurant at the base of the Chelsea Hotel has been shuttered since water started leaking through its ceiling on Friday.
FDNY crews responded to El Quijote, at 226 W. 23rd St. between Seventh and Eighth avenues, around 8:54 p.m. Friday after receiving a report that water had leaked through its ceiling, a spokesperson said.
The 87-year-old restaurant closed around 9:34 p.m., the spokesperson added, and a sign hanging in its door Tuesday said it would be shuttered on Monday and Tuesday due to “unforeseen circumstances."
The department could not say what prompted the leak, but hotel co-owner Ira Drukier on Tuesday said it had "nothing to do with the [ongoing] construction" at the hotel.
"It's an old building, with old pipes," he said. "A pipe burst."
BD Hotels, which took over the legendary lodge last year, is in the process of developing it into condos and a smaller hotel.
The restaurant, which opened in 1930, has been under the hotel’s ownership since former owner Ed Scheetz purchased it from its longtime owner Manny Ramirez in 2014.
Drukier and the other owners closed El Quijote temporarily "as a [safety] precaution" and are in the process of carrying out repairs, he said.
"Nobody wanted the restaurant to close — we certainly didn't," he said.
The eatery should reopen within a day or two, he added.
