HELL’S KITCHEN — A dive bar known for its bikini-clad bartenders and back-room concerts has been padlocked by the city after failing to pay more than $180,000 in rent.
The city Marshal’s office seized Tobacco Road, located at 355 W. 41st St. near Ninth Avenue, on behalf of the bar’s landlord on June 27, a notice posted in the bar’s front window says.
A representative for the Marshal’s office on Wednesday said the bar owed the landlord $183,000 in back rent.
Building super Tom Vaughn on Tuesday confirmed the bar hadn’t been paying its rent, and movers were spotted rolling a piano and other equipment out of the space.
Tobacco Road didn’t immediately respond to an email request for comment, and a manager at the nearby Dave’s Tavern — who confirmed that his father owns both bars — declined to comment.
The building's landlord couldn't immediately be reached Wednesday.
A June 27 post on the bar’s Facebook page says it shuttered “for reasons outside of our control.”
Up until the end of June, the bar had still been hosting musical performances and events, according to its Facebook page.
In 2011, the Village Voice dubbed Tobacco Road — previously known as Port 41 — the city’s “best dive bar.”
“Simultaneously quaint and seedy, Tobacco Road is like a taste of the old Times Square via a Eugene O’Neill play about a sports bar,” the paper said.
