Restaurants owned by the Cirpiani family, including the Rainbow Room, may lose their liquor licenses. Earlier this month, patriarch Arrigo Capriani and his son, Giuseppe Cipriani, who is the CEO of Cipriani U.S.A. Inc., pleaded guilty to tax evasion charges. They agreed to pay a $10 million settlement, but now that they are convicted felons, the State Liquor Authority can strip their company of its liquor licenses. more ›

In February, the State Liquor Authority suspended the liquor license for Scores West, the West Chelsea exotic club where some employees were arrested for prostitution. Now, in the latest chapter of Scores West vs. the law enforcement, the Post reports that the manager for Scores West was "roughed up by lawmen" and is now in the hospital! more ›

After last month's prostitution arrests at Scores West, the State Liquor Authority has suspended the strip club's liquor license. The SLA said that the West Chelsea "posed an immediate and imminent threat to the public." Now, while Scores West will still be able to operate, they won't be able to tempt their customers with drinks, which may very well impact the bottom bikini-wax line as it were. But there is always the original Scores location on the East Side! more ›

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The owner of Lower East Side bar Barramundi has sued over the liquor license moratorium the State Liquor Authority enacted in Manhattan in September. The SLA has indefinitely halted new licenses for any establishments within 500 feet of other watering holes - and in the Lower East Side, it's like you can't trip without running into a place that serves a drink. Anthony Powe was given community board approval to take over the bar in the spring, so he closed on the 67 Clinton Street building - and took on a $4.15 million mortgage. The NY Sun reports that even four months after Powe applied for a license, the SLA hadn't done anything, so when the agency said no more licenses would be issued, Powe realized he might get screwed as his temporary licenses expired last month. That is a problem - we wonder if there are more establishments left in a lurch. more ›

Whoa-- the New York State Liquor Authority has issued a fatwa against a bunch of bars on West Broadway in Tribeca. Their crime? Apparently they are located a little too close to a low-profile mosque located in one of the nearby buildings (the Sufi Masjid al-Farah at 245 West Broadway.). The SLA has issued summons to The Bubble Lounge, Cercle Rouge, and the Tribeca Tavern. Another bar, The Liquor Store, has already been denied a liquor license, preventing it from reopening after an ownership change last year. The Tribeca Tribune broke the story: more ›