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Nightlife veteran Richie Romero is opening three new eateries as he continues to put the “dark energy” world of sex, drink and drugs that surrounded him during his club-running days behind him, he told Side Dish.
His latest projects come as his ex-partner in the Butter Group, Richie Akiva, was recently arrested on assault charges – allegations that stunned the club scene the duo once dominated with 1OAK and Up & Down in New York City, along with outposts in Los Angeles and Las Vegas.
“The drugs, the alcohol, and adultery” that surrounded Romero eventually “became too much,” he told The Post, adding that he himself has never done drugs and has had “maybe two” alcoholic drinks in the past 20 years.
“I didn’t want to be in that environment. I don’t want to be around messed up, comatose people,” he added.
He said he gradually stopped going out late after getting married in 2022.
Akiva and an accomplice allegedly broke into a man’s home and mercilessly beat him last month, leading to charges that Akiva denies.
Romero’s partnership with Akiva ended in 2020, with Romero saying there was never any bad blood between them and his own nightlife exit was gradual.
“Every time my phone rang, I’d cringe. There’d always be someone’s need or a drama. Every partnership was like that – the self-interests of so many different people,” Romero recounted. “I couldn’t deal with it anymore.
“I made some people multimillionaires and they wanted to harm me. There was too much jealousy and greed.”
He’s now launching the intimate Wagyu Room, in a Nomad hotel suite; The Eighth, an upscale cocktail lounge and restaurant in Chelsea; and a new outpost of Sushi by Bou, in the East Village.
The Wagyu Room opens this Saturday in partnership with Palm Beach Meats, a combo gourmet market-retailer-restaurant from Eric and Meghan San Pedro that received a 2025 Michelin Bib Gourmand award.
It’s Romero’s first meat-only omakase experience – located in a suite at Hotel 32 32 in Midtown.
The Wagyu Room takes up just the one suite and offers a four-seat omakase experience, plus an outdoor bar and sitting area. A 10-course meal runs $150 per person.
You can book it with friends or for two couples. Romero noted that couples who go in not knowing each other often end up friends.
“I believe there is a niche for meat eaters. There’s meat eaters who don’t eat fish,” Romero said of his take on omakase.
Another new venture from Romero, The Eighth, opens Feb. 20 after a soft opening for New York Fashion Week with high profile events including a dinner hosted by top fashion designer Christian Siriano.
The name is based on a novel idea – “the concept is that this is the eighth night of the week,” Romero said.
The restaurant will feature three nightly “cocktail and bite ceremonies” at 8 pm (to “awaken”), 10 pm (to “indulge”), and midnight (for the “unknown”) – with the bar designed as an altar. Each ceremony will offer curated cocktail tastings and paired bites.
The spot is where restaurant Motel Morris once stood at 17th Street and Seventh Avenue. It will have 40 restaurant seats plus 20 spots at the bar, headed by mixologist Evelyn Atheris, of Thyme and Zou Zou
Kingston, Jamaica-born Chef Kat Williams will create small plates and bites to complement the bar experience. Signature dishes include jerk wings and a honey and scallop crudo.
The design-heavy restaurant includes a VIP space and DJ booth wrapped in faux snakeskin, a disco ball and infinity light mirror.
Romero – who previously voiced reservations about deepening his business ties to NYC in the wake of Mayor Zohran Mamdani’s election – is launching The Eighth in partnership with interior designers Julien Legeard and Valmira Gashi of Legeard Studio. Romero is The Eighth’s marketing and brand advisory partner.
Romero already owns 21 Sushi by Bou outposts, and the latest is coming to the East Village soon.
“It looks as if you are walking into a thrift shop, but it’s just a front in order to enter the eatery,” Romero says, adding that the 500-square-foot space features a “secret” karaoke room and a secret “Wayne’s World”-themed room for private dining.
“Each Sushi by Bou has a different theme, like a [Quentin] Tarantino film,” Romero said, adding that themes at other locations include 90s hip-hop, disco, the Roaring 20s and Tokyo Alley.
“This is the first one that’s themed for rock-and-roll. I only wear rock-and-roll t-shirts,” he said.
About a dozen more Sushi by Bou outposts are opening around the country this year, Romero said.
We hear… that Mark Barak — founder of the La Pecora Bianca Group, which has six popular La Pecora Bianca locations in Manhattan, along with Mama Mezze — is opening a splashy Italian restaurant. Giuletta is set to open Monday at the MetLife Building on Park Avenue.
It is inspired by the Mediterranean cuisine of the Riviera and the Amalfi Coast, as well as its New York City architectural surroundings. The 11,000-square-foot space comes with 275 seats; there’s an additional 6,000 square feet of outdoor space with 100 seats.
Giulietta says it will be open for everything from “morning espresso and fresh pastries to crudi, house-made pastas and Neapolitan-style pizzas,” all led by culinary director Ed Scarpone. In April, the Giardino at Giulietta will open as a standalone, seasonal outdoor aperitivo bar and garden for more than 150 people. Think frozen drinks, pizzas, small bites and cocktails on tap. It will then become a heated “chalet-style” spot in winter.
We hear… that Willet’s Corner at 420 Amsterdam Ave. is now open for lunch. The eatery — from Ken and Jill Halberg, of the now-shuttered Harding’s in Flatiron — is helmed by executive chef Joel Zaragoza, formerly of Harding’s. The Mediterranean-style menu highlights include fig toast topped with whipped ricotta; roasted Za’atar cauliflower, seared Ahi tuna and French Dip sandwiches, as well as pastas and salads like the Umami, with shredded cabbage, toasted cashews and pickled sweet peppers in a hoisin vinaigrette and the Harvest, with farro, sliced green apple, cheddar, walnuts and an apple cider vinaigrette.
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