Brooklyn Heights

Armando’s, Montague St. fixture for 82 years, closes after building sold

Brooklyn Heights’ classic Italian restaurant, once a hangout for stars and pols

May 22, 2018 By Mary Frost Brooklyn Daily Eagle
Patrons were shocked to find Armando’s, Brooklyn Heights’ classic Italian restaurant, closed over the weekend. The building was sold by the owner. Eagle file photo by Don Evans
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Armando’s Restaurant and Bar, Brooklyn Heights’ classic Italian restaurant, has closed its doors after almost 82 years of business.

City finance records show that Peter Byros, the restaurant’s owner since 1981, sold the building located at 143 Montague St. to Uri Koptiev for $7,418,000 on Feb. 14. Koptiev is a real estate agent.

The roughly 2,000 square foot (plus basement) restaurant space is listed for rent by Eastern Consolidated for $165 per square foot.

Once a hangout for locals like Marilyn Monroe, Arthur Miller and Norman Mailer along with Brooklyn’s many politicians and lawyers, Armando’s has been a fixture since 1936, with the exception of a brief hiatus from mid-2008 to late 2009, when the space was rented to the Spicy Pickle eatery.

 After Spicy Pickle closed, Byros revived the business — with its distinctive lobster neon sign — with his daughter Maria Florea as general manager. Many of the reviews on sites like Yelp praised the revamped dishes, including the goat cheese ravioli with butter sage sauce and fettuccine San Marco.

“Unfortunately we will not be reopening. Thank you for your patronage,” Florea said via email to the Brooklyn Eagle. She provided no further explanation.

Other restaurants recently closed on the street include Friend of a Farmer at 76 Montague St., which shut in January with a sign in the window claiming the eatery was “remodeling;” and Taperia Brooklyn, at 132 Montague St., which closed during the height of the dinner hour over the weekend.

This is how the interior of the now-shuttered Armando’s looked on Monday. Eagle photo by Francesca Norsen Tate

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