UPDATE: The Tea Lounge is NOT For Sale
Tuesday, September 16, 2014 at 7:58AM 
UPDATE: I just heard from the owner, who informed me that the listing is incorrect and was only intended to help sell franchises, and that the Tea Lounge is in fact NOT for sale.
The Tea Lounge, the cafe that's been on Union Street between 6th and 7th Avenues for more than 13 years, is apparently up for sale. Many thanks to a tipster for directing me to this listing (also found below; click for a larger version), where the 3,900 square foot space, with 8 1/2 years left on its contract, is listed for $9,750 per month.
"Highly successful, long running, internet cafe and bar with full liquor license," the somewhat lo-fi listing reads. "Apprx 3900 sqft at prime location."
Tea Lounge isn't just a popular hangout for people who work from home as well as those with children in tow, it also recently opened up a location in Kuwait as part of an agressive franchising campaign. A Williamsburg location has also apparently been in the works for some time now, but has yet to come to fruition.
I reached out to the owners about the reasons behind the sale and what their future plans are, and will update if I hear back.
;)
For Sale in Scoops, Storefronts
Reader Comments (16)
Thanks for posting this. The Tea Lounge has always been one of my favorite spots in the neighborhood and it will always hold a special place in my heart. Seriously.
Long Live!
Calling it an "internet cafe" in 2014 speaks volumes about what the issues are for that place and why it's for sale.
The owners ' crazy franchise plans never worked and they couldn't keep their space on 7th ave and 10th st from closing.
It's a large space-highly unlikely to become another cafe- where will all the PS moo hers hang out now?
Heard a tip it's going to transition into the new New York Kids Club.
Are they selling it, or renting it? I am very confused. Who "buys" anything for a monthly payment. That is RENTING in my vocabulary.
Big Bird - They are selling you the lease and the business for 425k. So if you want 3900 sq feet of prime park slope at a rent of $9,750....you have to give them 425k. With the 425k you also get all the fixtures and the liquor license.
Right now rent in that area is around $120/sq foot. So if you were to find this kind of space in prime slope (and that amount of space in the area is rare) your monthly rent would be around $40,000 per month.
Can someone with more knowledge weigh in here-I thought liquor licenses were non-transferable in NYC, how can you charge for one? Moreover even if @landlords estimates are correct the savings on the current lease amount are far below what theyre asking. FIxtures just don't make up the difference.
Interesting franchising technique, the fake sell.
Wait, isn't that against the law for a broker to list a property that is not currently for sale?
I personally think the owner got blindsided and is probably lying in order to keep staff, etc.
Furthermore, I don't see anything in that listing that "helps" franchises.
Wait, in Kuwait? You can't drink there, how could this franchize work? You also can't pop a boob out to feed in public. So, what would be the same?
Sadly, the Tea Lounge has become little more than a dump with couches. I don't want it to close...ok "want" may be too strong a word...
Bohb is the man!
The landlord will most likely get a cut of the $425k in order to approve the lease being changed over to a new business.
No, not necessarily landlord. I sold a business without the landlord seeing anything other than his monthly rent. I negotiated a right to re-assign the lease without landlord approval in my own lease. It is not uncommon.
However, it was done openly and the landlord met the new operators a few weeks before the deal was signed. That was over 5 years ago and the business is still running.
I still say it's for sale. And the building that houses the Crab Spot a few doors down is definitely for sale, the listing is up in one of the real estate office windows on 7th ave...
Please, whoever erected the Crap Spot awning should be SHOT--scary UES intrusion!