Cafe Montmartre owners Craig and Kevin Spaulding have confirmed that the restaurant, bar and music space, a downtown fixture for almost 17 years, is closing.
"We tried to hold on, but the current economic conditions have left us no choice," write the Spauldings in an email. "We are very grateful for our many loyal customers, clients and vendors. It's with tremendous sadness that we've made this decision, but we also feel it's the right decision given the circumstances. We will cherish the memories forever."
The future of Cafe Montmartre was uncertain as early as January 2008, when the Spauldings put the venue up for sale.
Cafe Montmartre hosted memorable music events, poetry slams and underwear parties. Critical scenes of the popular Chad Vader online video series were filmed there. It was an oasis of chic even before the downtown's revival; Shirley Manson and the Garbage gang were seen there, way back in the day.
Now it is another economic casualty.
