House of Yes Loses Liquor License in COVID Violation
Popular queer nightlife spot temporarily closes down in Bushwick
BY ROSE ADAMS
The beloved Bushwick
nightclub House of Yes
has closed temporarily
after state authorities
suspended its liquor license for
skirting COVID-19 regulations, its
owners announced.
“Unfortunately, our liquor license
was suspended yesterday by the
State Liquor Authority (SLA),” the
owners wrote in an Aug. 28 Instagram
post. “Therefore, we will be
temporarily closed while we focus
on doing everything in our power
to work with the SLA in good faith
to restore our license and reopen.”
House of Yes is a popular nightlife
spot among queer New Yorkers
and bills itself as a safe space free
of judgment. In normal times, the
space typically hosts a range of
events ranging from performances
House of Yes is closing down temporarily after losing its liquor license for violating COVID-19 rules.
to dance parties and more.
State investigators knocked the
club’s outdoor dining area, located
on the corner of Wyckoff Avenue
and Jefferson Street, for offering
food-to-order from a sister restaurant
— violating Gov. Andrew Cuomo’s
July 16 rule requiring bars to
serve food with every drink order,
TWITTER/ HOUSEOFYESNYC
the owners said.
“Unfortunately we learned that
this does not comply with the technical
requirement of our license,”
the owners said.
Offi cials also penalized the club
for its loud music and for a few “individual
people within its perimeter”
who were not following proper
NIGHTLIFE
safety guidelines, according to the
Instagram post.
The suspension comes as the
state cracks down on bars and restaurants
fl outing coronavirus-related
health orders. Last weekend
alone, the State Liquor Authority
conducted nearly 4,000 compliance
checks and observed violations
at 34 establishments across
the state, offi cials announced. As
of Aug. 24, authorities had suspended
162 liquor licenses statewide.
More than two dozen bars and
restaurants in Brooklyn have had
their liquor licenses suspended.
Restaurant owners — who have
also faced fi nes from the Department
of Transportation for failing
to comply with constantly shifting
outdoor dining rules — have
slammed some of Cuomo’s recent
➤ HOUSE OF YES, continued on p.36
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