Thistle Hill Tavern To Close In Days; Dale Talde & Partners Continue To Reshuffle Restaurants

Thistle Hill Tavern To Close In Days; Dale Talde & Partners Continue To Reshuffle Restaurants
Thistle Hill Tavern closes
A sign outside of Thistle Hill Tavern this week. (Photo by Justin Fox / BKLYNER)

It all started out with John Bush, David Massoni, and Fat Mike, lead singer and bassist of punk band NOFX.

That was the trilogy of partners who opened Thistle Hill Tavern (441 7th Avenue at 15th Street) back in March 2010. A lot has changed in the last six years, including the upcoming closure of the tavern. The restaurant’s Instagram feed as well as a sandwich board outside of the restaurant tell patrons that they’ll “miss Park Slope. Let’s make the next week count! Last day: Monday, December 19.”

After Thistle Hill Tavern was up and running, Bush and Massoni later brought on Dale Talde of Top Chef fame to “right the ship,” according to The Infatuation. And that began their “mini-empire” in Park Slope.

Bush, Massoni, and Talde are collectively known as Three Kings Restaurant Group, and the company is making major changes. In July, we reported that both Pork Slope (247 5th Avenue near Carroll Street) and Thistle Hill Tavern (441 7th Avenue at 15th Street) were up for rent. Pork Slope closed a few months back, and Thistle Hill was eventually to do the same. So the shuttering comes as no surprise.

Thistle Hill Tavern
Photo via thomasjosephpellegrini / instagram

Talde (369 7th Avenue at 11th Street) — the one restaurant left of their “Park Slope trilogy” — isn’t going anywhere right now, so you can continue to enjoy your pretzel pork fried dumplings, crispy oyster and bacon pad thai, Korean fried chicken, or breakfast ramen. And if you’re traveling, Talde Jersey City and Talde Miami Beach aren’t going anywhere either.

Three Kings does plan on a new place relatively nearby, as they’ll open Atlantic Social in the old Tony Roma’s restaurant space near Barclay’s (673 Atlantic Avenue). Eater describes the forthcoming restaurant as an “old style New York tavern.”

talde owners
[L-R] Restaurateurs John Bush, Dale Talde, and David Massoni. (Via BlackBook)

And their footprint is really extending to Manhattan. In the Arlo NoMad Hotel (11 East 31st Street), they will open three spaces, including an Italian place called Massoni, Grub Street reported.

They’ll also open 218-seat Rice & Gold at Hotel 50 Bowery in Manhattan’s Chinatown. They plan for three other venues in the hotel as well.

According to Eater, Atlantic Social, as well as the new places at Arlo NoMad will open at the end of 2016. The Hotel 50 Bowery will follow in 2017.

In the meantime, you can stop by Thistle Hill for your last meal of their duck confit, Korean beef, or burgers. The tavern was always known for neighbors stopping in for a quiet social drink. So you can tip your glass one last time by Monday.