Constantinides asks state to strip Astoria bar’s liquor license amid COVID violations

Councilmember Costa Constantinides has asked the State Liquor Authority to revoke the liquor license of Melody Cafe and Restaurant. Google Maps

By David Brand

Astoria Councilmember Costa Constantinides is urging the state to revoke the liquor license of a local lounge hosting huge crowds despite COVID-related social distancing orders.

In recent weeks, crowds have gathered outside Melody Cafe & Restaurant, a hookah bar at 95 Steinway Street in Astoria, in violation of social distancing restrictions, Constantinides wrote in a letter to the State Liquor Authority July 15.

“Since the onset of the COVID-19 pandemic the location has become problematic to neighbors in terms of noise and large crowds that flout social distancing rules,” Constantinides wrote, citing 22 complaints about the bar made to the city’s 311 hotline. “These persistent issues demonstrate that this business has not used the privilege of their liquor license responsibly.”

One Yelp reviewer said Melody patrons were “packed to the gills not wearing masks” at the bar on July 17.

A handful of Steinway Street bars and restaurants have hosted hundreds of maskless partiers on the sidewalk, in spite of state restrictions that limit large groups and mandate that restaurants separate outdoor patrons by at least six feet. Large crowds also violate conditions of the city’s Open Restaurants program.

Melody has also “failed in maintaining safety and has become a magnet for bad actors,” Constantinides wrote. Over the past year, Melody has been the site of 11 emergency 911 calls related to assault, fights and forcible touching, he added. There was also a shooting outside the bar in March 2019.

Melody Cafe & Restaurant’s phone answering machine was full when contacted by the Eagle Monday morning. The owners did not immediately respond to a Facebook message. This story will be updated with their response.