By ALEX HORTON
Staff Writer
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The restaurant that sits inside the property at 850 Madison Avenue has been temporarily shut down. Ernesto’s on Madison was told to cease and desist all activity in its local restaurant after a fire call on Oct. 21 for a broken water pipe.
The tenant upstairs has also been temporarily evicted until the building is declared safe for occupancy. Ernesto’s has been hit with three building violations; an unsafe and unfit building, plumbing system hazards, and electrical system hazards.
Before the tenant upstairs can return, water, gas, and electric must be turned back on. Ernesto’s must be able to operate its business under a certificate of completion to re-open the business. Owner of the business, Mario Brendenburg, has said that Ernesto’s plans on re-opening at the 850 Madison address when all repairs are complete.
“We can do all the repairs and plan on re-opening as soon as those are done,” said Brendenburg. According to a report provided by Thomas Dillon from the Department of Buildings and Regulatory Compliance, Ernesto’s requires a licensed plumber to “assess and evaluate all plumbing issues and obtain permit for required work.”
The business is also required for a licensed electrician to address any electrical problems as well as obtaining the necessary permits to work on those problems.
A source close to Ernesto’s has said the business is looking to expand to the location of former Green Leaf Café at 217 Western Ave. but property owner Anthony Sabatino has denied any truth to these comments, stating that “It is just a rumor, I am looking to put in a nice Mexican restaurant or maybe a burger place.”
“There won’t be any pizza at that location, I wouldn’t jeopardize the surrounding pizza places like that. I’m looking to enhance the neighborhood,” said Sabatino.
The last business at that location, the Green Leaf Café, was suddenly shut down this past August due to unforeseen conditions that didn’t allow the owners to continue business.
Green Leaf opened in October of 2012 and started off successfully but Sabatino said in the end he was “disappointed” and didn’t believe “the business could go the distance.”
This wasn’t Sabatino’s first restaurant that was a tenant at 217 Western Ave. Pepper Jacks, a very popular and successful sandwich shop, was also a tenant for ten years before having to move to a larger location on North Allen Street.
“We tried working with the owner to acquire the building, but he just wouldn’t sell,” said co-owner of Pepper Jacks, Chris Soden.
Soden also added that Sabatino did what he could to help the business grow; they just needed a larger space that had a parking lot to help expand their business. Both parties parted ways on good terms.
