Smoke (jazz club)

Smoke Jazz & Supper-Club Lounge is a jazz club based in New York City on the Upper West Side, a few blocks south of Columbia University. It was founded on April 9, 1999, by Paul Stache and Frank Christopher, who, as partners, conceived, designed, and spearheaded its interior renovation.

Smoke
Restaurant information
EstablishedApril 9, 1999 (1999-04-09) — Smoke
1976–1998 — Augie's
Owner(s)Paul Stache
Frank Christopher
Head chefPatricia Williams
Food typeAmerican bistro cuisine
Street address2751 Broadway
CityNew York City
Postal/ZIP Code10025
Coordinates40.801143°N 73.968056°W / 40.801143; -73.968056
Seating capacity50+
Reservations212 864 6662
Websitewww.smokejazz.com

The venue at 2751 Broadway, between 104th and 105th Streets, had been Augie's Jazz Bar, which opened in 1976 and closed in August 1998. The owners regard Smoke as the enduring legacy of Augie's and often measure its tenure in jazz history to the beginning of early days of Augie's. The club is linked to Smoke Sessions Records.

Smoke's current owners Paul Stache and Frank J. Christopher were unable to open their new club under the same name. Screenwriter Paul Auster, who had been a frequent patron of Augie's, wrote the screenplay for the 1995 film, Smoke. Auster based the character Augie — performed by Harvey Keitel — on the real-life Augusto Cuartas (nicknamed "Gus"), the namesake and owner of Augie's Jazz Bar. Auster developed part of his screenplay from a story he wrote for The New York Times, "Auggie Wren's Christmas Story," published Christmas Day, 1990.[1] To enshrine the legacy of the real-life Augie, Stache and Christopher named their new club "Smoke."

Executive chef in residence

Smoke's restaurant serves American bistro cuisine and, as of January 2009, Patricia Williams, a former ballet dancer,[2] originally from Houston, has been the executive chef.[3] Her culinary touches are critically acclaimed and widely featured by major media, including The New York Times, ABC News, CBS News, NBC News (Today), The Wall Street Journal, The Christian Science Monitor, Zagat, the New York Post, and Wine & Spirits.

Owners

"Smoke" is the business name for PaulFra Restaurant, Inc., a New York corporation. Stache and Christopher filed the articles of incorporation October 1, 1998, listing Stache as chief executive and Christopher as principal executive. Frank J. Christopher, 56, a playwright and actor, grew up on Eastern Long Island, where he had developed a love for jazz by listening to the jazz record collection of his grandfather who had played clarinet in an army band. Christopher has lived near Augie's since 1984. He also is a drummer. Paul Stache, 48, a musician (guitar and keyboards), is a native of Germany. When he was growing up, his father took him to jazz clubs in West Berlin. Stache has been a resident on the Upper West Side since 1991. The two met while bartending at Augie's — Stache had been there for seven years, Christopher for one. Stache had also been a waiter and manager for Augie's.[4][5]

Augie's influence on another jazz venue

The owner of Smalls Jazz Club, Mitchell Borden, had been a frequent patron of Augie's and founded his club desirous of a similar model, one that allowed musicians and ensembles to perform frequently so that they could develop.[6]

Notable performers at Smoke

Notable performers at Augie's

Selected discography and filmography recorded live at Smoke

Community: nearby jazz clubs and venues

From 1986 to 1997, the current Birdland — now located on West 44th Street — was located at 2745 Broadway, on the same block, same side of the street, 3 doors south of Augie's. Cleopatra's Needle is fourteen blocks south of Smoke, at 2485 Broadway. Jazz at Lincoln Center is at Broadway and 60th Street (1.9 miles). Juilliard is at Broadway and 66th Street. The Manhattan School of Music is 15 blocks north of Smoke. Miller Theatre at Columbia University is 11 blocks north, on Broadway. Symphony Space, a venue for film and the performing arts, hosts jazz events, regularly. Symphony Space is 9 blocks south of Smoke, on Broadway. Harlem is contiguously north and west of Morningside Heights. Harlem jazz clubs include the Lenox Lounge (closed in 2012, demolished 2017), Minton's Playhouse, St. Nick's Pub, the Apollo Theater, Showman's (375 W. 125th), Bill's Place (148 W. 133), Ginny's Supper Club at the Red Rooster, the Harlem Tavern, Jazz Mobile, the National Jazz Museum in Harlem, Londel's Restaurant, and the New Amsterdam Musical Association.

Audio & video samples

Smoke

Augie's

Trademarks
  • On October 27, 2009, Christopher and Stache registered the phrase "Smoke Sessions" as a trademark for audio and video recordings featuring music.[7]
  • On February 2, 2010, Christopher and Stache registered the phrase "Smoke Jazz" with the United States Patent and Trademark Office for use as a service mark as a night club, bar, and restaurant services.

See also

References
  1. Scene from the 1995 film, Smoke: Harvey Wren's Christmas Story
  2. A Pas de Deux in the Kitchen, by Dana Middleton, The Wall Street Journal September 8, 2009
  3. Chatting With Patricia Williams: Cooking for Jazz Fans at Smoke, the Dreaded Jazz Brunch, and the Similarities Between Dancing and Cooking, by Rebecca Marx, The Village Voice, May 13, 2010
  4. Jazz Spot Escapes Auction Hammer, by Lena Williams, The New York Times, September 22, 1996
  5. Way Uptown, the West Is Being Won. It's Wild. by Robin Pogrebin, August 23, 2002
  6. Critic's Notebook: The Lesson of Smalls, a Little Club With a Big Heart, May 31, 2003
  7. USPTO Issues Trademark SMOKE SESSIONS to Frank Christopher, Paul Stache for Audio, Video Recordings Featuring Music, US Fed News Service, Including US State News, October 31, 2009
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