402 Eighth Ave
1900 Buchman & Fox

Commissioned by Isidor Kempner, this corner tavern was originally built as a boarding house with a ground- floor bar and restaurant. It was designed by the renowned firm of Buchman & Fox, authors of the New York Times Annex Building (NYC Landmark, 2001). The three-story brick structure features a corner entrance marked by turret, windows with flat lintels and a heavy brick keystone, and a dentilled cornice capping the structure. Façades were kept simple, with corner-wrapping and blade signage as the main ornamentation. During the late-19th century, this area was known as the Tenderloin, a hub for entertainment and vice. When the original Pennsylvania Station was built, "corner saloons" such as this were abundant, and it's estimated that half the Tenderloin's buildings housed prostitution or illegal gambling operations. The establishment of the garment district displaced the business of the Tenderloin, and the ground floor of this building served prohibition-era garment workers as a cafeteria. It would later resume activities as a pub, and since 1980 it has hosted the Molly Wee Pub.