According to the court documents, Borhane B Cherif is the president of a company, Carthage Palace, that declared bankruptcy in 2004.

According to the New York State Liquor Authority, Cherif is the current license holder at Carthage Palace, a business operating at 46 Avenue B in Manhattan.

These facts, however, do not check out with the reality on the ground. 

Upon visiting 46 Avenue B, one finds no Carthage Palace. Instead, one finds Carne Vale, a restaurant and nightclub that is known to be owned and operated by two brothers, Markus and Sameh Jacob (or Yacob). Eater has covered this restaurant, its sister restaurant Le Souk, and the misadventures of their clientele. I wrote my piece on the businesses after witnessing the fly by night opening of Carne Vale, which seemed impossible given the bar crackdown taking place in Alphabet City.

According to the State Liquor Authority's website, the license for 46 Avenue B is still in possession of Carthage Palace and Cherif. There is no "trade name" on the license, which is used in cases where a company's legal name differs from the name used to promote the business. Yet August 3rd, 2006, Carthage Palace applied for a license renewal, which was granted, extending the license term until 2010. Strangely, public records indicate the license is not effective until October 1, 2006, and there is no other active license listed on the website. Previously, according to a saved copy of the web page, Carthage Palace's license was set to expire on Sept. 30 2006. How did a business with the wrong name on the license, whose licensee is no longer associated with the premesis, get a license renewal?

According to New York State law and Manhattan Community Board 3, a "license transfer hearing" is required before a liquor license may change hands among businesses, or be used to operate by anyone other than the original licensee. According to publicly available records, no such transfer hearing has ever taken place.

When asked by a local resident to comment on the ownership and licenseing of Carne Vale, Markus Jacob responded, "we are Carthage Palace." However, according to the bankruptcy documents provided to me by a loyal friend of Eater, Carthage Palace ceased to exist. Legally, I'm not sure what would happen to its license, but without proper transfer, it's extremely likely that Carne Vale is operating on a license that belongs to a non-existent company, in the name of a person who does not own or operate the business.

 I'm not a liquor license expert, nor am I trying to indicte Carne Vale. I like bars. I like nightlife. Maybe not Carne Vale or Le Souk's scene, but hey, if they follow the laws, keep the stereo below 120dB, and keep their patrons from being menaces to the 'hood, I respect their right to do business. It's when they don't do those things that this kind of scrutiny is needed.

When a bar sets up shop in New York City, it's expected they've met the legal requirements for operating. If there's a complaint against the business, who gets it, the phantom Borhane B Cherif? An underage drinking lawsuit or DUI? Etc. There's a reason the right names have to be on the license, isn't there? And a reason one business can't just go bankrupt and have a different company swoop in and take over that license without any sort of notification to the community or the state.

So, to answer these questions, I'm going to turn to a few sources, and hopefully they'll comment here or I will post their comments on the situation. I'm going to email, for comments:

  • Susan Stetzer, CB3 manager, to find out what if any notification she's had about Carne Vale and their license applications/renewals/transfers.
  • The New York State Liquor Authority Public/Press Relations address, for comments on the legality of Carne Vale's operation and why their license says Carthage Palace
  •  Hopefully, Markus Yacob, to clarify what he means when he says "we are Carthage Palace."

Lastly, I'm going to try to find Borhane B Cherif, where or who ever he may be. Borhane? Borhane? Anyone?

Definitely more to come on this one.