The owner of Eighteenth Street Lounge is planning to reopen his iconic nightclub in Blagden Alley, according to an announcement from Monument Retail, the company representing the lounge. The club closed in 2020 after a 25-year run due, in part, to pandemic restrictions.

Farid Nouri, the owner, finalized a long-term lease for the new Shaw location on Thursday. The nightlife spot will move to a two-story, 5,000-square-foot space with a rooftop deck at 1230 9th Street NW.

“Being in Blagden Alley means ESL neighbors complementary establishments, including Michelin-starred restaurants,” Nouri said in a statement. Its main entrance is on 9th Street, but it opens up to Blagden Alley, home to popular bars and restaurants like The Dabney, Calico, and Columbia Room. The new club will replace a vacant space, previously the location of 1230 Restaurant.

Nouri also told Eater that while the new spot will be about half the size of the original club, it will be “easily manageable and perfect for post-COVID [conditions].”

https://twitter.com/18thSTLounge/status/1400562810908782592

The new iteration will be similar to the original, featuring a bar on each level, spaces for live performances, and a host of familiar DJs and upbeat playlists — but it will add a food menu. Nouri told Eater that he plans to outsource the menu to “one of the neighbors or look into up-and-coming women [and] minority local chefs” who can prepare the food onsite.

While setting his sights on the new venue, Nouri recently sent a cease-and-desist letter to the new owners of the original spot on 18th Street NW, a company called Babylon Group. The company plans to open “The Lounge,” a brand that Nouri argues is too close to his original concept. He alleges the new group is aiming to profit off of Eighteenth Street Lounge’s popular reputation and that Babylon Group is confusing the public with its marketing.

Nouri closed his club because of COVID-19 restrictions and because he couldn’t reach agreed-upon terms for a lease renewal with the landlord, Douglas Development.

He plans to open the new location in four to six months, he told Eater.