By Aline Reynolds
The pomp and circumstance surrounding the nuptials of Prince William and Kate Middleton will be in full force Friday on Greenwich Ave. in Greenwich Village.
LYON, a new French bistro on Greenwich Ave. at W. 13th St., will be hosting a live screening of the much-anticipated royal wedding on April 29 beginning at 6 a.m. Chef Chris Leahy and his staff will be offering traditional British food, including the famed English breakfast in the morning; ploughman’s lunch at midday; and beef Wellington for supper. The prix fixe morning meal will be accompanied by a selection of champagne, Buck’s Fizz cocktails and English beers.
The event originated from the slew of inquiries that Nicky Perry, owner of Tea & Sympathy, the neighboring British eaterie, recently received about the marriage.
“Nicky mentioned it to me one day, and I said, ‘Wouldn’t it be fun to show it,’” said LYON co-owner Penny Bradley. “We decided to make it a community event.”
LYON opened in November in the former Café de Bruxelles space.
For patrons who can’t make it to the live screening, LYON will replay the wedding ceremony on the venue’s three projectors and flat screen TV until 6 p.m. Friday.
There will also be street performances along Greenwich Ave. by traditional Morris Dancers and Pearly Kings and Queens in the afternoon.
LYON’s dining area is already fully booked for the morning — Bradley is anticipating 250 people with reservations and has many others on the wait list. She expects another 250 or so diners in the afternoon and evening hours.
TV news trucks are already lining up outside the restaurant, Bradley said, and will be recording the viewing and outdoor entertainment for the better part of Friday.
LYON and Tea & Sympathy will also be organizing a raffle for their patrons, with prizes ranging from a $50 gift certificate to Meatball Shop, at 84 Stanton St. on the Lower East Side, to a helicopter ride for two above the city, to a signed photograph of the Duchess of York’s wedding cake selection, taken at Buckingham Palace in London. The grand prize is two plane tickets to London on Virgin Atlantic.
The proceeds will go toward Jackson Square Park, at 13th St. and Eighth Ave., and to a British charity, according to the organizers.
“Lots of storeowners pitched in and donated some really great gifts. They see how it contributes to the community, and we want to be able to support that,” said Bradley. LYON has already sold 500 raffle tickets at $10 apiece.
Beyond all the glamour and hype, the wedding’s regal connotation still resonates among many, particularly among British New Yorkers whose roots are tied to the homeland of the monarchy.
“Friday’s going to be the start of a new era of the monarchy,” noted Bradley, who is originally from Yorkshire in Northern England. “I think there are new times ahead, and it will be a little more modern than it has been. We’ll see where it goes.”
