Upper East Side mainstay Sistina is getting a members-only twist. Chef-owner Giuseppe Bruno is turning rooms inside his multi-floor townhouse into a private club setup, with members-style dining, focused wine tastings and intimate gatherings, while keeping the main dining room open to walk-ins. The concept centers on private dining suites and curated wine experiences tucked into the restaurant’s townhouse on East 81st Street.
Bruno frames the change as expansion, not a closure
Bruno is careful to stress that this is an add-on, not a shutdown. As he put it, “this is not about closing our doors,” describing the project instead as a way to deepen the private, tailored side of his hospitality. According to the New York Post, the new private areas will feature wine tastings and rooms for small, invite-only gatherings carved out of Sistina’s existing multi-room townhouse space.
Sistina's history and cellar
Sistina has been part of the Upper East Side dining landscape since the early 1980s and now operates from a townhouse at 24 East 81st Street, where Bruno has built an award-winning wine program. The restaurant’s own site notes its history and address (Sistina), and critics have repeatedly highlighted the cellar’s size and depth. Wine Spectator recognition has followed, as noted in profiles from Chilled Magazine.
Neighborhood context: club bids and community pushback
The timing of Bruno’s move comes as the five-story building at 24 East 81st has already been on the radar of private club operators. A British members’ club told Community Board 8 it planned to take over the mansion, including the ground-floor restaurant space, according to Patch. The outlet later reported neighbors urging the board to limit rooftop liquor and food service, underscoring how sensitive new private-club proposals have become on the block.
Bruno has not publicly detailed a timeline or membership fees for his club concept, and the restaurant emphasizes that the main dining room will stay open to the public while the private spaces are built out, per the New York Post. For now, the project is being cast as an extension of the long-running relationships Bruno has cultivated with regulars and wine-focused patrons over decades at Sistina.
