Rembrandt's closing in Fairmount

The 32-year run of Rembrandt's, the Fairmount destination, will come to an end on July 9 as owner Gail Seygal prepares for a sale to a consortium of local men, including restaurateur Jack McDavid.

Chef/restaurateur Peter McAndrews, who was chef at Rembrandt's more than 10 years ago before relocating to Italy, will be part of the planned operation, McDavid and McAndrews confirmed.

The sprawling Rembrandt's at 23rd and Aspen Streets, near Eastern State Penitentiary, will be renovated and will carry a new name, likely Modo Mio – the name of an Italian BYOB owned by McAndrews.

By the same token, Modo Mio, now at 161 W. Girard Ave., will close June 29 with an open house.

As for Seygal, who was an occupational therapist when she bought Rembrandt's from longtime owner Jan Zarkin nearly eight years ago: "It's time. It's a lot of work for one person. There are things that I want to do. Things, like travel and see people I haven't seen. I volunteer at the zoo. I want to pull weeds out of my garden. Read a book, that sort of stuff."

She said word of the closing was made public long before the actual shutdown, because "I wanted to be sure my staff got other jobs." Initially, the closing was to be July 30 but Seygal decided to move it sooner.

McDavid, a longtime city restaurateur and Fairmount real estate speculator who owns Jack's Firehouse and Down Home Diner, said details of the restaurant were coming together but the idea was to make it "a local bar."

Also in the Fairmount neighborhood, Chris Ryan has put Bridgid's, the cozy beer-centric bar at 24th and Meredith Streets, on the market after 28 years. He said he was asking $1.2 million for the bricks and liquor license. Ryan, a Realtor, said he came to buy the bar – formerly known as Milt's –  because the opportunity had crossed his desk. He named it after his daughter, now 33. Bridgid's has no plans to close.