Ravi DeRossi has been a quiet powerhouse in New York City’s East Village for nearly two decades, starting in 2006 with the Bourgeois Pig, a wine bar serving cheese and chocolate that he opened with the last of the money he earned as a visual artist.
Since then he has gradually expanded, mostly with cool bars focused on serving the neighborhood, but also with Death & Co., the now-iconic cocktail bar that has since expanded to Denver, Los Angeles, and Washington, D.C.
His mission has changed in recent years from running fun venues, which he still does, to working to make the world a better place.
In 2020, with his priorities shifted in the wake of the pandemic, DeRossi reorganized most of his concepts (but not Death & Co., which he operates with partners) under the Overthrow Hospitality umbrella. Those bars & restaurants, including Cadence, Etéria, Proletariat, Amor y Amargo, & Beer, Soda Club, Avant Garden, and Ladybird, all in the East Village, plus Ubuntu which recently opened in West Hollywood, Calif., all have a focus not only on great hospitality, but animal welfare, environmentalism, community involvement, and inclusivity.
Their menus are entirely vegan and several of them are run by women of color.
Bret Thorn