A three-story commercial, mixed-used building from the late nineteenth century, elaborately decorated with terra cotta tiles reminiscent of Spanish Renaissance Revival. The first level houses Elm City Social, a restaurant and bar, which carries on a long tradition of eateries in this building, most notably Kaysey's which occupied this space between 1935 and 1968.

Kaysey's Restaurant, Bespoke, Gilt, briq, College Spa

266 College Street, currently the site of Elm City Social, has a long history as a culinary hub for downtown New Haven. In recent memory it has housed restaurants like Bespoke, Gilt, and Briq, which occupied the whole building, including the roof deck.



In its early history, it was referred to as a “college eatery” in business directories. The most notable era in this building’s life was its time as Kaysey’s Restaurant, from 1935 to 1968. Kaysey's may have adapted some of the Spanish Renaissance Revival styling of the building, incorporating decorative red shingles in the mezzanine level of the restaurant.



Kaysey’s was owned and operated by Hyman “Kaysey” Kuritch and his wife Esther, who lived in the apartment on the third floor until Esther’s death in 1991. Across from the Shubert Theater, Kaysey's was a popular post-show gathering place for audience members and production crew alike, and was a neighborhood institution. In 1968, the Kuritch’s restaurant moved to Chapel Street, where Shake Shack is now located, and stayed there for nearly a decade.



Between 1968 and 1981, 266 College Street contained numerous small and relatively unimportant businesses, interspersed with years of vacancy. The College Spa opened in 1981 and stayed open for 13 years. In 1995, a restaurant named Casey’s inhabited the space for a few years, undoubtedly a nod to the unforgettable Kaysey’s.



Between 1999 and 2012, there was a similar period of vacancy and transience to the one following Kaysey’s and it is arguably still in that period, with its past few inhabitants never lasting more than two years.



Elm City Social’s advertising rhetoric is one of a community gathering spot, and one that’s here to stay. They seem to be trying to evoke the feeling of Kaysey’s minus the theater crowd; we’ll see if they’re the combo breaker.

Part of the bustling College Street entertainment zone, next to the Owl Shoppe with the College Street Music Hall down the street and the Shubert Theater across the Street.

A relatively modest three-story commercial structure hosts an elaborate decorative program, with multi-colored terra cotta tiles and oversized brackets that support an ornamental, red-tiled shingle roof, suggesting Spanish or mediterranean influences. It's all a facade, of course; the is a rudimentary brick structure that is dressed up to present itself to the College Street crowd.