Situated in the once dangerous - then hip - now gentrified Meatpacking District, Florent was an idiosyncratic French bistro that was more than a restaurant - it was a melting pot of the weird and interesting, a second home to outrageous locals, club kids, celebrities, drag queens, and anyone who wished to drop in.

It's French founder, Florent Morellet, had built a huge following over 23 years in business by remaining inclusive, welcoming and devoted to his most loyal customers. In contrast to the rest of the New York restaurant scene, it didn't matter if a celebrity couldn't get a table - at Florent it was the regulars that mattered.

Eating there was a very different experience to any other restaurant - waiters cracked risque jokes, would hand out colouring in kits to keep diners amused between courses and make you feel like a favoured regular by bringing an extra drink with your bill. Walls were lined with an eclectic mix of poetry, bizarre seasonal predictions ("Condi and Bono sing duet for Darfur") and maps, a longstanding passion of their owner.

Forced to close last June by a huge rent hike, Florent's final weeks were marked by disappearing cutlery, wine lists and condiment sets, (many of which reappeared on ebay), two weeks of daily cabaret performances and widespread media coverage - a fitting farewell to a cultural icon.