EVG Etc.: Long live St Mark's Place; this is radio Clash

Sky view from 2nd and A 

Local stories of interest from other sources this past week include... 

• 100 immigrants arrested in week 1 of ICE raids (The City) 

• At St. Mark’s Church-in-the-Bowery, rallying against the new federal directive that strips longstanding protections from immigrant New Yorkers (amNY)

• AG James says NY hospitals — including NYU Langone Health and the Mount Sinai Hospital System — must continue offering gender-affirming care to minors (The Associated Press ... City & State ... CBS News) 

• Cooper Union wins legal fight over the Chrysler Building (Gothamist) 

• NYCHA residents can apply for grants to fund resident-led community projects that promote a healthy environment (City Limits)

• Mayor Adams does not feel the need, the need for speed for NYC bike lanes (Streetsblog)

• Various folks — Lucy Sante, Tish and Snooky, Danny Orlin, Ada Calhoun, Jason Diamond, Barbara Sibley, (and EVG!) — talk about the past and present of St. Mark's Place (Punch)

• Opening Saturday at the Hole on the Bowery: tinyvices archive 20th-anniversary exhibition (Official site) 

• Thoughts on "Discrimi-NATION: Guerrilla Girls on Bias, Money, and Art," the mini-retrospective of posters by the Guerrilla Girls currently at Hannah Traore Gallery on Orchard Street (Hyperallergic) 

• Tickets remain for the David Lynch series at Village East by Angelika on Second Avenue at 12th Street (Offical site) 

• Checking out the Tex-Mex at Wayne & Sons on Second Avenue (Eater ... previously on EVG) 

• Inside Bar Kabawa, a Caribbean spot in Extra Place via team Momofuku (Robb Report ... previously on EVG)

Today (Feb. 7!) is the annual International Clash Day 2025 on KEXP. Stream it online here.

Wednesday's parting shots

Seems like old times on Seventh Street at First Avenue...

Previously

We're in for a wintry mix (and we don't mean music)

Photo Sunday by Cecil Scheib 

We are under a winter weather advisory ("we" as in NYC and the tri-state area). 

According to the National Weather Service, we could see ("we as in ... forget it!) up to two inches of snow... plus a "glazing" of ice for fun. 

Per the NWS on timing: 

Snow develops from southwest to northeast after midnight, mixing with sleet and freezing rain by mid to late morning, before tapering as plain rain by afternoon. The coast and NYC metro will change to rain by late morning. 

So there's a good chance of an ugly commute wherever you need to commute to.  

The top photo shows the light snowfall in Tompkins Square Park from Sunday night.

Equal time

Photo by Jose Garcia 

After yesterday's photos of the Tompkins Square opossum... here's Christo, the resident male red-tailed hawk in the park, looking as majestic as ever today.

Goggla recently had some updates on Christo and Amelia's nestorations in Tompkins Square Park. Check out the post here.

Checking in on 644 E. 14th St.

Here's our first look in a few months at 644 14th St., the 24-story residential building on the SW corner of Avenue C. 

Workers are putting in the façade of terracotta panels and staggered floor-to-ceiling windows...

The 234-foot-tall building from Madison Realty Capital, called 14+C, will include 197 residential units, "a state-of-the-art fitness room," a yoga studio, and a rooftop deck. Information about the number of "affordable" units included in 14+C, one of the stipulations for being allowed to build a more extensive (by nine floors) building, has not been made public. There will also be ground-floor retail. 

Here's a look at the final rendering via Fischer + Makooi Architects ...

There have also been no updates on the status of the residents of the neighboring 5-story building at 642 E. 14th St., many of whom were in rent-stabilized units. The building was abruptly vacated in November 2023 after foundation work next door reportedly destabilized it. 

The full demoliton order from 642's landlord remains on hold from last summer. (This Times feature has more info from November.)

Previously on EV Grieve:

• Workers reach the top of 644 E. 14th St.; future of building next door still in limbo

Long empty 6th Street storefront finally hits the market

A for-lease sign has arrived at 511 E. Sixth St. between Avenue A and Avenue B. 

The last tenant here was Identity Bar and Lounge, which closed in the fall of 2013. 

Fast-forward a short 11-plus years. The Tri State Commercial Realty listing notes that the 1,200-foot space is "ideal for a bar, restaurant, cocktail bar, comedy club, jazz bar, or omakase." And! "This space has the perfect bones for executing your food & beverage vision." 

 No word on the asking rent.

About the Valentine's Day Zine Fair this Saturday

8-Ball Community, the volunteer-run art collective, is hosting its third-annual Valentine's Day Zine Fair ... taking place this Saturday (Feb. 8!) from noon to 6 p.m. at the Sixth Street Community Center, 638 E. Sixth St. between Avenue B and Avenue C. 

There's also an after-zine-fair party at Beverly's, 297 Grand St., from 6 p.m. to 2 a.m.

Did the Tompkins Square Park opossum see his or her shadow?

Photos today by Steven 

YES! Which means six more weeks of field house reconstruction!

Previous coverage of Opie, aka Nicodemus Punch Sugarpop (including this post), right here.

'Caught Stealing' slides into theaters this August

Pics from 2024 by Stacie Joy 

ICYMI: Sony announced that Darren Aronofsky's crime thriller "Caught Stealing" now has an Aug. 29 (2025!) release date, per the Hollywood trades. 

As we diligently noted, "Caught Stealing" was filmed throughout the neighborhood this past fall. 

There were multiple sightings of lead Austin Butler (below), whose character lived on the SW corner of Sixth Street and Avenue A. Also, on Avenue A, the Double Down Saloon subbed for Paul's Bar, the scene of a lot of action. (It was on Avenue B in the book.)

Charlie Huston adapted the screenplay from his 2004 book "Caught Stealing." The story finds Hank Thompson (Butler), a former baseball prodigy, now a binge-drinking bartender, being chased by a criminal element in the East Village of 2000. 

The cast includes Bad Bunny, Action Bronson, Vincent D’Onofrio, Zoë Kravitz, Liev Schreiber, Griffin Dunne, Matt Smith and Regina King. 

We're looking forward to seeing this because a) we read the book, b) we're curious to see the East Village as depicted in the film, and c) we generally really like Aronofsky's movies (and he also lives in the neighborhood).

Double Zero and Bar Verde combine space on 2nd Avenue

We weren't aware of this move until covering the fatal fire at 65 Second Ave. between Third Street and Fourth Street on Sunday.

Plantmade, the vegan pizzeria in the northern storefront, has merged with Bar Verde in the other retail space at the address. According to Vegan NYC, the business is now known as PlantMade By Bar Verde &  & Double Zero, which debuted on Jan. 21. 

The business website states: "PlantMade will feature Mexican and Italian favorites and inspired new creations." Ownership stated that "occupancy costs have tripled" since opening Double Zero, hence the merger. 

According to Vegan NYC, vegan restaurateur Matthew Kenney is not involved in PlantMade. Kenney previously had three establishments in a row here. The contents of Sestina, a pasta restaurant at 67 Second Ave. at Fourth Street, were auctioned off in the fall of 2022. (This marked the fourth Kenney concept in recent years in the corner space, following Plantmade, Plant Food + Wine, and Arata.)

Hours for PlantMade By Bar Verde & Double Zero: Sunday to Thursday from noon to 11 p.m., with a 1 a.m. close on Friday and Saturday. 

Sunday's fire likely damaged the now-empty storefront...

The longtime tenant who lived upstairs, a 75-year-old Vietnam veteran, died in the fire that broke out around 10:30 a.m. on Sunday.

A neighbor is caring for his dog, Bella, and is crowdfunding to cover her medical expenses.

At long last, a full reveal at the Five Guys, opening this week on 2nd Avenue

Top photo by Vinny & O 

Yesterday, workers removed the plywood from the SE corner of Second Avenue and 12th Street (188 Second Ave.), completing the full reveal of Five Guys, which has been in the works since November 2023. 

The plywood has been up at least back to last spring.

The burger chain, which started in Washington, D.C., in the 1980s, now has 1,700 outposts worldwide, including more than 30 locations around NYC.

According to the door signage, the 5G opens this week (the photo was from yesterday, so three days!)...

As previously noted, the restaurants at 188 Second Ave. haven't fared well since old-timer Shima was rent-hiked out of here in January 2014. Lumos Kitchen lasted three months in 2018. Later, Hot Pot Central, DumplingGuo, and Dumpling Go also departed quickly. 

Strings Ramen, which closed in April 2022, did OK, with a tough two-year-plus run after opening just before the start of the pandemic.

Signage alert: 'The Jonathan Larson Project' at the Orpheum Theatre

Photos by Steven 

Crews at the Orpheum Theatre on Second Avenue are prepping the venue between Seventh Street and St. Mark's Place for the next production — "The Jonathan Larson Project." 

Yesterday, the signage arrived...

The musical features a newly discovered collection of songs by the creator and composer of "Rent" and "tick, tick… BOOM!" It includes over twenty previously unheard songs.

Previews start on Feb. 14. Opening night is March 10 for the 16-week run. Find tickets here.

Larson died of an aortic dissection on Jan. 25, 1996, the scheduled day of the first preview performance of "Rent" Off-Broadway. He was 35. 

In the early 1990s, Larson frequented the Life Cafe (which closed in 2011) on the NW corner of Avenue B and 10th Street. There, he worked on treatments for what would become "Rent," which is also set in this neighborhood.

Requiem for a Blue Man Group

Photos by Derek Berg 

Paying tribute today on Fourth Street ... sending off the Blue Man Group after its final NYC performances yesterday at the Astor Place Theatre. This concluded a 34-year run with 17,800 shows and 82,150 gallons of paint.

And a snippet of the parade...

And that’s a wrap for @bluemangroup #whatisnewyork pic.twitter.com/jU12Z5ha0N

— WhatIsNewYork (@whatisny) February 3, 2025

Productions of Blue Man Group will continue in Berlin, Boston, Las Vegas and Orlando.

Neighbor steps up to care for dog injured in 2nd Avenue fire that claimed owner’s life

Yesterday, a 75-year-old resident of 65 Second Ave. died from a fire that broke out in his apartment. 

A neighbor across the street saw the FDNY bring out the tenant's dog, Bella. (Updated 2/6: Officials identified the resident as 75-year-old Robert Bartolomey.)

The neighbor, Dean, took in Bella and brought her to the Emergency Veterinary Hospital...

There's now a crowdfunding campaign to help pay for Bella's recovery. Per the GoFundMe appeal: 

While Bella's long-term prognosis is good, after numerous exams and tests, her immediate needs include receiving oxygen, IV hydration, and an overnight stay in the oxygen tank. While the long-term plan for Bella is still being figured out, and no next of kin found yet for the victim, 

Dean, without hesitation, signed off on anything Bella needed at the hospital and has taken on the expense personally. 

You can find the link here.

Now Now NoHo set to debut its micro hotel rooms in April on the Bowery

Top EVG photo from Saturday

Room photos via Dovetail + Co

Now Now NoHo, a micro boutique hotel for solo travelers, is set to open this spring at 340 Bowery. 

According to the Now Now website, rooms will be available starting on April 1. (No April Fool's!) 

Details via Hospitality Net: 

Envisioned as a transformative boutique experience for solo travelers, Now Now NoHo offers 180 small but thoughtfully designed sleeper cabins that combine the nostalgia of European train cars with the ingenuity of Japanese capsule hotels. The hotel is designed for adventurers seeking a unique and affordable way to explore New York City ...

The "Cozy Sleeper Cabin" basic room starts at $118.15 per night. The description: 

27.7ft² • Room Safe • Luxury linen type • Bathrobes Provided • 24hr Security • Wireless Internet • Air conditioned A cozy, sumptuous sleeper cabin with space to recharge on a plush WRIGHT single mattress outfitted with luxurious Garnier-Thiebaut linens. Your shared, but private, bathroom is only steps away, stocked with Grown Alchemist products. All rooms include a curated sleep kit and a luxe Brooklinen bathrobe.

The Sleeper Cabins are also available for women, and there are options for ADA-complaint rooms.

Guests can also choose the Now Now or Never Cabin, which is two times larger and costs $135 a night. This room includes "an up-close and personal look at our rotating in-room gallery walls."

This is the seventh hotel created by Dovetail + Co, "a boutique collective of design-obsessed hotel nerds." They also have properties in Hawaii and Newport, R.I. New York-based Islyn Studio is behind the Now Now NoHo design, "inspired by the vivid world of dreams, with interiors that blur the line between reality and possibility," as Hospitality Net reported. 

The Whitehouse, a four-story building that has been a single-room hotel since 1899, has a long history. A handful of long-term residents remained, and their presence had reportedly hindered any previous new building plans over the years. 

In late 2018, Alex Vadukul profiled the artist Sir Shadow, who was one of the six remaining residents of the Whitehouse, in a feature at The New York Times. As Vadukul noted: "A few residents have died, and buyouts have lured away others. The men who remain in the flophouse have refused these deals. The Whitehouse Hotel's future appears to now hinge on a grim but simple waiting game." (Sources tell us that Sir Shadow no longer lives at this address.) 

Before the renovations, the residents were moved to space at 338 Bowery. (We covered this here.) 

The building was spruced up in 2011 to appeal to backpackers. (For $45, guests could stay in a tiny room with walls that didn't reach the ceiling while the long-term residents remained on another floor.) 

However, the Whitehouse stopped accepting reservations in September 2014. According to DOB records, plans were previously filed via Sam Chang in 2014 to "convert a 4-story lodging house into a 9-story hotel." The Renatus Group now owns the property in the NoHo Historic District. 

At its height in 1950, the Whitehouse had 234 "cubicles" for its occupants. You can tour the space here.

Terra Thai is closing this month for a revamp with a March return

Terra Thai closed after service last night for a month-long revamp. 

Owners Karuna Wiwattanakantang and Norawat Margsiri emailed us with the news about the restaurant at 518 E. Sixth St. between Avenue A and Avenue B. 

"We plan to reorganize the store to make it fit for the current economic situation," they said. "We'll be back in March at the same location and look forward to serving you and the community again." 

The owners previously operated Terra Thai in Boulder, Colo., for six years before deciding to move to NYC and signing a lease — weeks before the pandemic PAUSE of March 2020.

They could offer a more limited menu of Bangkok-style street food starting in May 2020. Since then, they've expanded the menu (our go-to is basil tofu over rice or the sen yai drunken noodles). 

With lush plants, a working turntable, and rows of LPs, dining at one of the two tables feels like enjoying a meal at a friend’s home. 

Highly recommended if you haven't tried it. Mark it in your calendar for March.

The former Brick Lane Curry House space is for rent on 2nd Avenue

If Brick Lane Curry House is opening a new concept, it won't be from its former outpost at 79 Second Ave. between Fourth Street and Fifth Street. 

The modestly priced British-style curry spot shuttered in December. In a closing announcement on Instagram, ownership wrote, "Stay tuned for Brick Lane 2.0. A new chapter is coming, and we can't wait." 

There's now a for-rent sign on the storefront. We contacted Brick Curry to see if they are opening at another location in the neighborhood. We'll update this post if they respond.

Brick Lane has operated for 23 years from several East Village storefronts, including 308 E. Sixth St. and 99 Second Ave. 

You'll need to go to Jersey City for the Brick House heat.

Signage alert: Kobano on the Bowery

Signage is up now for Kobano at 299 Bowery between Houston and First Street.

The Japanese-Brazilian restaurant is set to debut on Feb. 13, per an Instagram announcement. 

As previously reported, the owners of Íxta, which served southern Mexican and Oaxacan dishes, decided to revamp the space after two-plus years in service. 

You can find the Kobano website here.

Week in Grieview

Photos this past week include (with a photo from Sixth Street) ... 

• D.A. Bragg announces sentencing of shooter in gang-related murder on 3rd Street and Avenue D (Monday) 

• The former P.S. 64/Charas/El Bohio Community Center has a new project name (Tuesday)

• The building that houses East Village institution John's of 12th Street is for sale (Wednesday) 

• Where does the East Village rate in the list of NYC's noisiest neighborhoods? (Friday) 

• The incoming Whole Foods Market Daily Shop shapes up in StuyTown (Thursday) 

• Pink Olive is returning to the East Village (Wednesday) 

• A moment with Marianne Faithfull on St. Mark's Place in 1992 (Friday) 

• Anthology Film Archives hosting an epic Willem Dafoe movie series (Saturday) ... Films we want to see: 'Peter Hujar's Day' (Tuesday) 

• Soda Club is moving from Avenue B to Avenue A (Thursday)

• Signage alert: Win Son Bakery on 2nd Avenue (Friday) 

• Some Downtown Funk and Junk coming to 9th Street (Thursday) 

• The T Mobile shop that always looked closed on 14th Street and 1st Avenue has closed (Thursday) 

• Madonna endorses Baz Luhrmann's new East Village bar Monsieur on 4th Street (Monday)

• After 10 years on 1st Avenue, SenYa has closed (Friday) 

• Schmackary’s coming back (Monday) 

• Together again at Katz's, now with mayo (Wednesday) 

... and we had queries about velvet rope and disco balls at La La Laundry on Avenue B and 11th Street on Thursday evening (thanks to the reader for the photo!)...

It was a launch party for Hampton Water Bubbly, from Hampton Water Wine Co., in partnership with Gérard Bertrand, Jon Bon Jovi, and his son Jesse Bongiovi. And Jon and Jesse were at the party.

Report of a fatal fire at 65 2nd Ave. between 3rd Street and 4th Street

Top photo via a reader; other photos by Steven 

Updated 2/3: There is a crowdfunding campaign to care for the victim's dog, Bella. 

Updated 2/6: Officials identified the resident as 75-year-old Robert Bartolomey.

---------

A fire broke out this morning around 10:30 on the second floor of 65 Second Ave. between Third Street and Fourth Street. There is an unconfirmed report that a resident died from the fire in the six-story building on the west side of the avenue.

The Citizen app reports the fatality as well as two minor injuries. Updated: FDNY sources confirmed the death of a 75-year-old man inside the building, per the Daily News.

According to witnesses, the FDNY responded quickly and had the fire under control before 11 a.m.

As of noon, Second Avenue is closed at Fourth Street.

Updated:

Residents were able to return to the building around 3 p.m.

We'll update the story when more information becomes available. 

Updated 7:45 p.m. 

Here's a look at the building this evening... the fire started in the second-floor unit above the now-closed former home of Double Zero in the north storefront...

EVG Etc.: Street vendors fear deporation; Con Ed considers double-digit rate hikes

Sunrise from 3rd Street 

Local stories of interest from other sources this past week include... 

• The Trump administration's move to re-examine federal funding could have a significant impact on NYC's public housing (The City) 

• Trump threatens to kill congestion pricing (City & State) ... though he'd need to break the law to do so (Streetsblog) 

• Cart vendors worry about being a target in ICE sweeps (Eater ... CBS News) ... What mass deportations would do to NYC's economy (The New York Times) 

• Con Ed is looking to increase customers' electric bills by an average of 11.4% and gas bills by 13.3% starting on Jan. 1, 2026 (Gothamist) 

• Cops searching for suspect who smashed man's face with a glass outside Phebe's on Fourth Street and the Bowery (amNY) 

• A visit to City Lore on First Street — "A hidden New York gem curates culture that might otherwise be lost" (ABC 7) 

• Hawk season 2025 is in full swing (Laura Goggin Photography) 

• Honoring Flaco Eurasian eagle-owl with a new book and exhibit (West Side Rag ... previously on EVG)

• And a diversion from The Hollywood Reporter's cover story on "Babygirl"'s Harris Dickinson, an East London native, who stayed here during the filming: 

He lived in the East Village, right on Houston Street, and though he took constant advantage of the proximity to Katz's Deli (and its world-famous Reuben), he couldn't handle the neighborhood's frenetic energy. "People were accidentally ringing my buzzer at night, and I was in a constant state of stress," he says. "My cortisol was so high that I felt like I was going to explode." 

"Babygirl" screens locally at Village East by Angelika, Regal Union Square and Regal Essex Crossing.

Friday night lights

We've heard reports of a Mustang adorned with Christmas lights in the neighborhood. 

We finally got a nighttime shot from an EVG reader (thank you!). showing the car Friday evening on First Avenue between Sixth Street and Seventh Street. 

This makes us nostalgic for the "In the Air Tonight" car!

Sunday's opening shot

The Blue Man Group's final NYC performances are at the Astor Place Theatre today. (Tix on StubHub were $550 each for the 2 p.m. show and $279 for the 5 p.m. set.) It will conclude a 34-year run with 17,800 shows and 82,150 gallons of paint. 

We never saw the show (and we didn't do a last-week visit like with "Stomp"). 

But there are still chances! Productions of Blue Man Group will continue in Berlin, Boston, Las Vegas and Orlando. 

In 1987, a trio of Lower East Side artists — Matt Goldman, Phil Stanton and Chris Wink — started what would "arguably become the most financially lucrative performance art troupe in the world." Cirque du Soleil bought the show in 2017. 

Before taking up residency on Astor Place on Nov. 17, 1991, the group played out and about at various local venues, including King Tut's Wah Wah Hut on Avenue A at Seventh Street (where Niagara is now).

Saturday's parting shot

Happy 26th anniversary to Lavagna, an EVG favorite East Village restaurant at 545 E. Fifth St., just west of Avenue B. 

Visit the Tuscan restaurant from 5 to 10 p.m. daily, with a 1 p.m. start on Saturdays and Sundays.

Hellmouth strikes again

 

EVG reader TechSquared shared this quick clip from last night on Avenue C between Second Street and Third Street... we always enjoy a bubbling hole in the street!

Speaking of Avenue C, did anyone catch this geyser during the middle of last month between Seventh Street and Eighth Street...?

 

View this post on Instagram

A post shared by WhatIsNewYork (@whatisnewyork)

Anthology Film Archives hosting an epic Willem Dafoe movie series

The Anthology Film Archives is paying tribute to the always-seems-to-be-working Willem Dafoe. 

The actor has worked with directors such as Abel Ferrara, Martin Scorsese, Kathryn Bigelow, David Lynch, Paul Schrader, Lars von Trier, John Waters, Wim Wenders, David Cronenberg, Sam Raimi, Wes Anderson, Spike Lee, Werner Herzog, and Sean Baker, among many others. 

The expansive "Wild at Heart: Willem Dafoe" series will feature several of these collaborations. The series runs from Feb. 7 to 26, and Dafoe will appear for a Q&A following a few screenings. (And both "Wild at Heart" screenings are already sold out.)

 More details and ticket info here. The Anthology is on Second Avenue and Second Street. 

Dafoe lived for a time in the East Village after moving to NYC in the 1970s.

View this post on Instagram

A post shared by Anthology Film Archives (@anthologyfilmarchives)

Saturday's opening shot

Early morning view from 14th Street and Avenue A... the photogenic clouds will allegedly give way to sunny skies later today, per the Weather Channel.

Friday's parting shots

Photos by Stacie Joy 

Happy 10th anniversary to C&B Café owner Ali Sahin and his team at 178 E. Seventh St., between Avenue A and Avenue B.

C&B opened in January 2015, and they've been great neighbors ever since. They sponsored the tree lighting in Tompkins Square Park, provided kitchen space to the volunteers who went on to form EVLovesNY, fed unhoused neighbors, provided Thanksgiving meals at Graffiti Church, refilled the community fridge, and taught kids from the Amsterdam School how to make cookies for free. The list goes on.

'Kiss' them for me

 

Over the next few weeks, we'll highlight indie acts performing at this year's New Colossus Festival, which will take place in East Village and LES venues from March 4 to 9. 

Here's dark-wave Canadian artist Frankie Flowers with "Kiss Me Like the World Is Ending." 

Find Festival info here.

6 posts from January 2025

Photo on 2nd Avenue by Asha Schechter 

A mini month in review... 

• Taking a look at the all-new Baker Falls, now in soft-open mode on the Lower East Side (Jan. 22) 

• A visit with Anne DeVita (Jan. 22) 

• Why School for the Dogs abruptly closed in the East Village (Jan. 7)

• Reader report: Car crashes into Blink Fitness on Avenue A; driver flees (Jan. 6) 

• Tompkins Square Park upgrades: When will the field house and restrooms reopen? (Jan. 6) 

• When we found out about a mysterious early-morning transport on 2nd Avenue (Jan. 3)