You have until Wednesday to check out "Angels of Light," an exhibit featuring the photography of artist-activist Steven Love Menendez at the Boiler Room.
The show includes a portrait of the late Agosto Machado...
You can read a Q&A at Gay City News with Menendez here.
"Angels of Light," which opened this past Thursday, will be on display through Wednesday. The Boiler Room is at 45 Second Ave. between Second Street and Third Street.
City Councilmember Harvey Epstein is hosting a community meeting tomorrow (Tuesday) evening to discuss the mayor's plan to relocate Bellevue's adult men's homeless intake operation.
As previously reported, the proposal would move intake to the men's shelter at 8 E. Third St., while converting Project Renewal's facility at 333 Bowery into an intake center for homeless families.
The plan has raised questions among some residents about logistics and community impact.
Tuesday's meeting is expected to provide more details and offer neighbors an opportunity to ask questions and share feedback.
Epstein will be joined by Assemblymember Deborah Glick, Congressman Dan Goldman, Borough President Brad Hoylman-Sigal and State Sen. Brian Kavanagh.
The meeting starts at 5:30 p.m. at the Sirovich Senior Center, 331 E. 12th S. between First Avenue and Second Avenue.
Work continues at Paulie Gee's East Village Slice Shop at First Avenue and Sixth Street, with a spring opening in sight.
George Linn, the owner and operator of the outpost, invited EVG in for an update. (Linn has worked with Paulie Gee, aka Paul Giannone, and was the one who wanted to open a location of the pizzeria here, as we first reported.)
Linn said the dual PizzaMaster ovens are expected to arrive this coming week, following completion of the hood installation. After that: the black-and-white tile floor.
The shop will run on an all-electric kitchen setup — no gas line (or ConEd approval) required.
On the beverage side, expect Coca-Cola products, cold orange juice, and (pending approval) beer on tap.
"We don't want to take customers away from [the International Bar] next door, we just want to have beer for our customers with their pizza," Linn said.
The space is taking shape with a 1970s rec-room feel — think wood paneling, avocado-green chairs and orange laminate — paired with updated lighting and sound.
Seating will include three front booths, a handful of small tables and counter spots.
Linn also said they plan to display a vintage photo of the building, possibly from the 1930s... about 80 years before the previous tenant, Dunkin', moved in...
As for timing, they're aiming for a May opening, possibly sooner.
Xi'an Famous Foods signage is up now at 129 Second Ave., between Seventh Street and St. Mark's Place. (T/Y to the EVG reader who shared this photo!)
This marks the brand's return to the East Village. The EV outpost at 81 St. Mark's Place closed in early March 2020 when the lease came up for renewal. (Xi'an opened at 139 Fourth Ave. between 13th Street and 14th Street in May 2024.)
Xi'an is taking over the space that last housed Taqueria Diana. (RIP June 2025.)
The chainlet of quick-serve hand-pulled noodle shops has multiple NYC locations... and has expanded into a few other states.
Company CEO Jason Wang's father, David Shi, got his start in a small food stall in Flushing, a business that became popular after an Anthony Bourdain endorsement.
The ground-floor space here between First and Second Avenues remains for lease. It has been home to restaurants for many years, including Il Faro and, in the 1990s, Manila Garden. Crocodile Lounge never reopened after the COVID shutdown in March 2020.
An LLC affiliated with The Sabet Group purchased the four-story building for $3.3 million in the fall of 2024... the gutting soon commenced.
For generations before this, a family had owned the building known as The James McCreery House. Read its history here.
On Friday afternoon, we spotted Surfbort in Tompkins Square Park... enjoying a spring afternoon after lunch at Superiority Burger.
The band members were in good spirits, taking it all in ahead of the weekend's shows. The LA-based band with NYC roots was in town to promote their latest record, Reality Star, their third album, and first since 2021.It's raw, a bit dreamy, and not too worried about staying tidy.
The band was playing sold-out shows at Night Club 101 on Avenue A that night... and Market Hotel in Bushwick on Saturday.
Surfbort got its start in Brooklyn in 2014, with founding members Dani Miller on vocals...
... and drummer Sean Powell...
... the Surfbort family features Valentine on bass...
... guitarist Adam Laidlaw ...
... and guitarist Bee Wright ...
And later at Club 101, Valentine previewed her stage gear — fitting, given how warm the crowded space would get during Surfbort's set, which came in quick, loud bursts ... feedback, hooks, and not much in the way of restraint.
... and EVG regular Edmund John Dunn shared this photo from Union Square on Friday... when the line formed for the grand opening of the Uniqlo on 17th and Broadway...
There's a new player at the office project at 1 St. Mark's Place and Third Avenue.
According to The Real Deal this past week, Manhattan-based firm GDSNY was brought on to oversee leasing and development management at the nine-story office building.
The project, developed by Brandon Miller's Real Estate Equities Corporation, has had a complicated path — including financial challenges before and after the pandemic, as well as a lender-backed refinancing.
The Morris Adjmi–designed building is now complete, though the office portion remains vacant. Sephora is taking the ground-floor retail lease, as we've noted probably too many times. (And someone has taken measures to protect the storefront from tags.)
GDSNY's role includes leasing the space, redesigning the lobby and taking over asset management — a shift from earlier efforts to market the building.
As for REEC's current involvement, that remains unclear, per TRD.
Photographer Richard Sandler, formerly a longtime East Village resident, will be showing selected prints from his timeless book "Eyes of the City" (Powerhouse, 2016) at Abraço Espresso from 2-4 p.m. on Tuesday.
The filmmaker and photographer, who relocated to Vancouver in 2023, is back in NYC for an exclusive exhibition of his work at the prestigious Robert Capa Foundation in Yonkers, running until June 28.
"These were the streets of my youth. [Being back] felt like diving into a river that I'm familiar with… walking my old route," Sandler said about his NYC return. "In this flow, I can pretty much take any picture I want. The skill is being invisible."
The Capa Foundation also screened Sandler's historic "The Gods of Times Square," a documentary about the radical transformation of Midtown, in which he videotaped every day — and many nights — from 1992 to 1997.
Completed in 1998, the film is a must-see for anyone interested in experiencing a different era of the city.
Abraço is located at 81 E. Seventh St., between First and Second Avenues.
On Good Friday yesterday, parishioners from St. Brigid–St. Emeric on Avenue B took part in the (annual!) Stations of the Cross procession, which began outside the church at the southeast corner of Eighth Street.
The solemn walk — symbolizing the path Jesus took to Mount Calvary — continued north to 12th Street, east to Avenue C, then south to Seventh Street before returning to the church.
Along the way, participants paused for the traditional stations, with reenactments marking each step of the journey.
This year's procession seemed to carry a little extra intensity — some of the reenactments didn't exactly hold back.
East Village-based singer-songwriter Patti Rothberg is marking the 30th anniversary of her debut album, Between the 1 and the 9, with a show Saturday night at the Parkside Lounge.
Rothberg and her current band, the Patti Rothberg Coincidence, will perform the album in full. The group has also released a new live album, Live at the Parkside Lounge.
Originally released in 1996 on EMI, Between the 1 and the 9 landed on the Billboard and UK charts. The single "Inside" reached No. 32 on the Billboard Pop chart.
Rothberg wrote and performed nearly all the material on the album, which took its name from her subway busking days before being signed.
Here's Rothberg on Letterman in 1996...
The Parkside Lounge show is from 7 to midnight with these NYC bands:
• 7 p.m. Queenpins
• 7:30 p.m. Sue Lashley
• 8 p.m. AIH
• 9 p.m. The Patti Rothberg Coincidence
• 10 p.m. The Val Kinzler Band (It is Val's birthday)
The Manhattan District Attorney's office yesterday announced an indictment involving seven people allegedly tied to the Lower East Side-based "Up the Hill" crew, accused of a series of gang-related shootings between mid-2024 and late 2025.
According to the D.A.'s office, several of the incidents took place in and around the East Village, including near East Sixth Street and the FDR Drive, as well as Avenue D and East 10th Street.
Authorities allege the group targeted rivals in multiple locations, at times firing into residential areas and posting about the incidents on social media.
Six individuals are charged in a New York State Supreme Court indictment with conspiracy in the second degree related to the alleged murder plot. All seven defendants face conspiracy in the fourth degree tied to weapons possession. In total, prosecutors filed 33 counts, including attempted murder, assault and criminal possession of a weapon.
"This indictment alleges a coordinated pattern of violence spanning several months, during which the defendants repeatedly armed themselves and targeted rivals in residential areas, putting countless New Yorkers at risk," Manhattan District Attorney Alvin L. Bragg, Jr. said in a statement.
Drom hosted a surprise show last night featuring Earl Sweatshirt and MIKE — which helps explain the line along Avenue A near Sixth Street.
The two rappers have a collaborative release, the double LP Pompeii // Utility, out tomorrow, created alongside Surf Gang, the NYC-based label and producer collective.
Some fans waited for hours to get inside — and not everyone made it.
They'll be playing much larger venues this summer, including including July 8 at the Brooklyn Paramount.
The show includes a portrait of the late Agosto Machado...
You can read a Q&A at Gay City News with Menendez here. 
