Week in Grieview

Posts this past week included (with a photo last night outside Sophie's, 507 E. Fifth St.)

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• An update on Evelyn, the East Village restaurant worker arrested by ICE agents on Christmas Eve (Jan. 5)

• Vigil planned for Renee Nicole Good at St. Mark's Church in-the-Bowery (Jan. 9) 

• Punjabi Grocery and Deli is back, serving on 1st Street (Jan. 8) … Punjabi Grocery and Deli hasn't been open in weeks, and people are starting to worry (Jan. 5) 

• Bowery Electric space to reopen as the Bowery Palace; Jesse Malin up first in new theater (Jan. 8) 

• Veselka looks to add full liquor license at longtime East Village home (Jan. 6) 

• The classic Japanese restaurant Beron Beron has closed on 1st Avenue (Jan. 5) 

• Sole focus: At the opening night of 'Feet Pics' at Ruby/Dakota on 2nd Street (Jan. 10) 

• Activity at a historic 2nd Avenue address (Jan. 7) 

• Ahead of its opening, Lazy Bulldog brings Turkish coffee to this 6th Street stoop (Jan. 7) 

• '50 Years of PUNK' this January (Jan. 6)

• CBGB audio doc gets another spin on WBAI (Jan. 4) 

• Reading the signs: An art show opens at Psychic Readings on 5th Street (Jan. 4) 

• The Parks Department will be mulch obliged if you bring your Christmas tree to Tompkins this weekend (Jan. 9) ... At Mulchapalooza 2026 (Jan. 10) 

• What will be the 12th establishment in 12 years for 334 Bowery? (Jan 6) 

• First signs of retail (Sephora) life at 1 St. Mark's Place (Jan. 6) 

• After raids, fines and silence, is Green Line finally done on Avenue B? (Jan. 8) 

• The retail space at 95 2nd Ave. is for rent (Jan. 5) 

 .... and the liquor store on the NE corner of Avenue A and Fourth Street went under new ownership earlier last year... the temp signage for Avenue A Liquor & Wine arrived on Friday (thanks, William Klayer, for the photo). It's no Fine Wines & Champagne's!

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At Mulchapalooza 2026

Photos by Stacie Joy

MulchFest 2026 returned to Tompkins Square Park today, kicking off what is arguably the event of the early winter social calendar. 

Neighbors arrived with last season's Christmas trees, left with fresh mulch, and lingered long enough to catch up, people-watch and debate the finer points of tree disposal. 

Day 1 scenes, as captured below...

Parks will be back at it tomorrow (Sunday) from 10 a.m. to 2 p.m. ...

Sole focus: At the opening night of 'Feet Pics' at Ruby/Dakota on 2nd Street

Photos by Stacie Joy

Here are scenes from the crowded opening last night of "Feet Pics," a group exhibition at Ruby/Dakota on Second Street featuring only feet (or "footworks," as the gallery puts it).

"Feet Pics" is on view through Feb. 14. Gallery hours are Thursday–Saturday, 1–6 p.m., or by appointment. 

Ruby/Dakota is at 155 E. Second St., just east of Avenue A.

Back to last night... artists include Monica Loya ...

... and Kiki Joyce...

And (below right) is gallery owner Hannah Studnick...

View this post on Instagram

A post shared by Sam Keller (@sam_big_gulp)

Feeling the 'Need'

 

The fiery Irish quartet Sprints play the Bowery Ballroom on Feb. 5 (not yet sold out). 

The band's sophomore album, All That Is Over, came out back in the fall. The video here is for "Need."

The Parks Department will be mulch obliged if you bring your Christmas tree to Tompkins this weekend

Photo from Sunday 

FYI: MulchFest 2026 (aka Chipping Weekend) runs tomorrow and Sunday (Jan. 10–11) from 10 a.m. to 2 p.m. 

Tompkins Square Park is one of the official chipping sites, which means city crews will happily turn your discarded Christmas tree into a bag of fresh mulch for you to take home — perfect for gardens, tree beds and other responsible, plant-related uses.

Vigil planned for Renee Nicole Good at St. Mark's Church in-the-Bowery

There's a small memorial for Renee Nicole Good on the 10th Street outside St. Mark's Church in-the-Bowery at Second Avenue. 

Good, a 37-year-old mother of three originally from Colorado, was fatally shot by a U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement officer in Minneapolis on Wednesday. 

Church officials are inviting neighbors to leave a prayer or flower in her memory — and in memory of others currently in ICE detention — on the 10th Street fence. 

"A vigil for lament and hope" will take place on Monday at 7 p.m. at St. Mark's Church. The event is being sponsored by Middle Church, Trinity Lower East Side and Judson Memorial Church.

Trump administration officials described Good as a domestic terrorist who attempted to ram federal agents with her car. Local and state officials disputed federal authorities' narrative of events, calling the shooting unjustified. Her ex-husband said she was a devoted Christian and that he had never known her to participate in any protest. 

Top photo via @stmarksbowery

Noted

This turned up overnight on the back side of the Tompkins Square Park field house, according to several EVG readers. (And yes, it says what you think it says.) 

The response from neighbors ranged from annoyed to disgusted — not least because the field house only reopened last April after an 18-month revamp. 

The reconstruction of the field house that serves the park included a complete renovation of the building's interior and exterior, upgrading all mechanical, electrical, and plumbing systems. Accessibility improvements feature reconfigured layouts, new entryways, ADA-compliant ramps, and renovated restrooms and maintenance areas. The mayor's office funded the $5.6 million renovations. 

Updated: 

Parks was on the tag pretty quickly, power-washing it off the wall...

Photos via @voxvixen

Punjabi Grocery and Deli Is back, serving on 1st Street

Photos and reporting by Stacie Joy 

Good news for Punjabi faithful: Punjabi Grocery and Deli is back open. 

After a multi-week closure, Punjabi reopened yesterday at 114 E. First St., just west of Avenue A. 

We stopped by between customers to find Surinder at his usual perch... 

Punjabi's homemade cuisine is known for its large portions of inexpensive, delicious vegetarian dishes. (Cash only, as always.)

And that was back in view yesterday...

As previously noted, the gate had been down in recent weeks, with no signage for patrons — and no updates on the shop's Instagram — prompting some neighborhood concern. 

The closure was due to a plumbing issue, and the two restrooms inside were renovated. 

Punjabi's hours are 8 a.m. to 10 p.m. daily.

Bowery Electric space to reopen as the Bowery Palace; Jesse Malin up first in new theater

ICYMI: Bowery Electric will close on Jan. 30, ending a 17-year run of live bands and performances. 

The space, however, will remain in the family. 

Beginning on Feb. 18, the venue at 327 Bowery near Second Street will reopen as the Bowery Palace, a 100-seat theater. 

The inaugural production will be a six-week Off-Broadway run of “Silver Manhattan,” Jesse Malin’s theatrical show, following a sold-out workshop residency at the Gramercy Theatre starting this past September. 

"Silver Manhattan" will play five nights a week from Feb. 18 through March 29. Performances are scheduled for Wednesday through Saturday at 8 p.m. and Sunday at 7 p.m. The 90-minute show will feature special guest appearances throughout the run, along with nightly pre-show gatherings.

"'Silver Manhattan' is the most personal thing I've ever done on stage," Malin said in a statement announcing the Bowery Palace. "I wanted to run it in a smaller theater and look into the eyes of everyone in the room. I have so much history on the Bowery — I played CBGB as a kid and grew up in the neighborhood. My grandfather sold liquor to the bars up and down the Bowery. It's nice to go back to the scene of the crime."

Tickets are on sale now at SilverManhattan.com.

In May 2023, Malin suffered a rare spinal stroke that left him paralyzed from the waist down. Malin, a partner in several local establishments, including Niagara, 96 Tears, and the Bowery Electric, returned to the stage for the first time since early 2023 in December 2024 at the Beacon Theater, billed as "the largest hometown show of his career." 

Malin, a Queens native, launched his music career at age 12 while fronting the hardcore band Heart Attack. He later served as the lead vocalist of D Generation in the 1990s. 

He has become a prolific singer-songwriter with nine studio albums and a variety of collaborations, including Bruce Springsteen, Elvis Costello, and Billie Joe Armstrong. 

Photo below of Malin (left) and photographer Bob Gruen from last May on the Bowery by Stacie Joy

After raids, fines and silence, is Green Line finally done on Avenue B?

Photos by Stacie Joy 

Green Line, the unlicensed cannabis joint at 42 Avenue B between Third Street and Fourth Street, has been closed since early December.

At that time, according to witnesses, Green Line employees got into a row, and basically trashed the place in the process. 

Now, a demand-for-rent notice from the landlord, Steve Croman, has arrived. Building employees say Green Line has not responded to any messages.

The shop was busted multiple times last year, most recently on Nov. 18. 

Despite repeated raids and fines, the shop kept pulling a Michael Myers–Jason Voorhees comeback, rising from the dead again and again. Could this really be the end of the (Green) line?

Punjabi Deli and Grocery reopens TODAY

Photo yesterday by Stacie Joy

After a multi-week closure, Punjabi Grocery and Deli reopens TODAY (Jan. 7) at 114 E. First St. 

The gate has been down in recent weeks, and there hasn't been any sign for patrons here... or on the shop's Instagram account... causing a bit of a freakout among Punjabi faithful.

Jashon Singh, whose father, Kulwinder Singh, started running the store just west of Avenue A in 1994, told us last night via an Instagram message: "My father had to close due to an emergency, but he's reopening [Jan. 7]."

He also apologized for not mentioning the closure on Instagram and promised to be more active there. 

In recent weeks, we heard from several fans of Punjabi's inexpensive, delicious vegetarian Indian food who wondered what's going on at the longtime neighborhood favorite. (Several tipsters told us about a plumbing issue in the building, though we didn't have confirmation on that.) 

Punjabi's hours: 8 a.m. to 10 p.m.

Activity at a historic 2nd Avenue address

Photo Monday by Steven 

Nearly 19 months after changing hands, there's now some activity at 110 Second Ave., between Sixth Street and Seventh Street. 

In May 2024, the landmarked Isaac T. Hopper House had a new owner for the first time in 150 years. At the time, Self Reliance New York Federal Credit, which owns the building next door, announced that it was expanding by purchasing No. 110 for $7.4 million. 

The credit union, which provides financial services to the Ukrainian American community, plans to renovate and adapt the building for administrative and community needs. 

The Women's Prison Association (WPA) had owned the property since 1874. The Hopper House most recently served as a 38-bed transitional shelter dedicated to formerly incarcerated and at-risk women and their children.

In December 2020, the townhouse sustained significant physical damage from a six-alarm fire on the SE corner of Second Avenue and Seventh Street. The fire destroyed the neighboring Middle Collegiate Church and displaced the shelter's residents and staff. 

Following a review of the damaged property, "WPA determined that a sale of the property would be most conducive to the building's restoration and the organization's programmatic continuity." No. 110 arrived on the market in February 2023 with a $7.1 million ask. 

The property is also on the National Register of Historic Places. You can find more history of the address at Village Preservation. 

Meanwhile, with 70 employees and 50 volunteers, WPA continues to operate from its other community sites in New York City, as well as from jail-based offices on Rikers Island and the Taconic and Bedford Hills State Correctional Facilities.

Ahead of its opening, Lazy Bulldog brings Turkish coffee to this 6th Street stoop

Photos and reporting by Stacie Joy

Before the doors even open, Dmitrii Zhurbenko is already introducing the East Village to his coffee. 

In recent weeks, Zhurbenko has been setting up a portable station outside 206 E. Sixth St., near Cooper Square, serving Turkish/Arabic/Greek-style coffee brewed the traditional way — slowly, over heated sand. 

It's a preview of what's coming soon inside the space, where Lazy Bulldog Coffeeshop is expected to open in the next couple of weeks. 

Here, the finely milled coffee is prepared to order and can be customized with add-ins like cardamom, black pepper, ginger, chili, or lavender, served sweet, black, or with milk. 

Along with sand-brewed coffee, Lazy Bulldog plans to offer chai, brewed tea ("real tea, no stuff from tea bags!"), matcha and pastries.

Zhurbenko, who was born in Tajikistan and is of Serbian descent, previously sold this style of coffee from a cart in Prospect Lefferts Gardens. 

While finishing the Sixth Street space, he decided to bring the coffee outside his entrance as a way to introduce himself and the concept to the neighborhood. 

The portable setup is $5 per cup, with hours that depend on when he's out front. (Updates are often posted on Instagram at @lazybulldog_coffee.)