Harvest Fest returns to 6&B Garden for its 42nd year

The 6&B Garden will host its 42nd annual Harvest Fest this Saturday, Oct. 4, from 2-7 p.m. 

The afternoon will feature free food and live music for the community, along with an extensive raffle supported by local businesses. Raffle tickets are $1 each and will be on sale starting at 12:30 p.m. outside the garden, with proceeds going toward the upkeep of the space. 

A complete list of prize donors is available at 6bgarden.org.

The garden is located on the southwest corner of Sixth Street and Avenue B.

Pierogi Day returns to East Village Meat Market on Oct. 11

Photos and reporting by Stacie Joy

Pierogi Day returns to the East Village Meat Market.

On Saturday, Oct. 11, from 8 a.m. to 4 p.m., pierogies will be 25% off — roughly $1 each. 

Expect steam tables filled with housemade pierogies from Rosa-Ly, Veselka, and East Village Meat Market, along with more than 10 types of blintzes, smoked meats, kielbasa, grilled sausages, and J. Baczynsky's brisket. 

I stopped by the other day while Roman Ilnicki and his father, Andrew Ilnicki, were preparing to hang the Pierogi Day signage. The rest of the staff on duty also gathered for a quick group shot.

East Village Meat Market is at 139 Second Ave. between St. Mark's Place and Ninth Street.

City Fun expands into new 2-story space on 1st Avenue

Photos and reporting by Stacie Joy

City Fun is moving — and growing. 

The indie retailer opens today at noon in a larger space, one storefront to the south in the same building at 45 First Ave., between Second Street and Third Street. 

The new location features two levels: merch on the ground floor and a basement space set aside for events, community collabs and possibly even band performances down the line. 

All your favorites from the original store will be back — officially licensed band tees, patches, socks, and more. However, the lineup is expanding to include accessories, backpacks, a western-inspired fashion line, and eventually self-published books and poetry from local artists. 

We dropped by for a peek while the team was stocking the shelves...

... and talked with store manager Lilly Axe...

And we took a last look at the old shop next door...

Between customers, City Fun clerks Mack McCracken (left) and Aiyana Radcliff were catching up on some reading...

You can keep tabs on store hours and upcoming events via the City Fun Instagram account here.

Thursday's parting shot

Above Avenue A (and elsewhere!) this evening... cue up Ride.

At the Francis Kite Club, an evening of music hosted by Kyp Malone of TV on the Radio

The Francis Kite Club is hosting a special show tomorrow (Friday!) night, featuring a lineup that includes some of Kyp Malone of TV On The Radio's favorite musicians and performers.

The evening will include Garrett Devoe, Erin Durant, Headfooter, Smoota, Jehova's Princess, Anna McCarthy, Miss Philip, Grey Gersten, Local Bliss and Samuel A. Malone. This curated bill spans a broad genre gamut, from delicate piano folk to gothic, gender-bending performance.

It's also a great chance to visit the Francis Kite Club and experience the diverse programming the venue provides. 

They recently launched The Membership, "a program that supports our operations and allows us to continue to provide accessible space for our artists and customers. With your contribution and participation, we can continue to socialize this space in the years to come." 

There's no cover charge for tomorrow night's show, which starts at 8. 

The Francis Kite Club is at 40 Avenue C between Third Street and Fourth Street. 

H/T Daniel Efram

Tompkins Square Halloween Dog Parade returns for its 35th year on Oct. 19

Photos and reporting by Stacie Joy 

The Tompkins Square Halloween Dog Parade is back this fall, marking its 35th year on Sunday, Oct. 19, from 1–4 p.m.

This year's event will feature a parade along Avenue B and a limited-entry costume competition. Advance registration is required to participate in both, and it opens on Oct. 6 on a first-come, first-served basis.

Four dogs from Pup Starz, Social Tees and the ASPCA will serve as Parade Grand Marshals, spotlighting the importance of adoption. The day will also include a festival block for participants on Sixth Street between Avenue B and Avenue C, where sponsor Stella & Chewy's will be handing out treats for four-legged guests. 

The parade is organized by New York Dog Parade, a nonprofit founded by author and canine columnist Fern Watt ("below, and with the dog parade team). 

Organizers say they've been working with local groups and city agencies on safety measures and crowd-control strategies, with expanded programming planned for both dogs and humans.

The event is free to attend. Volunteers are also needed; those interested can email volunteer@nydogparade.org. 

For updates, visit nydogparade.org or follow @nydogparade on Instagram.

About a book sale outside the George Jackson Academy on St. Mark’s Place

This Friday and Saturday, the George Jackson Academy, located at 104 St. Mark's Place between First Avenue and Avenue A, is hosting a book sale to benefit its library.

Hours are Friday from 3-8 p.m. and Saturday from 10 a.m. to 8 p.m.

Over 500 books will be available for purchase, selected from the school's collection in recent years, including donated books that weren't suitable for middle school boys, as well as elementary-level titles.

Expect a wide selection, including fiction, nonfiction (such as history and biography), manga, reference, poetry, and more. There will also be opera and classical vinyl, as well as documentary DVDs.

Proceeds will be used to restock the school's library with high-interest books for the students.

Worker-stewards push back after Bluestockings’ abrupt closure

Photos and reporting by Stacie Joy 

Bluestockings Cooperative announced on Sept. 22 that it would be closing as a business at the end of 2025, marking the end of a 26-year run as an independent feminist bookstore, café, and radical community space. 

According to a statement on the Bluestockings website, daily operations were no longer sustainable due to health, financial and structural challenges. 

The Suffolk Street storefront has already closed its doors. However, Bluestockings says it will continue to fulfill online book orders and membership perks through the end of the year, using remaining funds to pay debts, vendors, and staff handling the transition. 

Meanwhile, on Sept. 24, this "message from the exclusively brown POC stewards fired from BSTOX yesterday" arrived on the store's Instagram account. It was no longer on the feed several hours later...

Outside the shop on Sept. 25, several employees, who identified themselves as worker-owners managing day-to-day operations, held a press conference. They described the sudden closure as a lockout that cut them off from the space, their emails and community resources inside. 

They said they had been working to stabilize their finances — raising more than $64,000 through a GoFundMe, negotiating with distributors, launching book drives, hiring a financial consultant, and posting sales promotions that generated steady revenue as recently as last weekend. An unexpected $6,500 state insurance bill further strained cash flow.

The former staff members criticized a lack of financial transparency and stated that the closure occurred without consultation or severance pay. They emphasized Bluestockings' broader role as a community hub, providing Narcan, fentanyl test strips, free food, a safe bathroom, and a stage for political education and organizing. Donated books, art and mutual aid supplies are now locked inside. 

Calling the lockout "a form of violence," they urged mediation, transparency and a path toward reopening under a community-driven model. A legal and operational fund has been established to cover expenses and explore potential ways forward.

"We don't believe closure is the only option," one speaker said. "This space belongs to the community, and we're committed to finding a just solution."

Here's more of the opening statement read by D this past Thursday: 

The announcement of Bluestockings' imminent closure on Monday, Sept 22, was made to us the same day it was made to the world. If we had even an inkling that this was in the works, we would've alerted community members and groups who rely on the space. Instead, our email and Slack access were revoked and the locks were changed. My coffee mug is still on the counter...

Our situation, when the dust cleared, was approximately $100K in debt with book distributors, so we could not order any more books. We were diligent in every aspect to keep the store open every day, raising over $64,000 via GoFundMe, onboarding a financial consultant, and working with the ICA Group on ownership transfer. Just this summer, Mariame Kaba organized a book drive that brought in over 4,000 titles — our shelves are bursting. On Sunday, the day before the closure was announced, we made over $1,500 in sales. 

We reject being painted as financially unaware or irresponsible workers. The core issues are financial transparency and consensus decision-making. We do not believe sunsetting is the only way forward. We invite the legal worker-owners to share the financial situation so that collective members and community supporters can explore options together. 

The statement, seen later, was signed by "bstox stewards." 

Founded in 1999, Bluestockings spent nearly 22 years on Allen Street before moving to Suffolk in 2021. 

Rossy’s Bakery & Café is still open (for now) on 3rd Street

Photos and reporting by Stacie Joy

 

Back in May, we reported that Rossy's Bakery & Café, located at 242 E. Third St., between Avenue B and Avenue C, would soon be closing after 15 years in business.

Owner Roselia "Rossy" Caba cited rising costs and her mother Norma Ortiz's planned retirement as reasons for the closure. 

As the end nears, Rossy wants people to know the doors stay open — and she hopes neighbors will continue stopping by to order her food while they can. Norma is still in the kitchen, baking cakes, though Rossy isn't sure for how much longer. 

The business, minus the name, is available for sale as a turnkey operation, complete with the lease, equipment, and location. (Find the listing here.) 

Over the years, Rossy's has built a loyal following with affordable lunch plates, including BBQ ribs and baked chicken with rice and beans, as well as empanadas, smoothies, and, of course, Norma's Dominican-style cakes. 

For now, the family-run café is still here — one more chance to get a plate, a pastry or a slice of cake before the lights go out.

Previously on EV Grieve:

• Rossy's Bakery & Café to close after 15 years on 3rd Street

Catching up with Bella McFadden of iGirl

Photos and reporting by Stacie Joy 

We stopped by the new iGirl shop the other day at 166 Orchard St., between Stanton and Rivington. 

The all-new storefront debuted on Sept. 2, after a quick two-week renovation, and marks a move from Third Street, where Bella McFadden — aka Internet Girl — had been for nearly 16 months.

The new space is much larger than the previous shop. 

"Since we use the space for admin and we needed a stock room for order fulfillment, this was the ideal street and size," McFadden said. "There is more foot traffic here. Orchard Street is a destination. Third Street was a more residential block."

The expansion coincides with iGirl moving further into apparel. McFadden is particularly proud of a new collaboration with Lip Service, while the shop also now carries Leg Avenue tights — something many customers had asked for.

iGirl continues to showcase McFadden's jewelry, accessories, and designs, which reflect Y2K emo, mall goth, and punk subcultures.

The shop is open daily from noon to 7 p.m.

Vendors say goodbye to The Bowery Market

According to two now-former vendors at The Bowery Market, the open-air space on the NW corner of Great Jones is closing. 

Yesterday was the last day for the vendors, including The 88 Coffee Company, which said in an Instagram post that "the Bowery Market is also closing to evolve and change for the better."

In its Kettl Tea Substack published on Monday, owner Zach Mangan wrote: "This week marks the end of a chapter for Kettl as we serve our final guests at our Bowery outpost. The owner of the market has decided to sell the space to a developer and pursue a new direction." 

Kettl Tea has a new home in the works on Great Jones, "a true Manhattan flagship — one that builds on the foundation we created at Bowery and keeps us rooted in the neighborhood that has supported us for five years." 

There were no messages from Twig'm, which serves Korean street food (they remained open today), or The Alchemist's Kitchen, which was not open yesterday (or today).

Real estate developer Scott Marano opened the year-round outdoor food market in July 2016, with spaces for up to five new or established food businesses. 

In an email to EVG in May 2019, Marano shared his vision for the space, a former auto-body shop:

Creating The Bowery Market was a very important, long-held goal of mine. I have been part of the neighborhood since I was a child and I have seen how it has changed. There are a lot of great restaurants in our neighborhood, but there are not many places that serve really good food in a very casual environment or on the go. 

I wanted to create a place that people could come to several times a week at different times of the day to satisfy them and their guests. I also know the real estate market and how expensive and risky it is for a food producer and operator to open a brick-and-mortar. 

Therefore, I created small kiosks that provide a lot of exposure and opportunity to the operator, but are also easy and inexpensive to fit out. I wanted this to be somewhat of an incubator for food creators who don't have a lot of financial resources. I also wanted to provide an opportunity to do some fun short-term seasonal or experimental types of concepts. For this reason, I license the spaces on a mostly short-term basis. However, there are times we renew for additional lengths of time. 

We reached out to Marano yesterday for more details on what might be next for the corner space and the garage adjacent to it.

Closings: Chakra on 5th Street

Chakra, the no-frills restaurant on Fifth Street between First Avenue and Second Avenue, has shut down.

Someone has cleared out the space and removed the signage and menu from outside. There is no mention of a closing, permanent or otherwise, on Chakra's website and social media.

Chakra, which opened in late 2023, served vegan and vegetarian Thai dishes ... as well as a Jain and Swaminarayan menu. They also offered gluten-free and low- or no-oil meals.

It was the kind of hidden gem that never got its due. Great food, sure ...though eating there often felt like pulling up a chair in someone's under-decorated apartment.

The same owners also run May Kaidee on the Lower East Side. 

Openings: Seald Cafe on 9th Street

Seald Cafe is set to debut today at 312 E. Ninth St. between First Avenue and Second Avenue. 

The shop will offer a variety of coffee and matcha drinks, as well as breakfast items and desserts.

 

This space was previously Cabin on 9th, whose owners sold the business earlier this year. 

If you're on Instagram, you can follow the shop here.

6 posts from September

A mini month in review (with a photo from 7th and B)... 

• Concern for the squirrels stranded in the East River Park construction zone (Sept. 22) 

• Key Food painting gets scooped up — by a member of the Key Food family (Sept. 19) 

• 'Samo' story: Real-life Al Diaz shut out of new Basquiat biopic (Sept. 16) 

• Rhaenyra the Dragon Kitty stolen from Avenue A shop (Sept. 9)

• Apologizing for 'a dick move' on 7th Street (Sept. 3)

• Deliveristas face new enforcement in the East Village (Sept. 2)

'Bowies Back' history runs through the East Village

Interview and photos by Daniel Efram 

When a high school graduation gift took Ron Gott to England in 1972, few could have predicted that it would eventually lead to the publication of his first photo book, more than 50 years later.

Starting to document rock shows at the age of 13 in 1968, Gott believes his first was either Iron Butterfly, Canned Heat, and The Youngbloods at the Fillmore East on Second Avenue, or Tommy James & the Shondells and Rhinoceros at a Murray the K show in the city.

Many people know Gott from his role at Fabulous Fanny's, the vintage eyewear store on Ninth Street, since 2016. However, few are aware of his history of documenting music from the 1960s to 1981, including two David Bowie concerts: one in Aylesbury, UK, in 1972 (during the Ziggy Stardust and the Spiders from Mars era) and later at Madison Square Garden in 1978 (during the Thin White Duke era). 

Gott's first book, "Bowies Back," out now on Blurring Books, showcases his photos from those two important chapters in the performer's chameleon-like career.

Gott and his travel companion had ended up in Aylesbury the week before to see a band called Caravan, with nowhere to stay that night — until a friendly music promoter offered them a place to crash.

"The promoter said, 'Feel free to come over and stay with my wife,'" Gott said. "They had a 400-year-old home down this Dickensian street, and we went and stayed and talked all night about music."

He continued:

"He [the promoter] said, 'You gotta come back next week because David Bowie and the Spiders from Mars are playing at the biggest show in England right now. Come early, hang out, and have lunch with them during sound check. So, I was in the auditorium during soundcheck and Angie [David's first wife] was there doing makeup for everyone."

That's where the photos for half of "Bowies Back" were taken over 53 years ago.

Get your copy of "Bowies Back" locally at Fabulous Fanny's, 335 E. Ninth St., between First Avenue and Second Avenue, or at East Village Books, 99 Mark's Place between Second Avenue and Third Avenue. It's also available online through Blurring Books.

Community meeting on the former P.S. 64/Charas/El Bohio Community Center

Save Our Community Center (SOCCC-64) is hosting a meeting this evening (Sept. 30) to share updates on the restoration of the former CHARAS/El Bohio/P.S. 64 at 605 E. Ninth St. between Avenue B and Avenue C. 

The building, which served the Lower East Side as a community and cultural center for over 20 years, was sold in 1998, went into foreclosure in 2022, and was auctioned in 2023. 

The new owner, a philanthropic entity, is working to revive the long-dormant building, which requires urgent repairs, for community use. However, progress has been slow to date. (See links below.) 

Former tenants and community members are encouraged to attend tonight's meeting, from 6 to 8 p.m. at Middle Collegiate Church, 50 E. Seventh St. between First Avenue and Second Avenue, 4th-floor studio

Previously on EV Grieve: 

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

• Rehabilitation of the former P.S. 64 could take 4 to 6 years, cost over $100 million

Monday's parting shot

DrGecko shared this curbside discard with us today... as seen on Second Street between First Avenue and Second Avenue... exactly 18 months after its last sidewalk appearance on this block. 

Could someone please deliver this to the American Wing at the Met?

Corner Bistro opens East Village outpost TODAY on Avenue A

Photos and reporting by Stacie Joy 

Corner Bistro's East Village location debuts today (Sept. 29) on the corner of Avenue A and Sixth Street.

Owner Elizabeth McGrath confirmed the restaurant will open its doors at 11 a.m., with daily hours from 11 a.m. to midnight to start. She hopes to eventually extend service until 4 a.m.

The all-day menu features burgers, breakfast and brunch items, and several additions not found at the longtime West Village spot — including a meatloaf entrée, chopped steak with onions, onion rings, baked French toast, and scrambled eggs with sausage. Desserts include milkshakes and ice cream sundaes.

McGrath says family recipes are part of the expanded menu, and family members will also be working here: her daughter, Catherine, is the restaurant manager.

The space includes a downstairs dining room and a planned event area. 

McGrath describes today's debut as a soft launch, with a grand opening celebration to follow. 

"Be patient with us — we're new, with new staff," she said. "Bear with us if things go awry."

Corner Bistro opened in 1961 on West Fourth Street in the West Village. Elizabeth, daughter of Corner Bistro's original owners, Bill and Lorraine O'Donnell, took over the business in 2015. 

Previously on EV Grieve:

• We talked with the owner of Corner Bistro about what to expect from the East Village outpost

Surprise! 10-story condo planned at the former home of Chris French Cleaners

A 10-story condoplex with 10 residential units is in the works for the northeast corner of Fourth Avenue and Ninth Street, the former home of Chris French Cleaners. 

The pending new building permit was added to the public records this past Wednesday.

The dry cleaner closed its doors for good on Sept. 19, marking 65 years in business. 

In the spring of 2022, we noted that the corner property with a single-level building was being pitched as a development site, shortly after the family patriarch, Chris Mitrofanis, passed away. Public records show the family also owned the one-level structure. 

According to Crain's, Ilyas Abayev, founder of the real-estate firm Moonshot Development, is behind the new project. BKSK Architects LLP, whose local credits include The Jefferson on 13th Street between Second and Third avenues, is listed as the architect of record. 

There's already a demolition permit on file with the DOB for the address, 101 E. Ninth St. 

This is the second new luxury property for Ninth Street. Construction continues for an 18-unit condoplex at 220 E. Ninth St., between Second Avenue and Third Avenue, the former Little Man parking garage.

Previously on EV Grieve: 

• Chris French Cleaners is closing after 65 years; 1-level building slated for demolition

Updated: The Starbucks on 1st Avenue and 13th Street has closed

The Starbucks outpost on the NW corner of First Avenue and 13th Street permanently closed yesterday. (Thanks to Alexander Johnson for the photos!) 

Door signage reads in part: "We've made the incredibly difficult decision to close this Starbucks location by the end of the week ... Thank you for being a part of our story. We look forward to seeing you again soon."

This past Thursday, the company announced that it would close several hundred stores and lay off nearly 900 employees in its latest move under CEO Brian Niccol's continued transformation. Starbucks wasted no time in shutting down the stores on the hit list. (We're told the SB on Third Avenue and 15th Street also shut down.)

With this closure, two Starbucks remain in the East Village — one on Avenue A at St. Mark's Place and another on First Avenue at Third Street. 

The First Avenue and 13th Street location opened in 2012. 

Updated: 

A tipster shared a photo showing the closure at Third Avenue and 15th Street... The tipster told us that Starbucks did not give any warning to the building about the departure.