Wattle Cafe joins forces with Pure Green at 152 2nd Ave.

[Photos by Steven]

Wattle Cafe had its grand opening over the weekend at 152 Second Ave. between Ninth Street and 10th Street ... inside the space that also houses Pure Green and the I.V. Doc.

The Australian cafe serves a variety of coffee drinks and brunch items... their signature dish is a cacao waffle with avocado smash.



This is the second NYC outpost for Wattle Cafe, which also has a location on Third Avenue between 33rd Street and 34th Street. (You can read an interview with owner Ana Ivkosic at this link.)

Pure Green has had several roommates — Greecologies and PlantMade — since opening two years ago in the former Sigmund Schwartz Gramercy Park Chapel, which Icon Realty bought, gutted, added three extra floors and opened as luxury rentals.

Uluh Tea House debuts on 2nd Avenue

Uluh Tea House made its soft opening last Tuesday at 152 Second Ave. between Ninth Street and 10th Street... here's a look at part of their menu, featuring a variety of teas (more than 30) and entrees (they also have desserts and pastries) ...







You can find more details and photos at Uluh's Instagram feed.

Uluh joins the Pure Green-PlantMade combo in the newish retail spaces at No. 152.

H/T Steven!

Previously on EV Grieve:
On 2nd Avenue, signage arrives for Uluh Tea House (and they're hiring)

Chinese restaurant in the works for former funeral parlor on 2nd Avenue

[Photo by Steven]

A Chinese restaurant is coming to 152 Second Ave. between Ninth Street and 10th Street. (Ads for the businesses next door are currently in the window.)

The applicant, going by Chibaola Inc., is on tonight's CB3-SLA committee docket for a beer-wine license. However, this item will NOT be heard this evening.

According to the questionnaire (PDF) on file at the CB3 website, the restaurant will be open daily from 11 a.m. to 11 p.m. The configuration shows 15 tables with a 45-person capacity.

The applicant, listed as Richard Lam, has also operated a restaurant on Main Street in Flushing.

The building at 152-154 Second Ave. is the former Sigmund Schwartz Gramercy Park Chapel, which Icon Realty bought, gutted, added three extra floors and opened as luxury rentals.

The other retail space at this address is occupied by the Greecologies-Pure Green combo. The spaces had been on the market since the new building was unveiled in early 2014.

Previously on EV Grieve:
152 2nd Ave. storefront to yield a combo Greek yogurt and smoothie shop

Reader report: Bike room burglarized at Icon's 2nd Avenue residential building

A resident who lives at 152-154 Second Ave. reports that the building's secure bike storage room in the basement was recently burglarized.

Per the resident: "All the locks [were] cut and about seven bikes are gone. You need two keys to access this room. I'm not necessarily saying it was an inside job, but there wasn't any forced entry."

The theft happened some time between Aug. 18 to Aug. 23. According to the resident, several people have access to the bike storage area, including the other tenants (there are 12 units in total), cleaning staff and super.

The resident says that the building has security cameras. To date there haven't been any updates from management about the theft, according to the resident.

Landlord Icon Realty began converting the former Sigmund Schwartz Gramercy Park Chapel between East Ninth Street and East 10th Street into a residential building with three additional floors in April 2012. The rentals hit the market back in March.

Trees arrives for Icon Realty's newest roof deck

There was a lot of activity this morning outside 154 Second Ave., Icon Realty's new residential building between East Ninth Street and East 10th Street where rentals range from $4,500 to $9,500.

EVG reader Dan Theisen noted that workers were hoisting some trees and bushes up to the landscaped roof deck…







… roughly right here….



Perhaps this will be a more tranquil rooftop experience. There are reportedly an "endless barrage of rowdy DJ dance parties" on the roof deck at the Icon-owned 205 Avenue A, as the Post put it last August.

Former funeral home on 2nd Avenue begins afterlife as rentals with furnished roof deck

[EVG photo from September]

The rentals for the former Sigmund Schwartz Gramercy Park Chapel arrived on the market yesterday.

The folks at neighborhood favorites Icon Reality are behind the newly six-story structure at 152 Second Ave. between East Ninth Street and East 10th Street. Seems like a long time coming for the building: The demolition work here started back in April 2012.

Streeteasy has 12 listings, ranging from the one-bedroom jobbie for $3,500 to five-bedroom duplexes asking $9,500.

Here's more about the building via the Icon site:

Grand Opening of 152 2nd Avenue. Brand New Luxury Apartments Designed by Paris Forino

All apartments have access to the building's Large Landscaped and Furnished Roof Deck!

All apartments in this Brand New Designer Boutique Building Feature:

Whitewashed Oak Floors
Limed Brick Walls
Private Balconies
Intricate Mosaic Tilework
Oversized Windows
Queen Sized Bedrooms
Central Air
Washer/Dryers in every unit
Bicycle Storage
Free Storage Lockers

(Not mentioned in the amenities: Being directly across the street from the 13th Step.)

Will be interesting to see how the roof deck goes over with neighbors. The roof deck at Icon's 205 Avenue A is well-known to the NYPD, who, according to one resident, come by "almost every weekend" during Rooftop Rager Season.

Oh, and here are some photos of the units and rooftop via the Icon site...











Meanwhile, the retail space at 152 Second Ave. remains on the market.

Previously on EV Grieve:
Former funeral home looks to double in size with help from 'the controversial penthouse king of the East Village'

Redeveloped funeral home looking for a few live retail tenants

The walls come tumbling down at 154 Second Avenue

Friday night's rooftop party at Icon Realty's 205 Avenue A (49 comments)

At 205 Avenue A, where the NYPD stops by 'almost every weekend'

Here's how 152 Second Ave. looked in the summer of 2011…

[Via Off the Grid]

Here's what the address looked like in the 1940s, via Vanishing New York...