Reopenings: Baji Baji, Factory Tamal, Ruffian x Black Emperor, Málà Project and more!

[Image via @factory_tamal]

It's a busy time for some East Village restaurant reopenings.

Among the reopenings today for takeout and delivery: Baji Baji at 145 First Ave. between St. Mark's Place and Ninth Street. Hours for now: 5 p.m. to 10:30 p.m.

Owner Jay Yang just opened back in January after deciding to revamp his family owned China Star.

Also reopening today:

• Factory Tamal, 63 E. Fourth St. between Second Avenue and the Bowery, is open from 9 a.m. to 7 p.m. for takeout and delivery.

• The Ruffian x Black Emperor collaboration at 197 Second Ave. between 12th Street and 13th Street is back. Food and drinks to take home via the walk-up window are available today through Sunday from 1-7 p.m. (They'll reassess after the weekend for more days/hours.) Pickup and delivery (and the menu) available via this website.

• Málà Project, 122 First Ave. between Seventh Street and St. Mark's Place, is open for takeout and delivery from noon to 9 p.m. daily.

• Ahimsa Garden, 265 E. 10th St. between Avenue A and First Avenue, reopens today for delivery and curbside pickups. Open from noon to 10 p.m. Website here.

And returning tomorrow:

• The Immigrant, 341 E. Ninth St. between First Avenue and Second Avenue. They'll be serving take-home summer drinks, cocktails and food. They're also delivering through their website here. The Immigrant will open tomorrow at 2 (and until 9 p.m.)

Other recent re-openings include:

• Sushi by m, 75 E. Fourth St.

• Beron Beron, 164 First Ave. at 10th St.

• Augurs Well Bar, 115 St. Mark's Place

Ongoing:

• Van Da is continuing its collaboration with chef Hannah Wong (of the incoming Brooklyn restaurant Haema), for a weekend takeout service.

You can find the Haema-Van Da menu, which changes each weekend, and order in advance via this form. You pick up the food at Van Da, 234 E. Fourth St. between Avenue A and Avenue B from noon to 8 p.m.

• Black & White Bar, 86. E. 10th St. between Third Avenue and Fourth Avenue, has added Friday to its schedule. Open from 3-7 p.m. for take-home drinks.

And to help you sort out all these reopenings, volunteers are continuing to update the map created in collaboration with the East Village Community Coalition. You can access the map at this link.

Previously on EV Grieve:
Updating: Here's a map of what's open in the East Village

Soft opening today for Baji Baji on 1st Avenue

[Image via Instagram]

Baji Baji debuts today at 145 First Ave. between St. Mark's Place and Ninth Street. They are open from 11 a.m. to 3 p.m. ... and after a break, 5 to 11 p.m.

As we've been noting, owner Jay Yang decided to revamp China Star here... and the renovations — and subsequent inspections by the FDNY and Con Ed — took longer than expected...


[Photo by Lola Saénz]

The quick-serve restaurant recently launched an Instagram account if you want to take a look at their dishes (Yang said previously that despite the name change, the menu will mostly remain unchanged) ...

View this post on Instagram

A post shared by BAJIBAJI (@bajibaji_nyc) on Jan 18, 2020 at 9:14am PST

Hopes for a January opening at the all-new Baji Baji on 1st Avenue

Good news for Jay Yang, owner of the recently revamped China Star at 145 First Ave. near Ninth Street.

EVG regular Lola Sáenz shared this photo yesterday — after Con Ed signed off on all the work following a second inspection.

Starting last summer, Yang set out to upgrade his quick-serve restaurant. He unveiled Baji Baji in the space this past fall. However, the renovations got bogged down, and there was a wait time with various kitchen inspections, including the FDNY and Con Ed, who asked him to make some changes following the first pass late last year.

Now Yang is hiring staff with hopes of being open in two weeks.

You can read our interview from October 2017 with Yang at this link.

The China Star is now Baji Baji on 1st Avenue

Several readers have noted the new signage at 145 First Ave. near Ninth Street where quick-serve favorite the China Star is now Baji Baji.

China Star owner Jay Yang is also behind Baji Baji in this space, where renovations — which started in July — have stretched beyond the previous reopening timeframe.

Jay told EVG regular Lola Saénz yesterday that they are just waiting now for the inspection from the FDNY before a grand reopening.

No word just yet about what to expect from Baji Baji. Said one EVG reader: "Hopefully he won’t change anything too much and will keep turning out the best fried rice around."

You can read our interview from October 2017 with Jay and learn the backstory of the China Star at this link.