Concern for East Village Organic's extended family in Lebanon

[Photos yesterday by Stacie Joy]

Ali and Amina Fardos, who own East Village Organic on First Avenue between Seventh Street and St. Mark's Place, have family members living in Lebanon. On Tuesday, a devastating explosion rocked Beirut, killing more than 160 people and injuring 6,000 while destroying large sections of the city.

In response to the crisis, the market posted this message on Instagram yesterday:

Our hearts have been so warmed by the outpouring of concern for the EVO extended family from customers over the last few days.

For anyone who didn’t know to ask, or was afraid to pry, all of Ali and Amina’s family members in Lebanon are safe and well. We have been very blessed.

But so many others can not say the same. And our hearts have been heavy as we watch the country suffer the after effects of one the largest non-nuclear blasts in history.

If anyone wants to help and is able to give during this time, we have made a donation to @beitelbaraka.

Beit el Baraka has operated a free grocery store since 2019 to help the underserved communities within Beirut, Lebanon and since the blast, they are expanding their efforts to include other services for the people who need it.

We love their message and their mission and we feel confident any funds given to them will benefit the people directly.

[Ali Fardos]

Reopenings: The Coffee Project, the EVO juice bar, the Hard Swallow, Big Bar, Otto's Shrunken Head and more

The Coffee Project started takeout service this past week here on Fifth Street between Second Avenue and Cooper Square. For now, their hours are 8 a.m. to noon.

In other reopenings... the juice bar at East Village Organic is up and running again. The market at 124 First Ave. between Seventh Street and St. Mark's Place also extended their hours to 9 a.m. to 7 p.m.

• The Hard Swallow, 140 First Ave. between St. Mark's Place and Ninth Street, is offering take-home drinks and hot dogs from noon to 7 p.m. daily.


[Photo by Steven]

• Big Bar, 75 E. Seventh St. between First Avenue and Second Avenue, will be open for takeout drinks from noon to 5 p.m. today and tomorrow.

• Otto's Shrunken Head, 538 E. 14th St. between Avenue A and Avenue B, will be offering "Tiki ToGo" from 2-6 p.m. today and tomorrow.

• Papilles, 125 E. Seventh St. between Avenue A and First Avenue, is offering a three-course meal for takeout or delivery. Details here.

• Kindred, 342 E. Sixth St. between First Avenue and Second Avenue, has unveiled Kindred Spirits & Provisions, offering a variety of to-go items. Open Wednesday-Sunday from 11 a.m. to 6 p.m. Details here.

East Village Organic reopens today

[Photo yesterday by Steven]

East Village Organic took a break back on March 27 here on First Avenue between Seventh Street and St. Mark's Place.

According to an Instagram message, they were going to "take a week to air it out, monitor the health of our brave little staff and regroup." One week turned into two.

However, they are back in action today — 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. moving forward... and here's their reopening notice from yesterday...

View this post on Instagram

Tomorrow, babes. 💚💚💚💚💚💚 Come see us, but you know, not all at once. Lol

A post shared by East Village Organic (@eastvillageorganic) on Apr 9, 2020 at 10:49am PDT

East Village Organic now closed until April 10

[Photos by Steven]

Last Friday, we noted that East Village Organic was closing for the next week on First Avenue between Seventh Street and St. Mark's Place.

Unfortunately for EVO fans, the closure has been extended for another week, as the sign outside the market notes.



Here's their message via Instagram last evening:

View this post on Instagram

We love you each. We arent ready to come back yet. Please support any small businesses that are still opperating this time, and show kindness and compassion for the employees of the larger grocery stores that we are all depending on right now. Edit: the EVO fam is healthy. No worries there. #stayhome

A post shared by East Village Organic (@eastvillageorganic) on Apr 2, 2020 at 6:56pm PDT

East Village Organic now closed for the next week

The market on First Avenue between Seventh Street and St. Mark's Place expects to reopen on Friday, April 3, after closing after the business day yesterday.

Here's part of a more detailed message via their Instagram account:

East Village, we love you so much. But this week the best way to serve you each is to close.

We also became aware that two confirmed cases of COVID-19 spent time in our little shop.

We've decided to take a week to air it out, monitor the health of our brave little staff and regroup.

No one is handling this perfectly, but we're hoping that we're handling it well enough.

Working 9 to 5 at East Village Organic

[Photo by Steven]

So you know the hours for Whole Foods. (See previous post.)

Meanwhile, East Village Organic, 124 First Ave. between Seventh Street and St. Mark's Place, is open from 9 a.m. to 5 p.m.

East Village Organic is now open on 1st Avenue

[Photo by EVG reader Steven]

The folks at East Village Organic let us know that the store opened yesterday at 124 First Ave. between East Seventh Street and St. Mark's Place.

As we previously noted, the owner is Ali, who has run Golden Food Market on the northeast corner of First Avenue and Seventh Street the past 35 years

Among other items, we're told East Village Organic will feature:

• Organic Grown Produce
• Full Juice Bar and Cold Press Juice
• Bulk Grain Seed Nuts
• Full Macrobiotic Section
• Roots, Barks, Flowers (Herbalist Kim Turim, who has operated Penny's Herb Company on East Seventh Street since the late 1970s, works here)
• Full Assortment of Pure Essential Oils
• Seaweeds
• Full Dairy Section
• Nut and Seed Butters
• Wholegrain Baked Goods
• Dried Fruits

We'll check the store out later… and we'll post the hours as soon as we get them. Ah, thanks Mikey Q: Hours are Monday-Saturday 9 a.m.-10 p.m. Sunday 9 a.m.-8 p.m.

The storefront was previously home to Kim's Video and Music until last Aug. 25.

Previously on EV Grieve:
Organic food store taking over the former Kim's Video and Music space on 1st Avenue

A little more about East Village Organic, opening this spring on 1st Avenue

A little more about East Village Organic, opening this spring on 1st Avenue

Last month we mentioned that a market called East Village Organic was opening at 124 First Ave. between East Seventh Street and St. Mark's Place ... at the time, there wasn't much available information, except for a Twitter account.

Now we have a few more details about the store... the owner is Ali, who has run Golden Food Market on the northeast corner of First Avenue and Seventh Street the past 35 years ... and Kim Turim, a herbalist who has operated Penny's Herb Company on East Seventh Street since the late 1970s. (You may also recognize Kim from when he worked the day shift at Ray's Candy Store.)


[Ali and Kim, photo via East Village Organic]

Among other items, East Village Organic will feature:

• Organic Grown Produce
• Full Juice Bar and Cold Press Juice
• Bulk Grain Seed Nuts
• Full Macrobiotic Section
• Roots, Barks, Flowers (Herbalist on Premises)
• Full Assortment of Pure Essential Oils
• Seaweeds
• Full Dairy Section
• Nut and Seed Butters
• Wholegrain Baked Goods
• Dried Fruits

They plan to open later this spring...

The was previously home to Kim's Video and Music until last Aug. 25.

Previously on EV Grieve:
Organic food store taking over the former Kim's Video and Music space on 1st Avenue

Organic food store taking over the former Kim's Video and Music space on 1st Avenue

We don't have many details just yet, but we can confirm what's coming soon to 124 First Ave. between East Seventh Street and St. Mark's Place — an all organic food store called East Village Organic.

They hope to be open in two months. (Meanwhile, the proprietors started a Twitter account.)

Kim's closed here for good last Aug. 25. The original listing for the space noted the address would be perfect for a bank, 7-Eleven or Starbucks.