Showing posts with label Life Cafe. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Life Cafe. Show all posts

Wednesday, February 22, 2012

Life Cafe looks officially dead on 10th and B


After 30 years in business, Life Cafe abruptly closed "until further notice" last Sept. 11, as we first reported. Owner Kathy Kirkpatrick said that she'd stay closed until the landlords completed long overdue repairs.

Apparently we've seen the last of Life here: The for lease signs went up yesterday here on East 10th Street and Avenue B.

The listing isn't online just yet. We sent an email to Kirkpatrick last night for more details.

Previously.

Monday, February 13, 2012

Owner: Painting over art on Life Cafe's roll-down gates was 'sacrilegious'

On our post Friday about work permits at the Life Cafe, Goggla pointed out that workers had painted over the restaurant's roll-down gates at 10th Street and Avenue B...


Sure enough... a photo of the gates from a few years ago...


Apparently this development came as a surprise to Life Cafe owner Kathy Kirkpatrick, who left this comment on the post:

It is sad and tragic to see Scott Borofsky's graffiti art destroyed. Removing it from the gates of Life Cafe was sacrilegious. His art was an iconic and important element of the fabric of the outdoor art arena from the 1980s. I am touched by the ongoing sentiments of support and loss expressed here and elsewhere. I miss you and many of my staff still tell me they miss being with you all at the Cafe as well. I want you to know that I'm still fighting for Life but cannot say more at this time. However, when this is over I promise to share the full Life story of the last few years.

Friday, February 10, 2012

City issues new work permit for Life Cafe


Not much has been happening here on East 10th Street and Avenue B since Life Cafe abruptly closed "until further notice" this past Sept. 11, as we first reported...

As The Villager pointed out in September, the sidewalk shed and scaffolding have been covering Life's sidewalk cafe for more than a year. Meanwhile, exterior renovations have yet to start.

Making this more challenging — Life "spans a space belonging to two different buildings with two different landlords whose dispute over the price of the work contract has prevented construction from starting," according to The Villager. At the time, owner Kathy Kirkpatrick said that she'd stay closed until the landlords complete the repairs.

[Last week outside 343 E. 10th St. By Bobby Williams]

On Tuesday, the city issued a new work permit for 343 E. 10th St. ... the first sign of any substantial exterior work here...


Anyway, none of this means that Life will actually reopen here once the repairs are made. Kirkpatrick was spotted removing kitchen equipment back in the fall... Regardless, it would be nice to see some kind of life here again... (ad: something useful and not horrible!)

A look inside Life on Dec. 22...

Friday, December 23, 2011

A look inside Life Cafe

Life Cafe closed on Sept. 11, as we first reported...

As Kathy Life said at the time:

"I'm doing this due to issues around building repairs the landlords were supposedly going to complete one year ago."

And not much has been happening here of late... the necessary renovations don't seem to be happening... (there aren't any permits on file to indicate any starting soon...) We noticed that a light was on inside, and we took a look ...


We've talked with several people who don't think that Life will ever return to 10th Street and Avenue B...

Monday, September 19, 2011

Will Life Cafe be split in two?


As we first reported, Life Cafe on Avenue and 10th Street closed on Sept. 11 ... closed "until further notice." As owner Kathy Kirkpatrick said:

I’m doing this due to issues around building repairs the landlords were supposedly going to complete one year ago. Until the landlords complete the repairs, I will remain closed.

In this week's issue, The Villager has more details. As the paper points out, the sidewalk shed and scaffolding have been covering Life's sidewalk cafe for more than a year. Meanwhile, exterior renovations have yet to start.

Making this more challenging — Life "spans a space belonging to two different buildings with two different landlords whose dispute over the price of the work contract has prevented construction from starting," according to The Villager. (I sort of outlined this in the photo above.)

One of the landlords is Robert Perl of Tower Brokerage, who "was reluctant to explain all the details in the press."

"We’re in the process of trying to work this out," he said. "Life Cafe is an iconic and great restaurant, and I'd love to see it be a part of the East Village for the next 30 years."

Meanwhile, the rumor is that the landlords will simply split up the Life space into two storefronts. Again — just a rumor.

Read the whole Villager piece here.

Tuesday, September 13, 2011

Last night at Life Cafe, perhaps

Michael Sean Edwards was at the Life Cafe Sunday night, when it closed "until further notice."

Here are a few scenes from the evening...




Owner Kathy Kirkpatrick saying goodbye to a longtime regular Patrick McDonald ...


Council member Rosie Mendez stops by to say goodbye...


Monday, September 12, 2011

A message about landlords on Life Cafe's chalkboard

As we reported last night, Life Cafe on 10th Street and Avenue B is closed "until further notice" due to a landlord dispute...

And on Life's outdoor chalkboard today ...

After 30 years, Life Cafe closes — 'until further notice' — in the East Village

I first posted this last night... Yes, Jonathan Larson wrote "Rent" here while hanging out in the early 1990s, a topic we'll explore a little later. Headline: Inspiration for "Rent" felled by landlord dispute.

[Photo by Faces]

We've heard these rumblings for weeks... now it's official: Life Cafe on Avenue B and 10th Street is closing after 30 years. Perhaps for good.

Per the Life website:

Dear friends,

On this auspicious day of 9/11/11, after 30 years in business, I am closing Life Cafe East Village this evening “until further notice.” I’m doing this due to issues around building repairs the landlords were supposedly going to complete one year ago. Until the landlords complete the repairs, I will remain closed. We anticipate a rebirth of Life Cafe sometime in the near future. Thank you for your loyal patronage over the years.

You are welcome to stop by as my guest today and raise a glass with me to Life!

Because Life is worth Loving.

Kathy Life


Michael Sean Edwards took these photos of what might be Life's last night in recent months. [Apologies — I misunderstood Michael — these weren't from tonight]






Here's a post we ran back on Sept. 15, 2009...



Nice piece on BushwickBK about Life Café, which recently celebrated its seventh anniversary in Bushwick. Co-owner Kathy Kirkpatrick opened the first location, of course, on 10th Street and Avenue B in 1981. Here's a snippet from the article:

[T]here were also many hardships in running a café that could barely stay afloat. Kathy held an office job in midtown and all the work was straining her marriage. The couple split in 1984 and David wanted to sell the café. Kathy refused and resolved to run it by herself, just as New York City sank into the crack epidemic and the East Village swarmed with unpredictable junkies.

"It was hard for us working in a little neighborhood café, forced to do drug intervention, something we weren’t trained in or prepared for," she said. "We had people shooting up and OD-ing in our bathroom and things were getting pretty ugly."

[Photo via Cactusbones]

Sunday, September 11, 2011

Breaking: After 30 years, Life Cafe closes in the East Village

[Photo by Faces]

We've heard these rumblings for weeks... now it's official: Life Cafe on Avenue B and 10th Street is closing after 30 years. Perhaps for good.

Per the Life website:

Dear friends,

On this auspicious day of 9/11/11, after 30 years in business, I am closing Life Cafe East Village this evening “until further notice.” I’m doing this due to issues around building repairs the landlords were supposedly going to complete one year ago. Until the landlords complete the repairs, I will remain closed. We anticipate a rebirth of Life Cafe sometime in the near future. Thank you for your loyal patronage over the years.

You are welcome to stop by as my guest today and raise a glass with me to Life!

Because Life is worth Loving.

Kathy Life


Michael Sean Edwards took these photos of what might be Life's last night in recent months. [Apologies — I misunderstood Michael — these weren't from tonight]





Wednesday, July 21, 2010

Life Cafe is temporarily closed




Last evening on 10th Street and Avenue B. No mention of a closure on their website or Twitter feed.

Monday, March 22, 2010

Life Cafe closed, though just for one night

A little earlier this evening, we walked by Life Cafe on 10th Street and Avenue B... and were surprised to find it closed... we always get a little nervous when we see the gates down and spot a note on places such as this... to be honest, we expect the worst...



However, according to the note, the closure is just for maintainance... and Life will be back tomorrow night...

Wednesday, October 28, 2009

Corner restaurants popular for film shoots today (and probably other days...)

We have the low-budget "Hated" at Life on 10th Street and Avenue B...(Assuming that it's not about GG...)



...and HBO's "How to Make it in America" at the ramenators at the former Love Saves the Day location on Seventh Street and Second Avenue.

Tuesday, September 15, 2009

That's Life



Nice piece on BushwickBK about Life Café, which recently celebrated its seventh anniversary in Bushwick. Co-owner Kathy Kirkpatrick opened the first location, of course, on 10th Street and Avenue B in 1981. Here's a snippet from the article:

[T]here were also many hardships in running a café that could barely stay afloat. Kathy held an office job in midtown and all the work was straining her marriage. The couple split in 1984 and David wanted to sell the café. Kathy refused and resolved to run it by herself, just as New York City sank into the crack epidemic and the East Village swarmed with unpredictable junkies.

"It was hard for us working in a little neighborhood café, forced to do drug intervention, something we weren’t trained in or prepared for," she said. "We had people shooting up and OD-ing in our bathroom and things were getting pretty ugly."


[Photo via Cactusbones]

Friday, September 19, 2008

In which EV Grieve panics for a brief moment

Was startled the other day when I saw the ominous-from-a-distance sign hanging above Life at 1oth Street and Avenue.


Just an "apartment for rent" sign. Uh. Carry on. Nothing to see here...

Anyway, forgive me for being a little jumpy. Last time I made note of a building for sale, the business on the ground floor moved...in this case, Vasmay Lounge at 269 E. Houston St.


Previously on EV Grieve:

Rent lives; Life lives on



Sunday, September 7, 2008

Rent ends; Life lives on

Rent is ending its 12-year run on Broadway. Meanwhile, fans of the musical won an online video contest to attend a party at the Life Café where the first scene is set. The Times has the back story today:

For Kathy Kirkpatrick, the owner of the Life Café, it was a moment she had resisted. During nearly all of the show’s run, she had done little more to capitalize on the cafe’s appearance in the show than to put up a poster signed by the cast . . .

“We thought if we did anything it would look like we were exploiting the show, and that’s not what we are about,” Ms. Kirkpatrick said.

But times have changed — and so have the needs of fans, who began to take menus as souvenirs. Since the play announced in March that it was closing, the cafe has begun to sell “Rent” memorabilia, designing a line of T-shirts, buttons, hats and tote bags and displaying journals in which fans can memorialize how the play has touched them.

In today’s East Village, expensive glass-fronted condominiums abut rows of hip Mexican and Asian restaurants, and the anti-materialistic, bohemian spirit immortalized in “Rent” can be difficult to see.

Gone are the days when the Life Café could stay afloat selling 50-cent bowls of vegetarian chili cooked over a Coleman burner, as it did in 1981, when it opened in a dilapidated storefront on East 10th Street and Avenue B, surrounded by abandoned buildings and shuttered storefronts.

The rent Life Café pays is now “well over $9,000 a month,” said John Sunderland, Ms. Kirkpatrick’s husband, and may double when the lease comes up for renewal in June.

So when “Rent’s” public relations firm asked whether the Life Café would host a video contest and party to mark the end of the show, Ms. Kirkpatrick said yes. “It’s hard to continue on in the way we have over the years without taking some hard, tough decisions to move forward. You do have to be creative in order to survive,” she said.


Here is the list of the winners and their videos. I'm not sure of any of these Rent fans were winners (oh, the third clip was a winner). . .here's their entry via YouTube: