The former Gem Spa space is for lease

[Photo from Saturday]

The former Gem Spa storefront on Second Avenue at St. Mark's Place is now officially on the rental market, billed as "First time available."

The listing at RIPCO doesn't have much info, other than square footage, location, etc. Pricing is available by request.

And while Gem Spa's address was 131 Second Ave., the marketing materials list this as 36 St. Mark's Place.

Potentially concerning (and confusing) is that the listing includes Paul's Da Burger Joint next door. The listing notes that the two spaces are available separately or combined...



The fact that the space was on the market was news to the owners of Paul's, who have a few more years left on the lease.

"I’ll assume at the moment it’s a mistake, as I spoke to the landlord today about something unrelated and nothing was mentioned," Matt Wardrop, who has been running Paul's since 2007, told EVG contributor Stacie Joy on Friday.

He added this on Sunday: "It seems as if that listing was created like that to draw more potential tenants for the corner. Someone can express interest for the whole lot and then the broker can say that only the corner is available. We are still here, doing the best we can given the current state of events. We enjoy serving the community and our loyal customers. We look forward to staying open and continuing to do what we love the most — feeding our loyal friends!"

Stacie stopped by Paul's on Friday...



Here's Angel, who has been here nearly the entire time since the restaurant opened in 1989, with his daughter and co-worker Daniella...



Gem Spa officially closed on May 7 amid ongoing financial challenges worsened by the COVID-19 crisis. The corner has a long history as a candy store and newsstand.

Wednesday's parting shot

Post-cow cleaning outside Paul's Da Burger Joint today on Second Avenue at St. Mark's... photo by Derek Berg

Cow wash at Paul's Da Burger Joint

A little cow spring cleaning today at Paul's Da Burger Joint on Second Avenue at St. Mark's Place... EVG regular Daniel shared these photos...

Some love for Paul's Da Burger Joint

[Photo of Matt Wardrop last summer by Stacie Joy]

As part of its Burger Week, Eater gives some love to Paul's Da Burger Joint, the 26-year-old restaurant on Second Avenue at St. Mark's Place.

Here's a little of the interview with owner Matt Wardrop, who discusses his beginnings here in 1989, the gas explosion a few storefronts away on March 26 and what makes a good burger:

You took this over from your cousin, Paul. Why did Paul decide to give it up?

Matt Wardrop: He had been there 18 years. He wanted to spend some more years on a second place in Florida. I think there were some family issues at the time on his end, so he was just like, "I've been here all this time, I got some issues to take care of, You'll take the place." And it kind of worked out, you know?

Were you working here before then?

I'd come hang out, come and eat once in a while. And I'd help out briefly, on different shifts if someone was missing, that kind of thing. But never really the full, on-the-line work.

What were you doing before?

A couple different things. I was in the automotive repair business for a long time. My partner and I had a shop in Queens. Completely different feel from here. I mean, it's still a retail business, but a completely different thing. So I didn't have any hardcore restaurant experience when I came here. I just got thrown in and learned quickly.

Read the whole Q-and-A here.

Previously on EV Grieve:
Celebrating 25 years at Paul's Da Burger Joint

Report: Reopened businesses on 2nd Avenue continue to struggle after the explosion

The NYPD yesterday removed some of the barriers surrounding the southwest corner of Second Avenue and St. Mark's Place… making it a little easier to access the businesses on Second Avenue that have been able to reopen after the explosion that killed two people and destroyed three buildings on March 26.



In this week's issue, Crain's New York Business looks at how the local merchants are struggling since reopening.

Paul's Da Burger Joint was able to starting serving again on Monday at 131 Second Ave. Here's owner Matt Wardrop:

His problems are compounded by a lack of business-interruption insurance, which would have covered losses for the days the restaurant was closed. Insufficient coverage is a frequent problem for small-business owners, who are always looking to cut what can seem like nonessential costs.

"If you're on a mom-and-pop scale, a business-interruption policy is so expensive, if you never need it, you lost a lot of money paying for it, so you take your chances," Mr. Wardrop.

Also:

But even on streets that aren't barricaded, and where stores didn't have to close for four days, the disruption of the neighborhood's foot-traffic patterns is continuing. The maze of barricades and fire trucks has cut business by 50% at New Yorkers Foodmarket, on Second Avenue between East Sixth and East Seventh streets, according to owner Michael Schumacher. That's added up to a $50,000 loss of sales during the past week.

Unlike Paul's Da Burger's insurance policy, Foodmarket's does include business-interruption coverage. But Mr. Schumacher said it doesn't extend to a slowdown in business caused by disruptions somewhere else.

The last time his store was in this much trouble was after Superstorm Sandy. But the supermarket owner says this disaster is worse.

"With Sandy, there were no businesses open, and afterwards everybody opened up at the same time," Mr. Schumacher said. "Business came right back. I don't know if business is going to come back, because people are finding other stores to go to."

Taqueria Diana, Ramen Misoya and Himalayan Visions also reopened along here last week. Meanwhile, … B&H Dairy remains closed. In a Facebook message yesterday, B&H said "we will reopen by next week." Apparently the health department gave them the go-ahead, now they are just waiting for gas service.

As for when the entire block will be open, let's go back to Crain's:

A spokeswoman for the Office of Emergency Management said that full access to [the] block — the west side of Second Avenue between St. Marks Place and East Seventh Street — will be restored once debris removal and the investigation of what is being treated as a crime scene are concluded. She could not provide a date.

Celebrating 25 years at Paul's Da Burger Joint

Paul's Da Burger Joint celebrated its 25th anniversary on Saturday. EVG contributor Stacie Joy stopped by here at 131 Second Ave. at St. Mark's Place for a few photos (and samples) at the beginning of the day … she reported that the place was packed, as prices rolled back to 1989 prices …





As a vegetarian, I wasn’t able to sample all of what Paul's had to offer, but I did get to try to the delicious Baily's milkshake, some East Village veggie Frites and the caprese salad on a skewer. All yummy.

I sat at a table with folks from ABC News, who reported (heh) that the new sliders — called Second Avenue Sliders — were juicy, fresh and tasty. I heard that same refrain over and over again — how juicy the burgers were.



Founder Paul Koval's family still operates the restaurant today. Matt Wardrop, who has been running Paul's since 2007, was busy hustling samples out for the crowd. (Read an interview with him here.)

I was lucky enough to catch him in a rare moment of stillness for a quickie snapshot.



I also got to snuggle Ruby, the puppy mascot, as she sat outside welcoming people to the party.



Even Zoltar next door at Gem Spa got in on the action.

Celebrate 25 years of Paul's Da Burger Joint tomorrow

[Image via the Paul's website]

The restaurant here at 131 Second Ave. near St. Mark's Place first opened as Paul's Palace.

Anyway, 25 years later, the burgers here — starting at $5.40 for an 8-ounce belly bomber — remain a bargain. (Matt Wardrop, the cousin of original owner Paul Koval, is now running the show.)

For the anniversary tomorrow, Paul's will be rolling back the prices to 1989 levels. (1989?! Remind me to pull out my copy of "Disintegration.")

And as the flyer shows, they'll be some other things happening throughout the day, such as free samples and live music...