Union Square Walgreens not being intimidated by world's largest Duane Reade

Just typing out loud here...

--Walgreens buys Duane Reade...

--Duane Reade opens humongous new store on Union Square

--The Walgreens about 200 feet away on 14th Street and Fourth Avenue is now being remodeled...





There's probably some logic here, which no one really has time to get into... anyway, as you were.

World's largest Duane Reade now open on Union Square

Well, I'm not sure if it is the world's largest... but this store is huge. Anyway, the Duane Reade is now open next to the Nordstrom Rack in the old Virgin space...



...check out the big bank of fancy video monitors on the right too...



They opened yesterday...



...and are advertising "breakfast, lunch and dinner" in an attempt to nab the masses going to Whole Foods... Oh fresh baked goods!



I would have stayed longer, but in five minutes, three different super-duper-friendly Duane Reade employees asked me if I needed help finding anything...
Yes! The exit!

Today's sign of the apocalypse

The above photo is from Eater, who noted that today marked the grand opening of the TGI Friday's on Union Square.

This afternoon's sign of the apocalypse

As Eater has been reporting today, the T.G.I. Friday's has opened on Union Square.... (Or, O.M.G. Friday's!)



Lots of hate for this, too. Based on the comments at Eater and Curbed. C'mon! They got their start in an old beer joint on First Avenue on the UES.... they invented the potato skin... they, they popularized flair bartending ....

[Weeping]

Photo via Eater.

What do I get? A bomb scare!

You likely already heard about this...

As the Daily News reported:

An Oldsmobile with two gas cans in its back seat triggered a bomb scare near Union Square Thursday night - but it was just the latest false alarm in a city on edge, police said.

The NYPD sealed off Union Square around 10:15 p.m. as the bomb squad investigated the sketchy 1991 Cutlass Ciera parked outside the Con Edison headquarters on Irving Pl., near E. 14th St.

Here's some raw video via the AP (sorry about the stupid ad in the intro...)

So did you hear how it ended?

[C]ops eventually tracked down the car's owner, who had been at a concert by the British punk band the Buzzcocks, police sources said.

As it turned out, the Buzzcocks played a role in ending the alarm. Concertgoers who came streaming out of the Fillmore New York at Irving Plaza said the band stopped the show to make an announcement for police.

"They stopped in the middle of the song and said, 'Does anyone have a 1991 Cutlass?'" said Shari Newman, 32.

Brooklyn Vegan has more on the story, including this photo...


Anyway, rough week for 14th Street... an awful fire... a radiation alert... and a bomb scare.

Noted

Outside the Brother Jimmy's off Union Square the other day. Subtle!

New Tim Hortons on Union Square closed for renovations; is TGI Friday's far behind?

Tim Hortons opened in the former Zen Palate space on Union Square East back in early January... oddly enough, plywood has now gone up around the buidling at 16th Street...






Does this mean the the long-rumored TGI Friday's will soon share this space?

Thanks to EV Grieve reader Kim for the tip...

Pillow talk

From the EV Grieve inbox...maybe more of a warning...

New York City's 5th annual, and the world's 3rd annual Pillow Fight Day!

Pillows fly and teddies soar as you converge for a giant urban pillow fight! Swing and whack as you evade pillow-wielding assailants. Bring a soft pillow and wait for the signal. Pillow fight!

Rules: Please follow these guidelines to ensure a safe and fun pillow fight for everybody!

+ Soft, feather-free pillows only!
+ Swing lightly, many people will be swinging at once.
+ Do not swing at people without pillows or with cameras.
+ Remove glasses beforehand!
+ Deposit pillows in donation boxes or take them with you.
+ Pajamas welcome.

Cleanup: Please eliminate your use of feathers. As the pillow fight grows in size, so does the mess. By participating, you are pledging to clean up twice the mess you made :)

This year, pillows will be collected and donated to a midtown no-kill animal shelter to make bedding for rescued dogs and cats.

According to Facebook, "This event has 16,844 confirmed guests." I hope this is worldwide and not just NYC...

[Image via]

A little something for all you signage lovers in the house

The Brazo Pizza sign went up the other day in the Zeckendorf Towers on the northwest corner of Irving Place and 14th Street...

Reports: Union Square's W Hotel filing for bankruptcy

Per Portfolio:

The W Hotel Union Square, housed in an elegant old building on Park Avenue South at the northern edge of lower Manhattan, is populated with an assortment of models, actors, and other big spending types in advertising, finance, etc., etc., etc. The number of $21 cocktails flowing through the bar must be waning, because business is way down and the new owners are filing for bankruptcy protection.

Crain's first reported on the story.

Update: My apologies... The Real Deal had the piece first -- last night, in fact. You can read their article here.

[Image via]

Holy guacamole! Union Square's Chipotle opens tomorrow

The Chipotle Mexican Grill on 14th Street and Irving Place opens tomorrow, as the sign says.... Last evening, the place was open to people with some sort of pass or coupon or something.

Walking on 14th Street: Nordstrom setting a date; Baked by Melissa and Subway coming soon

Maybe I should walk on 14th Street near Union Square more often. Or not.

Noticed that a Baked By Melissa shop is coming to 14th Street just east of Fifth Avenue. She bakes tiny cupcakes.



You know that the Nordtrom Racked store is opening at the former Virgin Megastore location... Now a date has been set for the opening: May 11, 2010. (And will they actually make that date?)



And the city's 8,976th Subway is opening right along the Chipotle and Bravo Pizza in the Zeckendorf Towers on the northwest corner of Irving Place and 14th Street.



EV Grieve reader Nowooski pointed this out the other day...

Union Square getting burritofied

Here's the proof that a Chipotle Mexican Grill is, in fact, coming soon to the Zeckendorf Towers on the northwest corner of Irving Place and 14th Street.



Will be right next door to the new Bravo Pizza.

Previously in EV Grieve:
Bravo Pizza coming to Union Square

Bravo Pizza coming to Union Square

Bravo Pizza is opening its seventh NYC location... coming soon to the Zeckendorf Towers on the northwest corner of Irving Place and 14th Street. It's at the former site of Rhyme & Reason, the card shop, which closed in September 2008.



As far as we know, a Chipotle is still going in the corner space.



Meanwhile, the folks at pizza parlor Amore's (who are always hiring cashiers) must be thrilled with the competition directly across the street.



Makes sense to have two pizza parlors so close to each other along this stretch. We have a Duane Reade and a Walgreens; a P.C. Richard and Best Buy; Trader Joe's and Whole Foods; an NYU dorm and an NYU dorm and an NYU dorm within a short few blocks.

And this means that Bravo has locations at 14th Street and Seventh Avenue; 19th Street and Fifth Avenue; and Park Avenue South at 21st Street. Is there a market that big for deep-dish pizza ...?

Last day for the Virgin Megastore (and why you will see so many people wearing Virgin Orlando T-shirts)

Just before 10 a.m. today, some 30 people were waiting in line for the last day of the Virgin Megastore on Union Square. I was not one of them. But when the doors opened, I decided to go in... I was ready to take a picture of the crowd entering the store, but a woman carrying a small dog shoved me.



Everything was 90 to 90 percent off.... One of the workers yelled, "Buy everything people!" And I said, Good luck with that, people.



I was unfamiliar with 90 percent of the artists left behind. Well, there was the Jimmy Buffett Christmas record.



The remaining crap for sale was kept to a small space. The rest of the hulking store sat empty. Somewhere downstairs, workers were yelling, their voices echoing throughout the former Megastore. First time that I'd ever been in here without some music or movie blaring from the speakers.






Somehow, people found stuff to buy. Mostly what was left... I'd say 500-800 Virgin Orlando T-shirts...$1 each!

The final countdown

As of yesterday, there were eight days left for the Virgin Megastore on Union Square. All CDs and DVDs are now 50 percent off their hiked up prices...



If you look hard enough, then you may find something that you may want... Otherwise, it's grotesque consumerism at its worst...



What remains is the Virgin Overstock Megastore. Things that were shipped in from Virgin Warehouses around the world just for the closing sale. What else could explain, say..... Dozens and dozens of "Hellboy II" action figures. Dozens and dozens of copies of the attempt to make Rick Springfield a movie star in "Hard to Hold." Dozens and dozens of copies of U2's "No Line on the Horizon" limited box set including CD, hardcover book, poster, featurette on the Edge buying a ski cap, a behind-the-scenes look at Larry Mullen Jr.'s First Communion and Bono's photo album of bikini-clad groupies. It's times like these when you realize there have been like 37 versions of "Blade Runner" released. You remember how little respect giant entertainment groups have for consumers.

And so many things whose existence was so unnecessary.




Oh, and the complete series (six seasons!) of "Dr. Quinn, Medicine Woman" is 50 percent off its $232 sticker price.

Coming to Union Square: Chipotle Mexican Grill

Lois Weiss reports today that Chipotle Mexican Grill will open in the Zeckendorf Towers on the northwest corner of Irving Place and 14th Street. It's at the former site of Rhyme & Reason, the card shop, which closed last September. As I noted then: "What's to come? I have no idea! But it's a prime spot in NYUville. Also! There's a Duane Reade a block away on 14th and Third...and a Walgreens across the street. So this seems like a good spot for a drug store. Rite Aid?"

Anyway! Jeffrey Roseman of Newmark Knight Frank represented Chipotle. He told the Post: "Union Square is still buzzing and is a hot market." It will open at the end of the summer.

Report: Tommy Hilfiger to open a "concept store" on Union Square South?

According to this week's issue of The Villager (not yet online), Tommy Hilfiger is the latest retailer to sniff around the carcass of Union Square South. There has been some talk of Tommy Boy taking over the Circuit City space or, perhaps, the soon-to-be-departed Virgin Megastore. As the paper notes, Tom has considered opening a "concept store" in one of these spots. Meanwhile! A few other items from the article...Filene's Basement may shutter its Union Square South location...and the Au Bon Painful on Fifth Avenue at 15th Street closed. Now where will I go for a decent sandwich in this city? (And if anyone thinks I'm serious about that last line...)

Speaking of Union Square South

Here's a Life magazine photo of 14th Street looking east circa 1951. Hey, where's Forever 21?



P.S.

For no reason, a DC-4 passenger plane flying over Midtown. (No date listed.) Perhaps a photo opp for the Douglas Aircraft Company?

Like a Virgin Megastore going-out-of-business sale (groan)

As you may have heard, the Virgin Megastore is closing on Union Square. I was finally lured in Saturday like a sucker with the "up to 40 percent" off signs... Also, I wanted to make a bid on the Lady GaGa banner in the window. (Unfortunately, my offer of "You pay for the can of gas and I'll rip it down and set it on fire on 14th Street" wasn't accepted.)



Well, as for the rest of the store. The new CDs that are usually marked for sale with a $13.99 sticker over the $18.99 sticker...were all $18.99 again. And they were 25 percent off. Ditto for the DVDs. Most new DVDs were $24.99. So with the 25 percent off -- you're pretty much paying what you were paying before the store was going out of business. I'm sure there were bargains elsewhere. Or not. I didn't stick along long enough to dig. Oh, one thing I saw for 40% off? Stationery! Which was all sold out. And the Blondie pocketbooks were also 40% off.