[Updated] Bad Carma? 6th Street dim sum spot hasn't been open lately

Updated: We understand that Carma East will reopen Jan. 14 after a kitchen upgrade. Updated 2: Carma reopened the week of Jan. 28.

The gates have been down of late at Carma East, the dim sum bar at 507 E. Sixth St. between Avenue A and Avenue B. The closure during the holiday stretched into this past weekend.

There isn't any notice about a temporary closing on the restaurant's website or social media properties, though their phone is out of service and Yelp lists them as closed.

An EVG reader who lives nearby shared this photo from early December, when Carma East added six flat-screen TVs (tuned to sporting events) and a random assortment of NFL pennants ...



Per the reader: "Seems like a bit of an odd mix with soup dumplings." (The Carma East Instagram account does say "Tapas to Get Drunk With.")

This sibling of Carma Asian Tapas in the West Village opened on Sixth Street in September 2016.

And this has been a tough stretch of Sixth Street for restaurants. If this closure is permanent, then that makes three restaurants out of four storefronts to shut down in the past year... the others are Cholo Noir (a new applicant is looking to lease this spot) and Out East (new ownership was expected in this space too).

Make Sandwich leaves 4th Avenue, will try again somewhere else

Catching up to a year-end closing on Fourth Avenue ... where Make Sandwich shut down right before Christmas here between 13th Street and 14th Street.

According to the shop's website: "We’ll be closing the shop ... to look for a location that is more suitable for our craft. We’d like to thank you all for your support and sando love."

This area around Union Square seems like a suitable spot for a sandwich place... or maybe there were too many quick-serve options right around here. (Sandwicherie New York arrived on Fourth Avenue at 13th Street shortly after Make's debut, for instance.)

Make, an extension of the Melt Shop brand, opened at 135 Fourth Ave. in January 2017.

H/T Laura!

Bar Virage has closed on 2nd Avenue

[Photo by Steven]

Bar Virage, the corner bistro with a popular sidewalk cafe on Second Avenue at Seventh Street, closed Sunday after service... bringing an end to its 20-some years in business. (H/T Rhonda!)

This photo by Steven last night shows that the dining room has been emptied out...



No word on why the restaurant closed. (We did spot a retail listing for the address dating back to September 2017, last updated in April. The space appears of be off-market now.)

A sign on the front door thanks patrons...



The space went under a renovation in 2014, switching from Virage to Bar Virage (featuring an expanded bar area) ... there was another renovation in 2010.


[2010]

Fashion Pickle has closed

[Photo by Steven]

Fashion Pickle, a women's fashion boutique on Ninth Street between First Avenue and Second Avenue that promised "handpicked trends from all over the world," has closed.

There were hints that the shop wasn't going to be here much longer dating back to early October, like when the landlord put a large "For Rent" sign on the awning...


[Photo by Steven]

The shop opened in June 2016.

Korean food coming to the former Dinah Hookah Lounge space on 2nd Avenue

The Dinah Hookah Lounge has apparently called it a night on 166 Second Ave. between 10th Street and 11th Street... Steven spotted a sign on the Mediterranean lounge's storefront noting a new Korean restaurant was coming soon...



This space has randomly been some kind of hookah place in the past five-bus years, including Entrez Bar & Grill then Farfasha then Dinah. Prior to all this hookah, the address welcomed the pizzeria Pomodora... and until early 2010, we had the double D here...

[Updated] Going down: So long 6-shots-of-anything-for-$12 signage

The Continental ends its 27-year run tonight at 23 Third Avenue at St. Mark's Place. (Final night details here.)

Ahead of that, workers removed the iconic 6-shots-of-anything-for-$12 signage this morning. (And if you want to see an 11-second video clip, this is on Twitter.)

The special evolved from $10 for five-shots-of-anything ... then $12 for five-shots-of-anything... to $12 for six-shots-of-anything. (Documented here.)

As you likely know, a five-story office building with ground-floor retail will eventually rise on this northeast corner.

Updated

Apparently Dec. 15 was simply the farewell party but NOT the last night... flyers are now up on the front doors noting a Dec. 31 last night... with inventory clearance until then...



Previously on EV Grieve:
The Shake Shack effect? McDonald's on 3rd Avenue at St. Mark's Place has closed after 20 years

Report: Northeast corner of St. Mark's Place and 3rd Ave. fetching $50 million for development site

Report: NE corner of St. Mark's Place and 3rd Avenue will yield to a 7-story office building

Demolition permits filed for northeast corner of 3rd Avenue and St. Mark's Place

End is nearing for the businesses on the northeast corner of 3rd Avenue and St. Mark's Place

The Continental gets a 3-month reprieve

New building plans revealed for 3rd Avenue and St. Mark's Place

[Updated] Details on the last night at the Continental this Saturday

[Photo from last week]

As previously reported, the Continental is wrapping up its 27-year run at 23 Third Avenue at St. Mark's Place on Saturday night.

More details on that last night have emerged via these flyers, showing the New York Dolls outside Gem Spa in 1973, in circulation...



It will be a late night, with festivities set to start at 11 p.m. Guests/DJs including Lenny Kaye, Jessie Malin and Randy Jones (the cowboy from the Village People).

The Continental, which transitioned from a live-music venue to a regular-old bar in 2006, had received several extensions in the past year, first in July then October. Trigger, the bar's owner, had most recently hoped to stay open until May 2019.

This will be the last business to close on the northeast corner of Third Avenue and St. Mark's Place. A boutique office building with ground-floor retail is in the works. Real Estate Equities Corporation picked up the 99-year leasehold for the properties here for nearly $150 million in November 2017. The corner assemblage is owned by the Gabay family.

Updated 12/17

Apparently Dec. 15 is not actually the Last Night as the Last Night flyers note or what was previously announced... flyers are now up on the front doors noting a Dec. 31 Last Night... with inventory clearance until then...



Previously on EV Grieve:
The Shake Shack effect? McDonald's on 3rd Avenue at St. Mark's Place has closed after 20 years

Report: Northeast corner of St. Mark's Place and 3rd Ave. fetching $50 million for development site

Report: NE corner of St. Mark's Place and 3rd Avenue will yield to a 7-story office building

Demolition permits filed for northeast corner of 3rd Avenue and St. Mark's Place

End is nearing for the businesses on the northeast corner of 3rd Avenue and St. Mark's Place

The Continental gets a 3-month reprieve

New building plans revealed for 3rd Avenue and St. Mark's Place

Yes, China Wok has closed

As a follow-up post to last Wednesday's item about China Wok's downed gates on Avenue B at Third Street... an EVG reader shared this photo from yesterday, showing that the CW signage has been removed, and the interior cleaned out.

The unofficial word here is that the owners decided to close after a rent increase. (The building is among those in Steve Croman's empire.)

We heard that the folks who ran China Wok also own a similar to-go establishment on Canal Street.


[EVG photo from the summer]

This corner space is for rent with an ask of $6,495 a month.

Autre Kyo Ya has not been open lately

Autre Kyo Ya, the well-liked sibling of Kyo Ya, the Michelin-starred Japanese restaurant at 94 E. Seventh St., has apparently closed for good at 10 Stuyvesant St.

EVG reader Christopher Pelham says the French-Japanese restaurant, operated by Erina Yoshida and her father Tony, has been dark the past two weeks. (Open Table lists them as "permanently closed." The restaurant's website is offline and the phone goes unanswered.)

Word here is that Mr. Yoshida, who also owns Sunrise Mart and the cocktail bar Angel's Share, plans to (sub?)lease out the space. We're told that Mr. Yoshida's focus now is on Japan Village, the new food hall-grocery that recently opened in Industry City.

Autre Kyo Ya opened in December 2015.

Concern for China Wok, which has not been open lately on Avenue B

China Wok, the reliable quick-serve Chinese restaurant on the corner of Third Street and Avenue B, has not been open in recent days, fueling concerns among patrons that they have closed for good.

The storefront has been on the rental market. The current listing notes an asking rent of $6,495 a month. The space can also be combined with the empty storefront next door for a few thousand more.



There is an unconfirmed neighbor report that the Marshal took legal possession of the space on behalf of landlord Steve Croman. (There is another unconfirmed claim that the rent was raised to the asking amount from $2,500.)

H/T Stacie Joy!

And an EVG Instagram post from late in the summer...

View this post on Instagram

3rd and B • #eastvillage #chinesefood

A post shared by EV Grieve (@evgrieve) on Aug 23, 2018 at 5:55pm PDT

My favorite comment from this Instagram post: "The fan on the side that drips grease into the cardboard on the sidewalk 😍😍"

Today is the last day for Milk & Hops Astor Place

[Image via]

After three-plus years at 779 Broadway near Ninth Street, the Milk & Hops outpost is closing after service today.

In a Facebook post, the owners of the beer-cheese shop chalked up the closure to "irreconcilable differences with property management."

And for this last day: "all draft beers will be Buy One, Get One Free until the kegs kick. Additionally, all cans and bottles will be 30% off."

Milk & Hops Chelsea and Milk & Hops Ramen Bar on the Upper East Side will continue in business.

H/T EVG reader Eric!

Last call at the Continental now set for Dec. 15

The Continental, the last of the businesses on the northeast corner of Third Avenue and St. Mark's Place, is now set to close on Dec. 15.

The 27-year-old bar had received several extensions in the past year at 23 Third Ave., first in July then October. Trigger, the bar's owner, had most recently hoped to stay open until May 2019.

However, he told me that business has been slow.

"I think that most people think we’ve already closed," he said via a Facebook message. "It’s just my emotions and sentimental attachment that’s been keep me from leaving. All my neighbors have left. It’s time!"

Now, though, as Page Six reports, the date is Dec. 15, with the closing night hosted by Jessie Malin.

A boutique office building with ground-floor retail is looming for the corner. Real Estate Equities Corporation picked up the 99-year leasehold for the properties here for nearly $150 million in November 2017. The corner assemblage is owned by the Gabay family.

Previously on EV Grieve:
The Shake Shack effect? McDonald's on 3rd Avenue at St. Mark's Place has closed after 20 years

Report: Northeast corner of St. Mark's Place and 3rd Ave. fetching $50 million for development site

Report: NE corner of St. Mark's Place and 3rd Avenue will yield to a 7-story office building

Demolition permits filed for northeast corner of 3rd Avenue and St. Mark's Place

End is nearing for the businesses on the northeast corner of 3rd Avenue and St. Mark's Place

The Continental gets a 3-month reprieve

New building plans revealed for 3rd Avenue and St. Mark's Place

Space Mabi closes 1 year in on 1st Avenue

That's apparently it for Space Mabi on First Avenue at Fourth Street... the Korean cafe-restaurant quietly closed earlier this month. There isn't any message on their social media properties about a closure, though Google and Yelp both list it as permanently closed. The signs have been removed and paper covers the windows.

Space Mabi opened on Nov. 3, 2017, with a shifting focus depending on the time of day. Per their Facebook description:

Space Mabi is a new gastropub with cozy atmosphere in East Village that specializes in New Korean cuisine, plus creative Korean alcoholic beverages.

Under the sun, we operate as ‘Cafe Space Mabi,’ under the moon, we serve as ‘Restaurant Space Mabi’, and under the stars, we turn into ‘Bar Space Mabi’.

[Photo from November 2017]

They eventually discontinued the daytime service, opening then at 5:30 p.m.

The space was previously Guayoyo, the low-key, family-owned Venezuelan restaurant, which never reopened after a basement fire in the Icon Realty-owned building in January 2015.

This marks the second self-described gastropub to close within two blocks this month on First Avenue.

Previously on EV Grieve:
Guayoyo has been closed now for 1 year

Gastropub — 'Your new playground' — slated for former Guayoyo space on 1st Avenue

Ummburger has closed on 1st Avenue

After a little more than a year in business at 99 First Ave. at Sixth Street, Ummburger has closed... the gates had been down of late during announced business hours... then a for rent sign arrived late last week...



Ummburger seemed doomed from the get-go, to be honest, with cutesy names for their burgers (the Good Morning Vietnam, for instance) ... and, well, the name for the restaurant. The drinks menu included the "Ummazing Chalices," 38-ounce fish bowl cocktails on dry ice for $25.

NYU's Washington Square News featured Ummburger in an article from February on restaurants suffering from a drop in business after the New Year.

[Co-owner Salil Mathew] put out a 40 percent discount coupon for students in Campus Clipper magazine after the holidays, aiming to attract local college students in the hope they would return later, paying full price.

Because of the dip, Mathew has been forced to lay off employees, and by his estimation, has had to cut work hours by as much as 50 percent. Balancing a new restaurant, a second job as a nurse manager and a family, Mathew hopes his steep discounts will bring him a much-needed break.

Previously on EV Grieve:
Ummburger makes it official on 1st Avenue

Ummburger vying for the Mancora space on 1st Avenue

Sunday is the last day for the Wineshop on 9th Street

EVG reader Brucie shared these photos from outside the Wineshop at 438 E. Ninth St. west of Avenue A... the chalkboard sign on the sidewalk reads: "Here today...Gone next week" on one side, and "Thank you, East Village" on the other... not a good sign, unfortunately...



The owners of the neighborly shop, which opened in 2013, confirmed the closure via Instagram, writing: "It’s heartbreaking to say this but this will be the last week that Wineshop will be open and Sunday 11/18 will be our last day ... I’ll be at the shop sporadically throughout the week but all day Sunday with open bottles of sparkling to say goodbye to the best customers one could ask for. Thank you for everything."

That's a wrap for Yonekichi's rice burger spot on 9th Street

[Photo by Steven]

Yonekichi has shut down its quick-serve spot on Ninth Street between Second Avenue and Third Avenue... EVG Ninth Street Bureau Chief NOTORIOUS notes that Yonekichi even took their bench seat out front..



Yonekichi, part of Bon Yagi's East Village stable of restaurants, announced on its website that the lease was up ... and they will be looking for a new home...



The to-go spot was a big hit (except with the Daily News) when it opened back in August 2014, serving a variety of crisp rice buns with made-to-order fillings.

Previously on EV Grieve:
Yonekichi bringing rice burgers to East 9th Street

Atino Eyewear Optical closing at the end of the month on 7th Street

Angel Suarez is closing Atino Eyewear Optical at 110 E. Seventh St. at the end of the month.

In an email to me, Suarez said that everything was "on the right track until Sept. 1." Business for the shop that opened in March has dropped off drastically since the end of the summer — by nearly 60 percent.

"I have been open and working seven days a week now and I have come to the conclusion it is finished," he said. "This is rough."

Suarez, a Brooklyn native, spent seven years at Robert Marc in the West Village and three years at Selima Optique in Soho before opening here between Avenue A and First Avenue.

He's holding a going-out-of-business sale on frames through the end of the month. (Find more details at the store's website.)

Dunkin' done on 1st Avenue at 13th Street

The former Dunkin' (Donuts) outpost on First Avenue between 12th Street and 13th Street has been gutted... and the space is now for rent... (thanks dwg for the tip and photos!)

This outpost closed back on Oct. 21. There's still a Dunkin' just a few blocks to the north...



No sign of any teary farewell signage at this Dunkin' (see this post). This also marks the second national chain (see Papa John's) to close this fall along this section of First Avenue.

Goodbye Dojo

That's it for Dojo on West Fourth Street at Mercer... it was pretty much a foregone conclusion that the restaurant was not going to reopen after sitting vacant following a Sept. 13 DOH inspection that closed its doors. (You can read the previous post here.)

The inspection turned up 62 violation points, which appeared to be correctable items before any follow-up visit.

In any event, the contents of Dojo have been removed ... and the signage has come down.

And a little cut-and-paste Dojo history:

Dojo began in the East Village, first with the Ice Cream Connection on St. Mark's Place between Second Avenue and Third Avenue in March 1970. Tony Yoshida's Japanese-inspired vegetarian cuisine came along in 1974. And via the Dojo website:

In 1982, Dojo took over the space next door and expanded even more. Then in 1991, Dojo in the West Village was created – both Dojo East and Dojo West were favorite local gems. Unfortunately in 2007, Dojo East was closed down due to high rent. BUT Dojo West is still going strong!

I posted the news on Twitter yesterday. Seems as if a lot of people have Dojo memories.

Wow. I have been eating here for nearly 30 years. (Always the soy burger with that amazing carrot ginger dressing) Went here the night of our jr prom rather than do whatever kids usually do. And when I was most poor, it was so affordable. https://t.co/9VCCtv4aLm

— Dusty Rebel (@TheDustyRebel) October 25, 2018

My heart will weep for carrot ginger dressing and cold sesame noodles forever. https://t.co/UgOUuLvv7l

— Morgue Shanahan (@the818) October 25, 2018

Sending thoughts and prayers to all my NYU History peeps. https://t.co/xQSybpplit

— Thomas Fleischman (@TomFleischman) October 25, 2018

RIP the one place in NY that catered to both my brokeness and my vegan-ness at age 17 in the summer of 2002. https://t.co/tTR3Ymde5Y

— Judy Berman (@judyberman) October 25, 2018

Today in my-city-is-gone, the closure of a signature Gen-X first-date emporium. As @mehpatrol put it, "Pour out some carrot-ginger dressing." https://t.co/NRbWeOzyJJ

— Sam Sifton (@SamSifton) October 25, 2018

...and even if you frequented the place...

the number of mediocre meals i had here with TISCH friends right after moving to NY. incalculable. https://t.co/VqwLTaBBfS

— w.e.b. da boyyy (@rodb) October 25, 2018

Carrot ginger dressing on every fucking thing on the menu. RIP. Also, it was gross. https://t.co/DrGyJuV9W4

— gabe mckinley (@gabejamckinley) October 25, 2018

I ate here every week for 3 years. The food was awful. https://t.co/9voja5F7S2

— Charlie Lait (@charlielait) October 25, 2018

Previously on EV Grieve:
Dojo looks to have closed for good

Concern for Dojo, which has now been closed for 2 weeks

The Coffee Shop closed on Union Square, and what it might mean for NYC's restaurant biz

[Via The Coffee Shop's Instagram account]

As you probably know, the Coffee Shop closed Sunday on Union Square after 28 years in business. (You can find photos from the last day at Gothamist.)

The rising cost of rent and wages were reportedly behind the closure.

Forbes had a piece back on Friday with Coffee Shop co-owner and president Charles Milite — who opened the space in 1990 with two other Wilhelmina models, Eric Petterson and Carolyn Benitez — that provides some perspective on the challenges of running a presumably successful restaurant here and now and in the future.

Milite told Forbes that rent had become “unusually high,” accounting for close to 27 percent of the restaurant’s gross revenues. Add in the scheduled $2-per-hour minimum wage hike set to take place on December 31 — an increase that, across Coffee Shop’s 150 employees and multiple dayparts of service, would have added $46,000 to the monthly payroll — made it impossible to break even by cutting costs elsewhere.

“It’s a wakeup call for our industry in general,” Milite said. “When a restaurant is one of the top-ranked restaurants in America, sales-wise, and can no longer afford to operate, you have to look at that and say there’s a shifting paradigm in the business.”

Milite predicts that this shift will lead to the gradual disappearance of 200- and 300-seat restaurants like Coffee Shop; in their places will come eateries with smaller, more focused menus and limited service. He’s already trying this with Flats Fix, a fast-casual taqueria right next to Coffee Shop on 16th Street.

A bank branch is rumored to be taking the space, Forbes reported.