A message for Short Stories

Short Stories is currently on a winter hiatus here on the Bowery between Third Street and Fourth Street.

And perhaps no one is around to mind the store on a full-time basis... as such, a neighbor left a sign on the door asking the bar-restaurant to clean up its curbside dining space...

... seen worse, but...

This has been a common complaint among some residents when a bar or restaurant temporarily closes... who's taking care of the curbside space... and, in some cases, if the venue closes, who's responsible to take down the structure... ?

1st Avenue curbside dining structure is gone with the wind (again)

Today's high winds — reported at 40-plus mph at times during the gale warning — toppled this curbside dining setup on First Avenue between Fifth Street and Sixth Street (thanks to Jeremiah Moss for the photos!)

Turns out the structure belongs to Panna II, which was not open at the time. Owner Boshir Khan told Curbed that this was the third time (as Curbed noted — !) that his structure has toppled over.

Per Curbed:

[H]e hasn’t been able to install a sturdier structure because of the expense; this one, he says, cost him $2,000, and more substantial ones can cost more than ten times that figure. "If you want to do it permanently, it's a lot of money,” he says. Even though he's already looking into putting it back up, Khan says he's still unsure about how plausible outdoor dining will be once the weather turns from chilly to flat-out cold: "We have a heater and everything, and people [still] don't want to sit down." Over the past two weeks, Khan says, no diner has wanted to eat outside. 

NYC restaurateurs have until Dec. 15 to fully adapt their structures to the winter, per city guidelines.

An EVG reader also reported a damaged curbside structure outside Takahachi/Drom on Avenue A near Sixth Street...

Hi, who does this random curbside dining space belong to on the Bowery?

You've likely seen this red curbside dining structure over on the west side of the Bowery between Fourth Street and Great Jones... it's probably been there about a month... enough people (two!) have mentioned this now, so... who does it belong to?

There isn't any restaurant on that side of the Bowery now... Hecho en Dumbo was the last place in business at No 354, closing in June 2018... and Sage Kitchen next door has been closed for a few months. And there aren't any tables or chairs or anything helpful for dining out.

Anyway, it's there if you need some outdoor space...

ICYMI: City makes outdoor dining permanent

And in news you likely read about yesterday, Mayor de Blasio announced that the City's Open Restaurants program will be extended year-round and made permanent. The extension also applies to Open Streets: Restaurants, which provides restaurants expanded space on 85 car-free streets citywide on certain days.

Here are some particulars from the city's press release about how restaurants will able able to protect diners from the winter-time elements: 

Heating 

As cooler weather arrives, the City will allow restaurants to incorporate heating elements into their outdoor dining setups. Electrical heaters will be allowed on both sidewalk and roadway. Propane and natural gas heaters will be allowed on sidewalks only; they will remain prohibited in roadway seating. Propane will require a permit from FDNY and compliance with FDNY regulations for outdoor use, handling and secure outdoor tank storage overnight. Official guidance on what will be considered approved installation and use of heating elements will be released before the end of September, and restaurants are prohibited from installing heating elements until guidelines are released and followed.

Tents

Restaurants will also be permitted to use tent enclosures to keep diners warm. In partial tent enclosures, at least 50 percent of the tent’s side wall surface area must remain open and electrical heaters are allowed. In full tent enclosures, the tent’s side walls may be closed but occupancy limitations will be capped at 25 percent of capacity, and indoor dining guidelines must be followed; electrical heaters will also be allowed. Enclosed structures, such as plastic domes, will be allowed for individual parties and must have adequate ventilation to allow for air circulation.

These local streets will now be open during the week for dining

Mayor de Blasio announced yesterday that 40 city streets participating in the Open Restaurants program on weekends can now operate during the week. 

Here's where you can find the daytime hours around here:

• Avenue B between Second Street and Third Street (Organizer: Becaf LLC aka Poco). Hours:  Mondays-Fridays noon-11 p.m., Saturdays and Sundays noon-11 p.m.

• Seventh Street between Avenue A and First Avenue (Organizer: Derossi Global). Hours: Mondays-Fridays 4-11 p.m., Saturdays and Sundays noon-11 p.m.

• Bleecker Street between Mott Street and the Bowery (Organizer: Von Design Ltd). Hours: Tuesdays-Fridays 5-11 p.m., Saturdays and Sundays noon-11 p.m.

• Bond Street between Lafayette and the Bowery (Organizer: il Buco). Hours: Mondays-Fridays noon-11 p.m., Saturdays and Sundays noon-11 p.m.

The Open Restaurants program is set to end on Oct. 31st, but, as Gothamist noted, Mayor de Blasio has suggested that he wants to make it permanent, calling it "a stunning success." 

St. Mark's Place between A and 1st now an open street for dining on weekends

St. Mark's Place between Avenue A and First Avenue has been added to the list of the city streets closed off for dining on the weekends. 

Back on Friday, Mayor de Blasio announced 40 open-street additions for the city's Open Restaurants program. He also extended the program through Oct. 31. 

This block of St. Mark's join these other EV streets already participating in the program (as of July): 

• St Mark's Place between Second Avenue and Third Avenue 

• Avenue B between Second Street and Fourth Street 

• Seventh Street between Avenue A and First Avenue 

These corridors are in dining mode on Friday from 5-11 p.m., and Saturday and Sunday from noon to 11 p.m. 

Thanks to Steven for the photo!

Noted

Parking in the time of curbside dining. As seen this morning on Avenue A at Sixth Street. 

Still working out the html kinks on the new Blogger content tool. Testing, testing.