A vegan café for 9th Street

A vegan café called called V ❤️ U is coming to 428 E. Ninth St.

EVG correspondent Steven ran into its owner, Junie Ishimori, yesterday in front of the space between Avenue A and First Avenue.

Ishimori, who previously co-owned the vegan ice cream shop Stogo on 10th Street for four years, is just starting work on the café, and hopes to open by the end of the summer.

This storefront was previously Mr. Throwback, which moved across the street in December.

The V-Spot opens an empanada outpost on St. Mark's Place ahead of planned vegan restaurant

The family-run Park Slope vegan restaurant The V-Spot has plans to open an outpost at 16 St. Mark's Place between Second Avenue and Third Avenue.

Until that happens, The V-Spotters started selling empanadas to-go from the storefront this past Friday…


[Images via Facebook]

As for a full-blown vegan restaurant on St. Mark's Place, the family has turned to Kickstarter to help get the business here started. If interested, then you can read about the campaign here.

Previously on EV Grieve:
Organic omnivore, vegetarian or vegan restaurant wanted at 12 St. Mark's Place

The V-Spot coming soon to St. Mark's Place

Is Kate's Joint adding meat to the menu?

Perhaps!

But first. The Wall Street Journal takes a look today at the recent closures of some East Village vegetarian eateries, such as Curly's and Quantum Leap, as well as the financial struggles of Kate's Joint on Avenue B. The cause, according to some diners and restaurant owners? "Rising rents were a factor in a least some of these cases, but so too were the shifting tastes of young hipsters away from vegetarianism."

Plus, are places like Kate's all that faboo looking to the foody set?

Per the article: "Kate's Joint looks increasingly out of place in a world where young diners flock to meat-centric restaurants such as Meatball Shop and Porchetta."

Which is one reason why Kate's owner Kate Halpern contemplates adding the meat to the menu. She told the Journal: "I hate to admit it, but put bacon on it, and they will come."

As for adding meat products, she has discussed it. She met with resistance from some longtime patrons. Plus, "she said she would need a financial partner to build a kitchen that would allow the restaurant to prepare meat and vegetarian entrees separately."

The article also quotes local blogger EV Grieve, who works "farm to table" into a quote. (Woo! Shot!)

Previously on EV Grieve:
Save Kate's Joint on Avenue B

Curly's Vegetarian Lunch is now 14 Carrot Vegetarian

Over on East 14th Street, Curly's Vegetarian Lunch is now 14 Carrot Vegetarian, per this photo and tweet via @SamStorer ... Turns out that Dave and Jean, who ran the place the past six-plus years, moved on at the end of 2011. From the Curly's website, "[T]he new leases terms proved just too much for a little vegetarian place..."

Here's their letter...

[Click on image to enlarge]

However, the Curly's folks are still serving vegetarian fare up the street at Hotel Tortuga.

We don't know too much about the new management at 14 Carrot. Sam says the vegan pancakes are still quite good. Meanwhile, the three Yelp reviews have been fairly brutal.

Noted

EV Grieve reader Samo notes that Earth Matters on Ludlow Street just introduced a new fridge dedicated to raw Gwyneth Paltrow vegan goodness...

As Samo notes: "This just further solidifies that EV/LES is the haven for the health conscious. With LIQUITERIA, Juice Press, Organic Avenue, Quintessence, Live Live, High Vibe, Xoom!, Caravan of Dreams, etc!"

Does V8 from Key count?

[Updated: Crap... no mention of one of my favorite places — Peter Silvestri's Whole Earth Bakery and Kitchen on St. Mark's Place..]

Noted

"MORRISSEY didn't break from his ardent vegetarianism at Webster Hall last night. The singer, whose second album with the Smiths was titled 'Meat Is Murder,' requested no meat products of any kind be in the building before, during, or after his performance. 'There were no deli sandwiches, sushi, pepperoni pizza or anything else that used to have a face,' laughs our source. 'Even the cleaning staff were happy to do their part by bringing in veggie sandwiches for lunch.'" (Page Six)

Should anyone really be eating sushi during a (rock) concert?