Reader report: Xi’an Famous Foods closed for renovations

[Photo by @charli via Twitter]

Disappointed diners have learned that the popular Xi'an Famous Foods at 81 St. Mark's Place is closed for renovations.

@evgrieve Did you see that Xian Famous is closed for renovations? I went there yesterday and saw another shocked would-be patron. Horrible!

— Adrianne Jeffries (@adrjeffries) March 20, 2014

Their official message via Facebook:

Our East Village store will be CLOSED FOR RENOVATIONS starting Monday (3/17)!

We hope to be back up and running in 3-4 weeks, with a few more seats and a more open kitchen!

In the meantime, head to our nearby Chinatown spot, open regular hours.

And this is a legit "closed for renovations," not one of those stop-gap messages to help the proprietor hustle out of town.

Xi’an CEO Jason Wang has ambitious plans to expand his growing noodle empire, with possible locations in Boston and Washington, D.C.

[Updated] Reader report: The city dumps Manny the Peddler's wares on Avenue A

A City sanitation crew stopped by Avenue A between East Second Street and East Third Street around noon today and dumped all of the items Manny the Peddler has been selling along here.

Said one witness:

It appears the manager of the New York Sports Club called the city rather than ask Manny to move his things to another spot along the block, which most other business owners on this block do. Manny is happy to oblige.

Considering the eyesore and highly illegal-looking construction that's been taking up the sidewalk for MONTHS now outside the sports club, it seems like a real douchey move.

Manny is a sweetheart and favorite of many locals in the neighborhood.

This isn't the first time that the city tossed Manny's sale items.

Manny, aka Emmanuel Howard, has been selling second-hand items on Avenue A and East Second Street for more than 35 years.

Updated 5/27

NYSC General Manager Anthony Testai responded with this comment:

I just wanted to say — as the General Manager of the NYSC on Ave A that I am shocked to see how badly my company is getting dragged thru the mud with this. Manny and I have personally chatted multiple times and I was disappointed to see the city throw away his things again.

Just so most of you are aware this is the third time that I know of that this has happened and as all of you know..(weve only been here for 3 months). I can assure you that NYSC myself and my staff included had NOTHING to do with the fact that he had his things thrown away. The first time this happened before we were even open I immediately ran down to Manny and apologized for his belongings being thrown away.

Manny sells his things in front of the methadone clinic and he's not near our storefront, which is why we have no problem with him doing his business, he knows that because we have spoken and I say hello to him almost everyday.

On behalf of NYSC I apologize for this happening but it did not come from us, I even spoke to the construction team and they had nothing to do with it.

Now for the real issue the SIDEWALK! This is killing everyone's business and is a huge problem with the community and me. Just so everyone is aware the sidewalk has been the city not giving us to remove an oil tank that was abandoned beneath the old sidewalk. And so everyone is updated it will be completed by the end of this month if not sooner.

If anyone has any questions please feel free to stop by, tour the gym and see that we are not some "big business" or call me...

Steve Croman released from prison today

Public records show that landlord Steve Croman was released from prison today, two days before originally scheduled. He ended up serving eight months of a one-year jail sentence after pleading guilty to various fraud charges.



In June 2017, Croman pleaded guilty to three felonies for fraudulently refinancing loans and committing tax fraud. He was expected to serve up to a year in prison and pay a $5 million tax settlement, per the Attorney General's office at the time.

Croman served his jail sentence at the Manhattan Detention Complex, aka the Tombs. Last October, the AG's office announced that Croman was "transferred to Rikers Island for one year jail sentence."

Public records at the time showed that Croman (in the system last October as Steven Crowman) was expected to be released on June 3 ...


[Screengrab from October]

One Croman watcher alleged that he was set free two days earlier than expected to avoid a media throng.

And as The Lo-Down recently reported, residents of a Croman-owned building on Ridge Street claim that he has been "playing the same games with tenants that he did before he was incarcerated." As a resident said, "The only thing that’s changed is that Croman is markedly more aggressive than before. We’re all shocked that nothing’s changed for the better in our case."

Croman's real-estate portfolio via 9300 Realty includes 47 buildings with 617 units in the East Village.

Previously on EV Grieve:
AG's office: Steve Croman agrees to pay $8 million to the tenants he harassed

The scene at BP yesterday afternoon

A reader shares these photos from yesterday afternoon at the BP station on Second Avenue at East First Street... there were blocks-long lines all day...

According to the reader:

Passing the gas station ... I heard a policeman screaming 'shut your door' to a woman driver one car away from tanking up. I guess she didn't cause the next thing I heard was her screaming. When I doubled back to see what the commotion was, she was on the ground getting cuffed! I was shocked to see such a display of force upon a mother in front of her two kids.

The reader didn't see everything that transpired here. So perhaps there was more to the NYPD's actions. Did anyone else witness this?

Report: Arlene's Grocery asks artist to remove his 'Seven Deadly Sins' paintings

Arlene's Grocery told artist Robert Preston to remove his new collection of paintings one day after their debut at the Stanton Street music venue, the Daily News reported today.

The collection included Bloomberg as "wrath" and President Obama in an Egyptian headdress as "pride."

"It just wasn't our style," explained Julia Darling, Arlene's manager. "It sort of insults the viewer; it's really kind of beating us over the head with a message."

"I was pretty shocked. I didn't expect it," Preston told Rheana Murray. The paintings made their debut Monday night. Management asked him to remove the work on Tuesday.

"I lived on Christie and Rivington in the early '80s," he said. "It was a very different neighborhood. I don't think anyone would have had a problem with those paintings back then."

Find the article and photos of the paintings here.

Checking out the Vigilant Hotel: "Perfect for the bored with responsibilities of maintaining a traceable address"

I've long been fascinated by the Vigilant Hotel at 370 Eighth Ave. between 28th Street and 29th Street. An old-fashioned flophouse continues to survive in this era of pricey real estate and swanky hotel developments? Miracle of miracles! 14to42 had this information from a 2003 post:

In 1895 the lodgings empire of Angelino Sartirano consisted of hotels at 116 Gansevoort St., 208 and 352 8th Ave., 1553 Broadway, 2291 3d Ave., and here at 370 8th Ave.

The Sartirano (sometimes spelled Sartirana) hotel business is even older, going back to 1888 with his first hotel at 116 Gansevoort St. in the West Village.

The name Vigilant Hotel, however, is not quite so old, and seems to date no earlier than 1916. The hotel is still here (as of August 2003) but to all appearances no longer operates as a hotel in the usual sense...

14to42 also also has links to two photos by Percy Loomis Sperr in the New York Public Library's Digital Collections. The first dated 1932 shows a side wall with "Rooms 25¢." The second dated 1938 shows a small sign over the sidewalk reading "Vigilant Hotel."

14th42 also published this shot from 2003 of the hotel's faded sign:



So, can I get a room here? Sure! It's for men only. And it will cost you $140. A week.

The reviews are mixed on Yahoo! Travel. Someone who has never stayed there gave it five stars while someone who did gave it one star. What was so wrong with it that it deserved that?

Don't ever step foot in this place
By A Yahoo! Contributor, 10/08/08
The place is so downtrodden, neglected and downright decreped. The hotel guests are homeless people who arementally ill. Even the police wouldn't stay in this hotel! If I were homeless I wouldn't stay in this disgusting hotel. Im shocked they are still open!

OK, Felix Ungar...we'll getcha a suite at The Carlyle!

Anyway, here's what the place looks like on the inside:







(These three photos via here.)

Finally, here's review of the hotel at Not for Tourists by Dave Crish:

A scar, even upon the pissed on pave of Chelsea's north edge. I relate, here, of history's Vigilant. Built some hundred years ago of resilient brick, at present resembling ash. Not the sort of amenitied lodge one peruses on vacation. Piped of, but, three befouled showers, a pair of sinks, and toilettes of excreta. Succinctly, an inn of cells petit rented to gents of varied feather—all poor for whatever reason, breathing the airs of next step below homelessness. $125 per seven days. No credit, no checks, no euros, cartons maybe—of Marlboros. Never gleeful, rarely tended proud asylum sans musique. Fine abode for a bit of drifting or a brief disappearance. In sum, perfect for the bored with responsibilities of maintaining a traceable address. Foam pad, gray, oft cavorted 'pon by bloodsucking mites. Not a lash of social space but narrow hallways. Sphere of little social grace a tincture schizo of few heads cracked—a few murderers, few blooming, and even fewer handsome. Maybe a master once and then. Never a fellow un-weathered. Indeed, the Vigilant Hotel. For the times when desires discordant means and the bench not an option.

Related on EV Grieve:
Elk in the City

Life with those Yelpers: 'This is one store I wouldn't mind if it ever closed and was replaced with a Starbucks'

I recently looked up the number to David's Shoe Repair on Seventh Street. His hours can be a little irregular, so...

Anyway, I get the Yelp listing... and I spotted the two reviews...

The one-star review!

Renee C.
New York, NY
10/27/2008
seriously, what the hell is wrong with this old guy? since this is the closest shoe repair place to my apartment, i head over eagerly with my favorite pair of black boots in tow. i arrive in the store and innocently show him the boots and ask him if they are repairable. the old guy takes one look at my boots (which are admittedly on their last leg, no pun intended) and begins wagging his finger and shouting at me "NO! I SELL BOOTS HERE. $175 DOLLARS. YOU BRING ME JUNK. NOTHING BUT JUNK! GOODBYE!! GET OUT OF HERE!!" completely shocked at this outburst, i reply back "these are expensive boots! i like them," to which he responds "GOODBYE!! GET OUT!! DON'T WASTE MY TIME!" i walked out of the store defeated and teary eyed. really there is no need to yell!

oh and against my advice, my roommate went to this place to see if she could get her shoes repaired and the old guy yelled at her too!!

seriously, i really REALLY hate new yorkers sometimes.

And a two-star review...

margs k.
New York, NY
3/13/2008
I don't like patronizing businesses that treat me poorly or do sloppy work and in this case, both reasons apply for why I won't be returning here with my shoes and bags. I dropped off a purse here with a broken zipper on a Saturday. The guy sort of grunts at me gutterally and tells me to come pick it up on Tuesday. Also, they make you leave a deposit, which isn't typical for this kind of work. I show up on Tuesday and the guy looks confused when I ask him for my bag. He finds it under a pair of boots, obviously not worked on, and tells me to come back the next day. NOT COOL. I don't appreciate having my time wasted. I come back the next day to pick up my bag and not only did I pay $25 for a cheap gold zipper (when the metalwork in my bag was SILVER) but I had to listen to him complain how long it took to do.

This is one store I wouldn't mind if it ever closed and was replaced with a Starbucks.

[Photo via Jeremiah's Vanishing NY]

Q-and-A with John Holmstrom, founding editor of Punk Magazine

John Holmstrom was a 21-year-old SVA student during the summer of 1975 ... a time that saw him buy "The Dictators Go Girl Crazy!" (which he said "totally rewired" his mind) and experience the Ramones at CBGB.

"The Ramones and Dictators represented a sea change in rock 'n' roll, and I was burning to become a part of it before it took off and became part of the mainstream," he writes in the prologue of the recently released "Best of Punk Magazine."

Soon after, Holmstrom did become part of the scene when he, Ged Dunn Jr. and Eddie "Legs" McNeil launched Punk Magazine in late 1975. For 17 issues, Holmstrom and an array of photographers, writers, illustrators and the musicians themselves chronicled the punk scene... featuring colorful (and, often, off-color) interviews with everyone, really — Lou Reed, Iggy Pop, Patti Smith and Richard Hell, who starred in "The Legend of Nick Detroit" for issue No. 6's cover. The magazine ceased publication in 1979. (There were various special issues in subsequent years.)

Holmstrom continued his career as a writer, editor and cartoonist, spending time at High Times and Screwed, among others. He still lives in the East Village today. The "Best of" compilation (co-edited with Bridget Hurd) puts all the issues together with plentiful behind-the-scenes details. It was released in December. I waited until Holmstrom's schedule eased up a bit to ask him some questions about the start of Punk and other various topics... (Part 1 or 2.)


[Holmstrom from December at the New Museum, via Facebook]

You had a lot of balls to launch a publication at the time called Punk. Not really a question. What were you thinking?

"Punk rock" was a well-known term to readers of CREEM magazine, so when I asked Legs and Ged what they would call a magazine about comix, fashion, news, and punk rock and Legs suggested, "Why not just call it Punk"?

I liked the four-letter word as a magazine title! However, as it turns out — we weren't even the first Punk magazine. Billy Altman called his college newspaper in Buffalo the same name. But I saw all the graphic elements in my mind as soon as we chose that name: 1950s juvenile delinquent comic books, EC Horror comic books, Marvel comics, Will Eisner's The Spirit, film noir, stark use of black and white, etc. So liked the name — at first. Sometimes I think it caused so many
headaches I would have been better off calling it "Teenage News" or "Electronic Comic."


[Holmstrom's first editor's note, via 98Bowery.com]

Are people surprised to hear that this was a serious business endeavor?

No one has asked me about that yet. But, like I said in the book, Ged, Eddie and I were all very serious about being successful and "Creating The 1970s" and all that. I think my connection to a real lawyer helped us incorporate as a business, and my connection to a professional printer got our product looking like a real magazine instead of a fanzine. When Thom Holaday came on board he got us into writing a business plan and all.

Anyhow, my point is that we were not a bunch of goofy kids putting out a 'zine for free drinks, as has been portrayed.


[Holmstrom during the Punk days. Photo by by Marcia Resnick via Facebook]

How did you view yourself at the time during Punk's run? An insider? Outsider? Just someone who loved music?

I was a total outsider who unfortunately was forced into becoming an insider very quickly and without any preparation nor guidance. I didn't know anyone from "the scene" and then as soon as the magazine came out I had to deal with everyone from everywhere. And usually as adversaries!

How do you choose 10th Avenue at West 30th Street to be your first office? Seemed a little — far-removed.

It was all we could afford, and the only place I could find. The usual asking price for an office, $300 a month back then, was a lot of money! And we needed a lot of space.

A worst-case scenario for that office would have meant that we would have to kick in $65 per person to keep the lease. If we brought in another person, it could be just $50!

Also, my roommate in Brooklyn was on my ass! He was all like: "Hello! Earth to John! You have to move in a few days! Nice knowing you but get the fuck out of here, dude!"

Yes, it took us a long time to get to CBGB but on the other hand we weren't far from the Port Authority Bus Terminal nor Penn Station — and all the subways by those places.

Was was your reaction to seeing the Ramones for the first time, Aug. 24, 1975?

I wasn't all that shocked by the noise and thunder and fast pace of the music, to be honest. Unlike Ged and Legs, I had seen a lot, and I mean a lot, of heavy rock 'n' roll bands before then. Just to name a few of the more loud and fast rock 'n' roll bands: The Who, Jimi Hendrix, Alice Cooper, The New York Dolls, The Magic Tramps, Lou Reed (Rock 'N' Roll Animal tour), Blue Öyster Cult, etc.

In fact, BÖC was probably the heaviest band I had seen before the Ramones. Their appearance on July 16, 1973 at the Schaefer Music Festival was one of the craziest shows I ever saw. The audience became so crazed that by the end of the show the first rows of metal chairs had become a twisted mass of scrap metal — their time on this Earth as useful objects had come to an end.

I remember that the drummer threw a bunch of drumsticks out to the crowd and I fought several people to grab it, but then it ended up being a showdown with one twisted heavy metal fan who snarled at me: "IF YOU DON'T LET GO OF THIS I AM GOING TO KILL YOU!!!" and everything about him convinced me that he was telling the truth. So I let go. I never saw a band drive the audience into a frenzy like that before or since.

I went to see every band I could, so I ended up sitting through a lot of bands I didn't like: The Eagles, Black Oak Arkansas, Rush, The Allman Brothers, Grand Funk Railroad, etc.

So by the time I saw the Ramones I was so sick of long guitar solos and drum solos and endless encores and the band playing to the audience and bands that spent a lot of time tuning up on stage. These were all the things that the Ramones studiously avoided, so I loved it. Best of all, they dressed like me: blue jeans, sneakers, t-shirts — I just couldn't afford a leather jacket like they wore. I had also lived across the street from the Hell's Angels for a short time and certainly didn't want to compete with them on any level. And I knew that CBGB was their hangout in 1975.

The whole experience of seeing them at CBGBs was, to me, what it must have been like to see The Beatles at The Cavern Club or The Rolling Stones at the Crawdaddy Club. I felt like I was seeing "The Future of Rock 'N' Roll."

Tomorrow: Thoughts on the East Village of 2013 and CBGB the Movie.


[Richard Hell as "Nick Detroit" via "The Best of Punk Magazine"]

------

Find John Holmstrom's blog here.

Find the Punk Magazine site here.

Previously on EV Grieve:
Revisiting Punk Art

Breaking the internet (and Instagram) with cumgirl8

Text and photos by Stacie Joy

I’m L-training it to Brooklyn to catch hypnotic neon punk band cumgirl8’s EP release show at the Knitting Factory. 

Also on the bill this October night, close collaborators GirlDick...

East Village performer and godmother of modern-day shock art Kembra Pfahler ...

... and dancer Bobbie Hondo (on the right) ...

I arrive in time to catch some of the load-in and soundcheck, with Veronica Vilim on guitar and percussive drill, Lida Fox on bass and synth, Chase Noelle with the powerhouse drumming, and featuring Avishag Cohen Rodrigues for additional firepower on guitar. 

There is some last-minute crafting of signage/decor backstage, scribbling out of setlists, adjusting clothing — lots of I.AM.GIA and cumgirl8 fashion designs and accessories styled by Jordane Stawecki — and a quickie trip to nab some preshow food at Caracas Arepa Bar, a former East Village favorite still up and running in Williamsburg.

The show itself is chaotic, loud, pleasurable — cusping off the pandemic, people are eager to celebrate, and the venue is filled with dancing and fans singing along...

After the show, I chat with the three core members about the band’s history, creativity during a pandemic, censorship, and normalizing female sexuality.

What were the common interests that led you to initially form a band beyond just jamming with friends?

Lida Fox: It really began as an outlet to express frustrations we faced in our lives and work and to vent toxicity from relationships. It was basically a healing/empowerment mechanism. We all have backgrounds in dance, art, and performing, so when we get together, it’s basically freeform pent-up energy, sometimes verging on insanity. 

Before we started this, I faced so many blocks in the way I thought I could express myself, but now I feel almost anything is possible. We all have pretty varying tastes in music, art, film, etc., but they complement each other in amazing ways. 

 

Some of the band members live/work in the Lower East Side or East Village. How do local events and shows — such as your fashion week show at Cafe Forgot and performances at the Flower Shop — differ from audiences in Brooklyn like at Baby’s All Right or tonight’s Knitting Factory show?

Veronika Vilim: I haven’t noticed too much difference in audiences, but I would say there is more of a younger crowd at shows in Brooklyn [Williamsburg/Bushwick] than shows in Manhattan. Having the fashion show during the day and it being a fashion show event, more people were interested in fashion. People like my mom and dad, for example, come to the daytime shows (fashion shows and music shows) in Manhattan rather than the show at the Knitting Factory, because it was not only at night but also because it was in Brooklyn.

How have you seen/heard your sound evolve from the early days of the band? 

Chase Noelle: In the early days, we were learning how to communicate with each other. Our first EP is fucking insane, impulsive, id-driven. We got a lot of comparisons to punk bands like the Desperate Bicycles and Flipper. 

We’re influenced by ballet and opera and club music, truly all over the place, and that’s why we sound so weird. Now our sound is more focused — it’s still shameless, but our musicality is showcased now and more directed. We really want to make people dance without feeling self-conscious. Our single “BUGS” is inside of that. We still sound fucking insane, especially live, but there’s a laser focus that cuts through it all. 

And how about your live performances? Do you feel more confident with each show?

Vilim: Yes! I feel like every show we play, we evolve together and become more of a team. We understand how to perform more and really embrace this character/world we have been developing! Watching videos from our live shows from the beginning until now, you can really see a difference in our performance. Also, now with the audience knowing our music more, there’s really a vibe with the crowd and that makes such a difference as well ’cause everyone really vibes together.

What’s your take on NYC right now as being a welcoming environment for a creative spirit? 

Fox:  I think there’s a welcoming creative environment now more than ever. [At least] in the last 12 years I’ve been here. The pandemic sucked, but it made everyone realize what a privilege it is to perform or be in the same room with a group of people dancing/jumping/going crazy together, watching a movie, appreciating art, etc. There’s so much more appreciative energy now, and people don’t hold back; they aren’t as jaded. 

Also, I feel that the creative community has gotten closer, I mean literally smaller, but also tighter and more support amongst the people who are still here. It’s still insanely expensive to try to survive and make art in NYC, though.

You just released your second EP, RIPcumgirl8. That’s an ominous title. Do you have plans to continue with cumgirl8? What else is on the horizon — perhaps another clothing collection? 

Noelle: RIPcumgirl8 is two-fold, but on the surface, it’s an homage to our Instagram that was deleted. We’ve been heavily censored, our YouTube got taken down and — believe it —  even our website started garnishing our sales because they’re...fascists? 

Don’t get me started. But yeah, that’s the first layer. Our identity is entrenched in internet culture, especially chatroom vibes from when we were coming of age. “Cumgirl8” is a screen name. It was really fitting when, after all of this feminist, sex-positive, youth outreach work we did, we ultimately got censored and then deleted. 

The whole point is to push and push and move the needle, so people eventually stop feeling shocked when they see the words “cum” and “girl” together. So it’s par for the course, perhaps. They deleted us right before we hit 10,000 followers, right after we released our first EP. 

Thankfully, we got our old handle back, but we had to start over. There’s a second, dissociative meaning to “RIPcumgirl8” that’s a lot more personal to us, but you can uncover that in the lyrics.   

You can keep up with the band via Instagram. 

And check out the video for the new single “BUGS” right here ...

  

Report: Trader Joe's closed the Union Square wine shop after learning of plans to unionize

According to published reports from this past week, workers at the Trader Joe's Wine Shop, which abruptly closed on June 11, were making plans to unionize. 

Per The Huffington Post: 

Workers at the Trader Joe’s Wine Shop ... spent the last four months laying the groundwork to unionize their store. A small organizing committee met regularly to discuss strategy around building support to join the United Food and Commercial Workers union, and they planned to go public with their effort the week of Aug. 15. 

But in the early morning hours of Aug. 11, Trader Joe’s abruptly informed them it was closing the popular wine shop, its only one in New York City. 

In a statement to Gothamist, a company spokesperson said that its decision to close the store had nothing to do with the unionizing efforts.

A spokesperson called the 15-year-old outpost on 14th Street at Irving Place an "underperforming wine shop." 

Meanwhile, the workers, whom Trader Joe's said they would pay through Aug. 28, have launched a petition demanding that the store reopen as it heads into the busy back-to-school season.

The petition reads in part: 

Like our customers, we were shocked and saddened by the abrupt closure of the Trader Joe’s Wine Shop in Union Square. Most of the staff has been with the company for over 5 years, some since the store opened 15 years ago, and we have loved being part of the neighborhood and our customers’ lives for so long. 

Trader Joe's is not being transparent about its motives for closing the shop. This sudden closure comes just days after our coworkers in Minneapolis, MN, and Hadley, MA, successfully voted to unionize. 

Management in our store knew we were having organizing conversations and were planning on signing union support cards. Closing our store is textbook union busting. This kind of retaliation is exactly why we want a union at the Wine Shop — to guarantee we have real job security, consistent schedules, and wages we can live on. 

Previously on EV Grieve: 

• Here's the midnight email that employees of the Trader Joe's Wine Shop received about the closing on Union Square (Aug. 12)

A visit to Lancelotti Housewares on Avenue A

Interview and photos by Stacie Joy

Earlier last month, Lancelotti Housewares expanded into the recently vacated adjacent space at 66 Avenue A between Fourth Street and Fifth Street. Here, co-owners Jeff Chatterton and Michael Isaacs discuss the expansion, their customers and the reasons that brought them to the East Village.


[From left: Isaacs and Chatterton]

How did Lancelotti come to be and what is its history? When did you purchase the shop?

Isaacs: Lancelotti was first opened in 1996 by Linda Heidinger, who still owns Alphabets. She saw a need for something like this in the neighborhood. She also has a passion for home goods and has an amazing eye for interiors.

In early 2016, Jeff and I got married and we were trying to figure out our next step. I’d been working at Alphabets and Lancelotti for about four years. Jeff had been managing EasternBloc, and we knew we wanted to open our own business.

In mid-2016, Linda came to us and asked if we would be interested in purchasing the store from her. Immediately I think we were a little shocked and not sure what to do, but after much discussion we decided it was an offer we couldn’t refuse.

Why and when did you decide to expand?

Chatterton: I think we wanted to expand the day we took over! We talked about opening another location, but also wanted to take some time before jumping into any kind of expansion. About a year later, we heard that Mast Books was moving to its new location.

Once we learned that the two stores used to be one space and we could easily open the wall up, we decided it was a great opportunity to better showcase our products. I always felt like the store had two different personalities: a utilitarian kitchen store and a home boutique. Having two separate areas made sense.

To what do you attribute your business success?

MI: Well, definitely all of you! People, especially in this neighborhood, love to support small business. It’s what makes this neighborhood so special. People also love to see items in person rather than taking their chances online. To physically touch and see a product makes a world of difference.

We also credit Linda for her vision of the store and what it became. She has an amazing eye for this type of thing. She always found the best items and taught me how to as well. Another thing is the selection of products we try to carry. If someone had to furnish a whole apartment, then they could do so in here, and even more so now. One thing people also appreciate is the customer service. The people that have worked here over the years have helped to make sure people find what they need and are always greeted with a friendly smile.

Who is a typical customer and what is your best-selling item?

JC: I don’t think we have a “typical” customer, which makes things more interesting for sure. We have customers who are 11 years old and customers who are in their 80s, NYU students, people new to the neighborhood and old-school East Villagers who’ve lived here for decades. There are a lot of tourists exploring the East Village, and some international customers who live in places like Japan, New Zealand and India who come by whenever they’re in town.

MI: We sell a lot of candles. One of our more popular brands is the Boy Smells “Cedar Stack” candle. We also sell a ton of printed bowls — they've become a staple in our store and people love to mix and match and have fun picking them out. We definitely sell a lot of our houseware basics, like dish towels, glassware and kitchen tools.









What is your favorite part about being in the East Village?

JC: The East Village still feels like a real community to me, which I don’t always see in other parts of NYC. I think of the first time I saw the "Wigstock" documentary when I was about 18, and Tabboo! singing “It’s okay/to be gay/on Avenue A…It’s Naaatural!”

I think I moved to NYC in 2004 chasing that idea, and Avenue A became my immediate stomping ground. Michael and I met at EasternBloc, a few years later we got married at Bathhouse Studios, and we live in the neighborhood. I think living here helps us understand what people want, even though the neighborhood is definitely still changing.

MI: Like Jeff said, it just feels like a real neighborhood and I have gotten to know many of the people, which makes it feel like even more of a community. One thing I love is the history of the neighborhood. I remember watching Nelson Sullivan’s videos on YouTube of RuPaul and her friends parading around the East Village and especially Sidewalk Cafe, thinking how fabulous it was and how I wanted to be there.

I’m embarrassed to say, seeing “Rent” in Oklahoma, where I’m from, made me fall in love with NYC. I moved out here with my friends for college and all four of us lived in a two-bedroom apartment on Ninth Street between First Avenue and Avenue A. And I haven’t left the neighborhood since!

What’s next for Lancelotti? Any further expansion plans?

MI: Well, currently we are focused on our new side and the existing too, and really bringing in more products the neighborhood needs and just making the store the best it can be. We want to start finding more interesting products that you can’t find anywhere else. I think one thing we always say is we want to get a website up so people can shop with us online and see what we have, but that’s quite a task considering our inventory. But when that’s all said and done we will see what happens.

JC: We’d definitely love to open shops in other neighborhoods eventually, maybe even outside of the city, but that would involve us actually having to leave the East Village occasionally, so we’ll see!


[From left: Chatterton, store clerk Kia Scott and Isaacs]

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

[Photos by EVG reader MP]

Some passersby were shocked yesterday to see that the McDonald's on Third Avenue at St. Mark's Place had shut down. A sign on the door noted, "Sadly, this location is closing."



In June 2015, The Real Deal reported that real-estate investor Arthur Shapolsky was in contract to buy the corner assemblage — 23 Third Ave., 27 Third Ave. and 3 St. Mark's Place — for roughly $50 million. The site could reportedly accommodate a 41,500-square-foot commercial building or a residential one of roughly half the size.

However, Joseph Gabay, whose family owns the properties, told me last night that they have not been sold despite the continued rumors.

"McDonald’s has chosen not to renew their lease after a 20-year run," he said via email. "With the addition of 51 Astor, the dynamic of the square has changed."

As noted earlier this week, Shake Shack is expected to open later this year directly across the street in a corner space at 51 Astor Place.

"With a contemporary brand moving in like Shake Shack and McDonald's leaving the change is evident," Gabay said.

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

P.S.

And what happened to the Golden Arches?

@evgrieve McDonald’s arches removed in armored truck. pic.twitter.com/x7JRDrSRqd

— Jacob Ford (@unitof) June 1, 2017

Out and About in the East Village

In this weekly feature, East Village-based photographer James Maher provides us with a quick snapshot of someone who lives and/or works in the East Village. Editor's note: Given the frigid temperatures last week, we arranged to do this one indoors.

By James Maher

Name: Paul Kostabi
Occupation: Musician, Artist, Producer
Location: 5th Street Between 2nd and 3rd
Time: 10:45 on Friday, Jan. 25

I was born in California and I moved here in 1984. I was 21, fresh out of high school and a college dropout. Music and art brought me here. I had sort of a music career in Los Angeles with a group called Youth Gone Mad and I came out here to chase the music dream. I landed on Rivington Street and opened a rehearsal studio since there were a lot of bands. It worked well and so I got another apartment on Ludlow street.

When I came here it was to play punk rock music and I was sort of shocked when I went to CBGB the first time. In LA, we had 2,000 kids at a show, sometimes 3,000, with helicopters in the sky and riots and all of this crazy stuff that I wanted to escape. So I came to New York and expected it to be bigger. But it wasn’t. It was very tiny. There were like 40 punks at CBGB, but they were important. It meant something. I felt like it had to be here because this is where the important stuff happened.

When I first got here I was like shit, there were like real nutcases walking around, like guys making sounds and hippies with long hair and grey beards and I was like, ‘Oh god, I don’t ever want to ever be that guy,’ but now I feel like I’m almost there. Oh god, I could get there.

On the Bowery we had the winos. It was their own doing or undoing. You’d just walk down the street and you’d have to step over people that were sleeping and passed out all night, with bottles of Thunderbird and Ripple. It had a very Bukowski type of feel to it. Saturday night was a big party because in New York you weren’t allowed to buy alcohol on Sundays and so they all stocked up. Sunday morning was incredible. The winos were all out and they all had their last take-homes from the night before. That was the Bowery and the Bowery Bums. Who would have thought a $200 million building would pop up next to the White House Hotel?

It was wild at the time. There were a lot of bands and a lot of groups. I was playing with them, starting a recording studio and recording them, and kind of discovering bands. One of the bands I was on was White Zombie in ‘85. In California, in the early 80s in the punk world, everyone was doing everything themselves. When I came to New York, even though New York gets credit for doing that, I didn’t notice that. Bands weren’t putting out their own records yet. But the East Village scene was doing that.

Fortunately, I have a music production career and I play in bands and have an art career. I’m still finding bands and producing them. I found this band called Sacco that I’m trying to sign to one of these uptown labels. I’m still in a band called The Damn Kids and I play all the time and it’s joyous. I joined this band in 1988 or ‘89. It’s the people I’ve been with for almost as long as I’ve been here. They were called Hammerbrain and part of the Tompkins Square Riot festivals. We played last [Thursday] night on the RBar on the Bowery.

My art is like a daily diary and past experiences. A lot of it is spontaneous. Now I’m doing these paintings about Hurricane Sandy that kind of destroyed my small place upstate. I’m doing switch paintings that are done with a bamboo branch. I cut one of those, dip it in paint, and literally whip the paintings. It’s flood energy and I’m painting on things that were destroyed in the flood. It’s a switch in style for me. Instead of the figurative expressionism, it’s abstract, although they’re kind of controlled. It’s a disaster series that I’m trying to turn into a beautiful show. The show’s opening on Feb 1 in Pennsylvania.

We used to always paint on the street all the time but you don’t see it anymore. It was good energy. Weather permitting I still do it all the time. The mural on the street last year was for the launch of the company called Bad Things. I’m making plastic device covers with them and the launch was in Colorado but I did the mural here and shipped it out for the event.

I’m at the point of saying, “Made in the East Village” for the covers. That’s where I got all of the inspiration. 30 years later, I go all over the world and travel and it’s sort of an East Village world. It’s influenced the globe. The world’s kind of more like the East Village than the East Village is now.

James Maher is a fine art and studio photographer based in the East Village. Find his website here.

East Village Dance Project is in danger of losing its space on Avenue C

East Village Dance Project (EVDP), a dance-development organization that offers programming for kids and adults, is celebrating its 20th anniversary this year.

Since January 2011, their home studio has been at 55 Avenue C at Fourth Street.

Unfortunately, EVDP is in danger of losing this space.

Bonnie Stein, the executive and artistic director of GOH Productions, which serves as EVDP's nonprofit umbrella organization, said that they need "to find a partner to share the rent and to occupy the lovely ground-floor office."

The previous tenant moved out (on good terms), and the deal for someone new to take the space fell through this past summer. Meanwhile, EVDP can't go it alone paying the full rent.

"Our program is strong," said Stein, referring to EVDP's after-school classes for ages 3 to 18. "But the rent is a big burden on the dance program."

Stein said that there is 400 square feet of office space available. (There's also use of the studio when EVDP is not holding its own classes.) The rent is about $1,800 to $2,000 per month, plus some minor utilities. The space is move-in ready.

Here are some more details via Stein:

GORGEOUS DANCE STUDIO AND OFFICE AVAILABLE.
Fully accessible ground floor

Dance Studio: 24 x 47 feet
Mirrors, ballet barres, windows, private bathroom in the studio

• Available studio hours are:
8 a.m. to 3 p.m. M-F, Saturday after 3 p.m. and Sunday all day.

• NOT AVAILABLE studio time when we have a youth dance program:
M-F 3 p.m. to 8 p.m. (Studio time cannot be after 9 p.m.) Saturday from 10 a.m. to 2:30 p.m.

• OFFICE: 17 x 14, with large windows on the street level, lots of light.
Shared bathroom in lobby.
Can also be used as a small studio, with some modifications.

Rental is variable depending on need, office only, or office/studio combination.

Please contact Bonnie via email here.

"The timeline is pretty fast," Stein said. "We have about three months to really decide if East Village Dance can stay here or move."

Previously on EV Grieve:
A sneak peek at 'The Shell-Shocked Nut'

Tatsu Ramen debuts on 1st Avenue

Tatsu Ramen, with two locations in Los Angeles, opened its first NYC outpost last evening at 167 First Ave.

For now, Tatsu will be opening in the evening hours...

Mark your calendar, our doors open today, 07/24! We’ll be satisfying your dinner and late-night ramen cravings with our temporary limited hours: Sun-Wed: 6PM-2AM Thurs-Sat: 7PM-3AM · Stay tuned for our 11AM opening time in the near future: Sun-Wed: 11AM-2AM Thurs-Sat: 11AM-3AM · Until then, #LateNightsAtTatsu #SlurpOn #✌️ · 🍜 📸: @sgmphoto

A post shared by Tatsu Ramen (@tatsuramen) on Jul 24, 2018 at 8:13am PDT

Here's more about Tatsu, via their website:

Tatsu was founded by a handful of tight-knit USC family who fell in love with Tokyo and ramen. Having tasted the best, we went on a mission to find the best ramen in LA — and were terribly disappointed.

This sparked our (neon) lightbulb to bring Tokyo "home" to LA. We reimagined the typical Japanese ordering vending machine as iPads and flew multiple chefs from Japan to deconstruct the chemistry-laden recipes and have them painstakingly house-made from scratch with natural ingredients (and tough love!).

We shocked the ramen traditionalists by also offering gluten-free option, 100% chicken and vegan broth.

"Tatsu" means dragon and opened its door in 2012, the year of the dragon. It has since become an LA institution that’s frequented by A-listers, hipsters and blacklisters.

You can find the Tatsu Ramen menu here.

The last tenant in this space between 10th Street and 11th Street was Ashiya Sushi, who moved away in 2015.

Previously on EV Grieve:
L.A.-based ramen shop opening outpost on 1st Avenue

Out and About in the East Village

In this weekly feature, East Village-based photographer James Maher provides us with a quick snapshot of someone who lives and/or works in the East Village.



By James Maher

Name: Jose Ilarraza
Occupation: Military, Construction.
Location: 3rd Street between 1st Avenue and Avenue A
Time: 1:30 p.m. on Monday, Nov. 2

I’m from Puerto Rico. I was raised here since I was 11. It was your typical 1970s. I’ve lived on East 2nd Street since I was 11. Back then you had Chinese, Italians, Puerto Ricans, Dominicans. But back then, if you wasn’t doing something right, you were going to do something wrong.

I remember graduating from PS 22, going to Seward Park High School and then I told my friends, "Listen I’m leaving." We had a little group. We had colors back then. Back then the gangs wore colors. We had a little group that we put together called PHA. What it means was Potheads of America. That’s it. "What are you doing flashing colors," they’d say. "Listen, read the back, Potheads of America." "Oh, you guys are alright." It was about 50 of us and we never snatched chains, mugged anybody, never. That was not our thing. Our group looked out for each other. If the group could help you, if you had a problem or something, they’d take care of you.

Did you ever go to cadets when you were young? It was fun. I turned my time into Boy Scouts. I was an Eagle Scout. I was a Scoutmaster. It was something that I followed since I was a little kid. I loved adventure and just the outdoors. I have a story for you. When I was 5, I was watching Hawaii Five-O. I told my mom, "Ma, let’s go to Hawaii." She says, "Let’s go." So I went into the bedroom, took my book bag and put some clothing inside, t-shirt, toothbrush and sandals. I come out running, and I said, "Let’s go!" She goes, "The cab just left."

And I pulled a fit. I started crying and all of a sudden I stopped, and said, "What is wrong with you? That’s not normal." I told her, "When I grow up, I’m going to go to Hawaii. I’m going to go in the Army. I’m going to go to Hawaii and I’m going to marry a Hawaiian girl, and I’m going to have a baby boy." And that’s what I did.

Myself, I can’t complain. I accomplished everything. I was a squad leader. I was E5. I served seven years with the Infantry. I was with the 25th Division. In Hawaii, you have time for everything. It’s a long day, but it’s an enjoyable day. I enjoyed Hawaii immensely. Everything slows down. I got married in Hawaii. I got married to a Wahini. In Hawaii they call girls Wahini. My dream was to marry one of them. And I got married, had a son. It hurt to leave them in Hawaii, but I knew I was doing the best thing, because if I had brought them here I would have lost them to the street. I got divorced, you know, and things were hard, so I decided to come back home.

[When I left for the Army] it started getting worse here. Then I came home in 1985 from the military. I had a year to go, but I saw that my mom needed me more. When I came home, I was shocked how fast and how quickly you had to learn your street smarts. There was a [police operation] called Pressure Point. I [returned] April 19 at seven in the evening from Honolulu to New York. I had a small amount of weed that I brought with me from Hawaii. Back then it wasn’t so strict. At 7:30, I got arrested. I was smoking weed with a friend of mine and the smell was so amazing that the two cops had to go and come right back. I said, "Listen, I don’t have anything. This is all I have. I just landed from Hawaii, from the service."

This place looked like someone threw a bomb. A lot of times someone would set a fire and the building would collapse. A lot of drugs. It felt like, "Wow, man, what happened here?" I would walk around my neighborhood and I would go, "What the fuck happened?" When I got back, I started looking for my friends and a lot of them were dead. A lot of them OD’d or they moved somewhere else. I found a few. There were only a few. And we’re still friends, you know?

After I got out, I was working construction. I was working in a building on Avenue C and 2nd Street. We gutted that whole building and with that I would send my son money. But three months after, I lost [track of] my family. I lost my son. I ended up being the super for like five years. Then I worked in the Garment District. I was the assistant manager of this clothing company, and then after that I went to work for the VA. I worked in the building maintenance. I was also my friend’s personal nurse.

For 24 years, I was looking for my son, and I didn’t give up. And I found him. He was in Las Vegas. I went to see him and found out the reason why I couldn’t find him was because they had moved from Honolulu to Maui. But I did find him.

When I met him, he tells me, "Pops, I was looking for you three weeks ago and it came out that you were deceased." This kid is my mother’s only grandson. I made it my business to find him for my mom. We just spoke about two days ago. He’s dating a Japanese girl, with two little girls. She’s in the Navy; she’s a Master Sargent. My son is a Sargent in the Army. He’s a geospacial engineer. I’m very proud of him. He’s in Fort Hood, Texas, right now. This is his second tour. Twenty-four years I was looking for him. I’ll be honest with you, I thank God for my son. He gives me a reason for living.

James Maher is a fine art and studio photographer based in the East Village. Find his website here.

More details about Immaculate Conception School, set to close this spring

Photo by Steven

More details are emerging about the upcoming closure of the Immaculate Conception School on 13th Street.

This past week, the Archdiocese of New York announced that 12 Catholic schools will cease operations at the end of the 2022-23 academic year.

In a letter to parishioners dated Wednesday, Immaculate Conception pastor Father Kevin Nelan said that the school, down to 135 students in K-8, was expected to lose around $900,000 over the past two years.

"The parish can no longer sustain such deficits," he wrote.

Our Town talked with parents about the closing.

"A lot of the parents are shell shocked," said Carolyn Colon, a mom of a seventh-grade son who also runs the parish Scouting program. She said it comes at a particularly difficult time because parents in seventh grade were starting to scout for high schools and getting ready to take the Catholic school high school admission test early in the 8th grade. "We'll be losing the one person we thought could help us through the admission process," she said, referring to 8th-grade teacher Joan Wise.

And what about the future of the school building between Avenue A and First Avenue?

"I'm sure some vultures [will be] coming around," said Father Nelan. But he said since it shares a lot of facilities with the church, it would be hard to separate. He said he could see renting out the gym to someone like neighborhood pickleballers looking for space. But of the school building, he said, "We'd hope we can help the non-profits and stay in the religion business."