The Dig outpost reopened last week on the SE corner of Fourth Avenue and 13th Street.
While other locations of the health-conscious fast-casual chain reopened around the city, this one looked all but abandoned ... remaining closed since the NY State on PAUSE of March 2020. A "reopening soon" sign arrived outside in September, however.
This location is open from 11 a.m. to 10 p.m. daily. Expect some outdoor seating here too — they received CB3's administrative approval for it this month.
Dig — still going as Dig Inn at the time — debuted in this storefront in November 2019.
This has been a challenging corner for businesses since the longtime deli was rent-hiked out of here in November 2012. In recent years, the space has been home to Fresh & Co. ... Pie Face and, right before Dig, Sandwicherie.
A few updates on what has (and has not) been happening at East River Park with the East Side Coastal Resiliency Project (ESCR)...
• A Temporary Restraining Order (TRO), dating to Nov. 4, remains in effect at Project Area 1 in East River Park ... the TRO brought the construction/demolition to a halt. Work started on Nov. 1 below Houston Street at the Brian Watkins Tennis Center. (Read more about East River Action's TRO here.)
• A nonprofit sued the city for allegedly not including enough minority- and women-owned businesses in the construction contract for the ESCR. Media coverage includes NY1 ... the Post ... and The Village Sun.
• A third lawsuit (dating to the spring) was brought against the city by The Tully Group, a large contractor that issued one of the two bids for the ESCR.
IPC Resiliency Partners, a newly formed joint venture, was the winning bidder.
In a hearing [Nov. 12] before a panel of appellate judges, Jeffrey Cohen, a lawyer for Tully, argued that IPC effectively fudged its bid in order to meet a city requirement that the contractor have grossed at least $1 billion in revenue in the last fiscal year.
"What we are concerned about almost as importantly as the flooding, almost as important as the ravages of climate change, is the integrity of the bids," Cohen told the judges.
• The DA on Friday declined to prosecute East Village residents Alice O'Malley and Allie Ryan, who were arrested on Nov. 1 for blocking the construction entrance to the tennis courts when preliminary construction got underway.
Per East River Park Action in an email: "They were in and out of court in 10 minutes when their desk appearance tickets were dropped."
• And here's a look at the former Compost Yard ... the city started removing this in mid-October when we took this photo (first reported here) ...
Despite the TRO, work was allowed to continue here ... as the staging ground of the Lower East Side Ecology Center's composting operation was converted into green space to make up for some of the lost park access during construction/demolition over the next four years... here's a look at the area on Saturday...
And for some background... East River Park Action and other advocates say there are alternatives to preserve the park and provide flood protection, such as the one mapped out in the years after Sandy. In late 2018, the city surprised community stakeholders by announcing a complete overhaul of a plan discussed over four years of local meetings.
Opponents of this version of the reconstruction project stress that there's a better path forward to protect the Lower East Side and surrounding neighborhoods from a 100-year-flood event and sea-level rise — one that doesn't cause 1,000 mature trees to be chopped down.
Signage is up now for CR7 Gourmet Deli on the SE corner of First Avenue and Second Street.
Don't know anything about the incoming business... other than that there's plenty of competition for CR7 (named for Cristiano Ronaldo?) within steps of the corner, including Food You Desire 3 and the Deli & Smoke Shop (not to mention the new Manhattan Smoke Shop).
This arrival also means that Spiegel will not be returning to this space. There were rumors of the cafe's return this past summer, and ownership was even on the CB3-SLA docket for a liquor license (application withdrawn in July). The corner cafe opened in 2014 and closed during the pandemic.
Leekan Designs is wrapping up nearly 41 years of business here at 4 Rivington St., just east of the Bowery. (Thanks to @asafeplate for the tip via Instagram!)
The shop, specializing in antique and contemporary beads and jewelry and other accessories from China, Thailand, Indonesia, India, Morocco, Afghanistan, Papua New Guinea, and other parts of Asia, will be open through the end of 2021.
The business started in a SoHo loft before relocating to the LES in 1999. And this isn't the first time the shop was set to close. It was slated to shutter in March 2019, though owner Annie Lee apparently had a change in heart.
Leekan is just open three days a week now, though you can schedule an appointment for other times...
Coming soon signage for PLNT Burger is up now at 139 Fourth Ave. between 13th Street and 14th Street. (Thanks to EVG reader Jeanne Krier for the tip and photo!)
This is the first NYC outpost for the Virginia-based chain that has locations in that state and in Maryland, Pennsylvania and the District of Columbia.
The company is the work of celebrity chef-Food Network star Spike Mendelsohn. He told this to Jennifer Gould at the Post earlier in the fall:
"I'm very excited to be back in New York with a plant-based restaurant, full of advocacy, and doing what is good for the planet," said Mendelsohn, who opened 10 PLNT locations in Pennsylvania and in the D.C. area over the past 18 months.
The Union Square spot will be 850 square feet, focusing on take-out — with four or five seats at the counter. The plan is to open more locations in the city, he added.
This Fourth Avenue space was previously home to another quick-serve concept, Glaze Teriyaki Grill.
The La Colombe Coffee Roasters opens today in the Whole Foods Market® Bowery.
As Eater first reported last month, this is the brand's first New York City roastery.
According to a representative for the company, the new roastery will also offer pastries by Clinton Hill's the Good Batch. Likewise, there will be a new blend made exclusively for this location dubbed the "Bowery Blend" with notes of chocolate, almond butter, and kiwi.
This also marks the ninth NYC location for La Colombe. The listed hours of operation here are 7 a.m. to 7 p.m.
La Colombe takes over this space on the SW corner of Houston at Chrystie from Allegro Coffee Roasters.
As noted back on Friday, Blank Street debuted its third East Village outpost since late October... at 149 Avenue A between Ninth Street and 10th Street.
The Avenue A location is open daily from 8 a.m. to 4 p.m. and carries products from local brands, including King Street Baking Co. and King David Tacos.
Meanwhile, in other coffee news along Avenue A... Peter Brownscombe reports that a regular cup of coffee at Ray's Candy Store is now $1.25, a price increase of 25 cents.
As it has been widely reported, the price of coffee continues to escalate ("skyrocketing," per Fast Company).
Still, as Peter notes, the cup for $1.25 is an excellent value for your money. And FYI: a regular drip at Blank Street sells for $2.50.
Friends will be coming together tomorrow evening (Nov. 22) to celebrate the life of longtime East Village resident David Joffe, who died on Nov. 1. He was 81. (Thank you Eden for the flyer.)
The memorial takes place outside at Trinity Lower East Side Lutheran Parish on the SE corner of Ninth Street and Avenue B starting at 5 p.m.
The evening includes some complimentary food, including hot dogs and fries from Nathan's. (In case of rain, the memorial will move inside Trinity.)
Even if you didn't know Joffe, a flea market vendor, you likely saw him on Avenue A or in the Tompkins Square Park dog run (RIP Cookie) wearing one of his many goofy and/or provocative T-shirts ("Oh No! I'm Becoming My Mother!")
... and a new mural arrived the other day on the NE corner of Sixth Street and First Avenue (outside the Dunkin') ... "Rise by lifting others" by Aída Miró ... thanks to Goggla for the photo...
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Follow EVG on Instagram or Twitter for more frequent updates and pics.
Update: the alarm on the BMW outside Sophie’s at 507 E. 5th St. near Avenue A in the East Village is still going off — now 24 hours in. People egged the car, stole the NJ plates and left a passive-aggressive note. pic.twitter.com/wQcRY8oCAr
You may know the backstory. "Blue" premiered at the 1980 Cannes Film Festival but reportedly didn't get a proper release because it was considered too bleak for U.S. audiences. Thanks in part to a campaign by Chloë Sevigny and Natasha Lyonne, "Blue," a grim, unsettling film featuring an extraordinary performance by a teenage Linda Manz, is receiving a theatrical release.
The thumbnail plot via IMDB: "A young girl whose father [ed note: played by the very Dennis Hopper-y Dennis Hopper] is an ex-convict and whose mother is a junkie finds it difficult to conform and tries to find comfort in a quirky combination of Elvis and the punk scene."
And it may be the most punk rock movie ever made. Per a 2019 essay by Sheila O’Malley at Film Comment:
"Out of the Blue" howls from the center of the whirlwind. Up through its violent and inevitable ending, the film takes punk rock at its word
And...
Our culture rarely welcomes a vision as nihilistic as "Out of the Blue." But the film has a tremendous and frightening power. The most punk rock thing about it is that it stares "into the black" — and it doesn’t blink.
I haven't stopped thinking about the film since seeing it yesterday. You can find the Metrograph showtimes here. The film is also part of Metrograph's "Punks Don't Go Home for Thanksgiving" series.
Longtime East Village activist John Penley has organized a memorial this afternoon in Tompkins Square Park for two longtime friends and Park regulars who died this year — Faith Laugier and Roger White.
The event, to be held in the center of the Park, is also a response to the recent sweep of Seventh Street, in which city officials removed the makeshift housing that had been between Avenue A and Avenue B in recent months.
Penley, who now lives in Las Vegas, is putting this together via Facebook. Per the invite:
It looks like the Prime time to go is all afternoon and early evening on Saturday ... please bring FLOWERS, CANDLES and FOOD for Houseless people and warm clothes too. Leave them in the Park. Peace and Love to all.
White, a local musician, and artist, died on Nov. 8. He was 50 or 51, according to friends. An official cause of death was not released. You can read more about Laugier here.
The former sinkhole has been receiving ample attention in the past week. (Thanks Eden for the initial tip!)
The intersection here at Rite Aid Way now has steel plates covering the new subterranean cavern. Goggla shared the top pic today, still life with a shovel and leaves but no workers or utility vehicles in sight...
In September, Howl Arts debuted a 7,000 square-foot facility at 250 Bowery. (Howl! Happening, which opened in 2015 at 6 E. First St., will remain in use as a gallery.)
The new space goes by Howl! Arts/Howl! Archive, which "expands upon Howl! Happening's innovative exhibitions and public programs and focuses on the thriving multi-dimensional artistry and history of the East Village/Lower East Side."
Earlier this fall, EVG contributor stopped by the space between Houston and Stanton for a look around... courtesy of Jane Friedman, Howl Art's founder and executive director ...
East Village-based artist Scooter LaForge was also on hand...
The space includes three exhibition galleries, a library as well as screening and reading rooms. It also serves as the headquarters for Howl Arts, which purchased the commercial space here in 2018.
Howl! Arts/Howl! Archive is open Wednesday through Sunday from 11 a.m. to 6 p.m. You can check out their website for a list of exhibitions and other info.
The full Beaver Moon of November 2021 passed through Earth's shadow in a partial lunar eclipse overnight on Nov. 18-19 in what was the longest eclipse of its kind in 580 years.
He reports that the event here was almost rained out (ed note: stupid rain):
After a long, cold and drizzly night, the clouds over 2nd Avenue finally parted, revealing a slow eclipse of the Moon that was already in progress. Three or four times from 3:15 to 4:30 a.m., the Moon disappeared behind the clouds, and came back out, and each time I had to reset the (icy cold!) telescope ... and take a few photos.
And props to Amy for coming out and helping Felton get the telescope back inside.
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.
