Yesterday...
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... and today...
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Photos by Steven
Name: Jay Yang
Occupation: Owner, The China Star
Location: 1st Avenue between St. Mark's Place and 9th Street
Time: Monday, Oct. 17
I’m originally from the Fujian province in southeast China, very close to Hong Kong. I came here in 1996, when I was eight. My sister was the one who took care of everything for the most part since she was older and my parents were working. Later on my father started working with one of my relatives in the original China Star, around 1998 or 1999. He was helping out there.
Starting around 2000, in middle school, my uncle offered for me to help out during the weekends, so I worked Saturday and Sunday as a delivery boy. We saw all kind of crazy stuff. I have one delivery guy, he delivered the food somewhere on 20th Street. The customer opened the door butt naked, and then he offered my delivery guy to come in. My guy was freaked out, so he just dropped off the food and ran.
There were a few times we would deliver food and people were so wasted, they were like, ‘Take my wallet, take whatever and give me the food.’ Other times, we call up and no one answers. We ring the bell, no one answers. We leave a voicemail, no one answers. We usually tell the delivery guy to wait outside for five minutes to give them time to check their phone — nothing happens. They call me the next day, ‘I didn’t get my food.’ I’m like, ‘You do know it’s already been like 9 or 10 hours?’ Especially during weekends, this always happens. I think it happens about six times a month.
In 2005, my family took over the restaurant from my uncle, and I was working most of the time. We were pretty much working seven days a week at that time. It was really tough, and I was kind of miserable — pretty much work and home, work and home. I just worked seven days a week for a good seven or eight years.
It’s long hours and very hard work. I didn’t see myself working in the restaurant, but I promised my dad I would work. I thought I was just going to work for two years and then move on, and somehow I’m still here. I took over completely in 2012 from my parents.
It’s getting easier because after I married my wife, and we have a kid, I hired my brother-in-law to help me out, so I have some time for the family. Life is getting a little better. Running your own business is never easy, especially with what my parents expect for me. They always want you to do what they do, or even better.
It’s changed. We used to have a lot of customers on Ninth Street, all the way from Avenue A to Second Avenue — all these small shops. All the regular customers have either moved out, went out of business or passed away. You don’t have a regular customer anymore. Every once in awhile you will see a regular, but we lost a lot of customers due to moving out because everything got so expensive in the neighborhood. A lot of my customers, they move into the East Village for a short time and they realize that it’s too expensive to live in the neighborhood, then they either move to Queens or Brooklyn.
I realized that I enjoyed learning about business, how you build your business, how you market it. I learned a lot online. Even though the rent is kind of high these days — I just had my rent increased about 40 percent in March. We also use all these major mobile websites, and the commission is very high. It does bring business but at the same time you have too much overhead — but so far we are still doing alright, and I want to expand and open a different type of restaurant in a new location in the future.
“I first listened to Sonny Rollins at the age of 13. His music and his story has stayed with me to this day,” said Councilmember Stephen Levin, the bill’s sponsor.
“Looking around New York City you’ll see plenty of monuments to politicians,” he added. “You won’t see many monuments to cultural pioneers that embody the spirit of the city.”
In the summer of 1959, Rollins, who was 28 years old and at the height of his musical career, stopped performing and recording, and for two years would disappear to the pedestrian walkway of the Williamsburg Bridge, not far from his home on the Lower East Side.
It was on the bridge that Rollins, a native son of New York who lived in the city over seven decades, would practice for up to 16 hours a day.
“Playing against the sky really does improve your volume, and your wind capacity,” Rollins wrote in The New York Times in 2015. “I could have just stayed up there forever.”
During his sabbatical, Rollins also began practicing yoga, started exercising, quit smoking, and worked on improving himself. After two years on the bridge, Rollins became a better, more confident player and a better human being.
Rollins’ decision to retreat from the jazz scene — essentially taking a vow of artistic silence — was considered an extreme act. The only place one could hear Rollins play music was up on the bridge.
When Rollins finally returned to playing in public in November 1961, he was a changed man; a more confident and refined player, but also a radical humanist. He went on to create music for another half century, playing many of the world’s great concert halls and releasing many more albums.
Rollins’ work, part of his life-long pursuit of self improvement, exemplified by his time on the bridge, has provided inspiration for people of all walks of life around the world. He is considered one of the living legends of jazz, the greatest improviser in the history of recorded music, and an artist whose influence transcends music.
Our restaurant offers a wide array of authentic Chinese Food, such as Mala Noodle, Special Hot Dry Noodle, Homemade Beef Noodle, Fried Dumpling.
As part of the Community Parks Initiative, NYC Parks will host a public input meeting to gather community ideas for the redesign of Joseph C. Sauer Park, 12th Street between Avenue A and Avenue B.
The Community Parks Initiative is investing new City resources in parks in communities that need it most. NYC Parks will spend $318 million to rebuild parks in neighborhoods all over the city – including Joseph C. Sauer Park.
Details:
Wednesday, Oct. 18, 6:30 pm
Campos Plaza Community Center
611 East 13th St. (between Avenue B and Avenue C, north side of street)
Refreshments served
"My grandfather was Jerry and my dad and uncle currently run the company out of North Carolina. NY Central was one of my favorite stores to go to when I was younger. I remember the first time my dad took me to meet Steve and I couldn't believe the amount of art supplies they fit in that space and to make it more special, I remember how warm and friendly Steve was when we saw him.
NY Central was a landmark art supply store with the best paper selection in the world (literally). I wish we could offer everything that they did but we are doing the best we can. When Central had officially closed last year, Steve’s son, Doug, approached our family to see if we would be interested in purchasing the remainder of their inventory, the name, and their vendor lists. I understand that we are not NY Central but I hope to keep the store’s memory and Steve’s legacy alive as best I can."
"We think this is a completely personal issue with a very vocal minority in my community and we have proved that the vast majority of the immediate community is in favor of this building permit going through as a dorm for Adelphi, because bottom line is it's a 100,000-square-foot eyesore that has been there forever for no reason."
• Certificate of Appropriateness, 84 Second Ave: Exterior work includes façade restoration; storefront alteration; installation of new dormer at roof; elevator, stair and mechanical additions; and rear-yard additions
The nude body of a 40-year-old woman propiretor of a tailor shop that rents tuxedos on the Lower East Side was found bludgeoned to death. The victim was Helen Sopolsky of 84 Second Avenue, near fifth Street, whose shop is one flight up at that address. The motive of the attack was not determined immediately....
We enjoyed one last dinner at Café Orlin, which closes tonight after 36 years in business. We will miss this place. #nyc #eastvillage pic.twitter.com/bmuggFs5bB
— Christine Champagne (@itsthechampagne) October 15, 2017
The cyclist, who was struck once in the torso and once in the arm, managed to flee and took himself to Bellevue Hospital, where he is in serious but stable condition.
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[T]he building sits on a 24’ x 96’ lot and contains approximately 4,502 SF above grade or 6,810 SF with usable lower level. 345 East 4th Street is in an R8B zone which allows for a total BSF of 9,232 (approximately 4,730 SF of unused air rights are intact).
A new development (of 9,232 SF) could be residential single family/multi-family or Community Facility. The building was formerly used as a religious assembly space and will be delivered vacant upon sale.
It is currently configured with a step-down usable lower level, a former religious assembly space with soaring ceiling height on the first floor which includes mezzanine space, and an owner’s apartment on the top floor. The lower level previously housed building mechanicals but is now used for general storage and can be accessed directly from the street or from the first floor. Lower level and first floor are built full on the lot while the top floor is approximately 51’ deep.
The former religious assembly space benefits from tremendous ceiling heights (20+’) and therefore lends itself well to a user looking for interesting space. The owner’s unit has four rooms plus a kitchen, full bathroom and outdoor roof space. Due to the impending vacancy, the property presents an exceptionally unique opportunity for a developer and/or end user.
Stefen Ramirez and Shin Won Yoon created Tea Dealers with the aim to introduce the highest quality pure, non-blended teas to America. Our tea catalog is a distinctive selection of exceptional teas that focus on cultivation, the artistry of the producer, and the cultural heritage of each origin.
We import teas from India, Japan, Korea, China, and Taiwan and source them directly from the farmers. All of the selections use traditional agriculture methods that do not use pesticides and only natural fertilizers when needed.