All is well at Northern Spy

The folks at Northern Spy sent us a tweet earlier today in response to our report this morning. Per the tweet: "all's well, our peeps handled it as best they could considering the guy's state." I asked if anyone there knew the man who was arrested. Northern Spy said that it was random, though the man does live nearby.

Previously on EV Grieve:
Wild scene in front of Northern Spy this morning

16 Clinton St. primed for demolition

An EV Grieve reader brings bad news about 16 Clinton St.



According to the work-crew foreman, the building is being primed for demolition, thereby — among other things — displacing Connie, the longest-term resident of the block, and its unofficial guardian. The large yard behind the building is being dug up in preparation for the two plots to be thrown together to create at least a six-story building, according to the reader.

No permits are on file with the DOB for 16 Clinton St. However, there is a stop-work order.... there have been six complaints in the last few days about work being done without a permit. Regardless, workers were still on the scene today....

Balloon porn discovered in Tompkins Square Park

Thanks to EV Grieve reader Blue Glass for this shot... yesterday at the Carnival for Tompkins Square Middle School in Tompkins Square Park.... some mischief, perhaps, with the balloons... And at an event for kids. For shame. Maybe the Penistrator was making a non-wintertime appearance to keep us on guard...

Wild scene in front of Northern Spy this morning

A reader notes a disturbance this morning on 12th Street between Avenue A and Avenue B... in front of Northern Spy, where a man in a gray t-shirt and shorts was trying to enter the restaurant.

Per the reader, who also provided the photos: "Some of the guys from the restaurant were trying to restrain him and kept telling him to get down on the ground, but he wasn't listening, and he was even trying to open the door to get into the restaurant. All in all, it was about six guys trying to get control over him."

The man's t-shirt was torn to shreds by the time police arrived. The man was placed inside an ambulance. "I suspect the guy was either drunk or mentally ill."

Brunch at 7A: eggs benedict, pancakes and please don't shoot up in our restrooms

A new (old) sign for the Grassroots

Well, the old sign at the Grassroots on St. Mark's Place had been looking a little worn...



So, over the weekend, a nearly identical new sign went up...



No complaints here.

Tough times for First Avenue bars: Lilly Coogan's and Cheap Shots are closed

Over the weekend, we noticed that Lilly Coogan's on First Avenue near Sixth Street was closed. And the bar's phone number was not in service... So... several people have confirmed that the bar did close more than a week ago... As I wrote Saturday... I've never been to Lilly's, the former site of one of my favorites, the Homestead...

Meanwhile, as NYC the Blog (via Gothamist) reported that cops shuttered Cheap Shots between St. Mark's Place and Ninth Street...



Per NYC the Blog:

After serving underage auxiliary police officers on at least three occasions as of late, as well as being the scene of a couple of physical kerfuffles, the City of New York had enough. Allison L Arenson, attorney in the office of the Legal Bureau of the Police Department and plaintiff in this case, has laid out the city's case in pages of arguments, which were laying on the sidewalk out front.

"The community has severely suffered and continues to suffer, as a result of the illegal activities...interfering with the health, safety and well being of those who live, work and visit in the surrounding neighborhood."

"It can not be denied," she wrote, "that the subject premises is a public nuisance, and as such should not be allowed to remain open even one more day."

Previously on EV Grieve:
Lilly Coogan's RIP?

Help Cosmic Cantina with the leftovers

Stop by today after 4...

Previously on EV Grieve:
Cosmic Cantina is closing

Get your Juicy Lucy: Another burger joint for the East Village

Whitmans is now open on Ninth Street near First Avenue...



Until their dining room opens... per their sign, you can order the Juicy Lucy burger from the counter...



Previously on EV Grieve:
Burger joint fad continues: Select Burger coming to First Avenue (aka Burger Alley)

Never so happy to see a McDonald's billboard

Atop Fourth Street and the Bowery:

Before!




Now!




Previously on EV Grieve:
On no...no no! NO! NOOOOOOOOOOOO!

Western Chinese cuisine coming to St. Mark's Place

East Village Feed and I had been talking about what's going into the former Seoul Station location on St. Mark's Place near First Avenue.... (photo via EVF)....



...and now we know...some western Chinese cuisine...

Hope that you survived the tornado tonight

Uh-huh.

Tornado watch for NYC area

Bloomberg will do anything to make NYC more suburban!

[Heh.]

Post intern now very unpopular among underage drinkers

The Post sent a 20-year-old intern into various bars and bodegas, mostly in the East Village and Lower East Side, and discovered that -- OMG! -- many places served him a drink... even though his New Jersey license showed that he is underage.

Per the story:

He got served at an astonishing 17 of 30 establishments -- 57 percent -- despite the stores and gin joints facing fines up to $10,000 and the loss of their state liquor licenses.

Many of the spots, selected randomly from among 132 places with underage State Liquor Authority violations from May 1, 2009 to May 1, 2010, never bothered to ask the college sophomore for his ID -- a valid New Jersey driver's license showing his birthday, Aug. 29, 1989.

And!

At Kate's Joint, at 58 Ave. B, a female bartender asked for his ID, looked at the license briefly and poured the intern a Blue Moon draft, waving at the owner herself, Kate, as she sat at the bar, which had two signs cautioning that drinking was not legal for those under 21.

Her only question: "Would you like some orange wedges with that?"

A male bartender at Cosmic Cantina, at 99 Third Avenue, looked over the license before selling the intern a bottle of Dos Equis for $5. He then said, "This is for you," and poured a free shot of tequila. When the intern walked out, the bartender encouraged him to take the open but untouched beer with him.

A few things about this story:

--Why would anyone order Blue Moon? It tastes like moldy water.
--Did he accept the orange slices?
--I like the bar at Kate's.
--Cosmic Cantina's last day is today... they didn't renew their lease.
--Did he drink any of the beers? What a waste of a lot of drinks!
--This sounds like any other weekend around here.
--Been more interesting to do this story while NYU is in session...when bartenders are seemingly more vigilant about the kids looking for some drinks...

[Photo by Angel Chevrestt for the Post]