Le Café Coffee adding new location on 4th Avenue

The folks at Le Café Coffee have carved out a second Union Square location here at 145 Fourth Ave. between East 13th Street and East 14th Street. (The other Le Café is around the corner at 7 E. 14th St. between Fifth Avenue and Union Square West.)



Not sure about an opening date — looks close to being ready.

Whenever they do open up, they'll have plenty of competition in the area … with the Wayside on East 12th Street just west of Third Avenue ... City of Saints Coffee Roasters on East 10th Street between Fourth Avenue and Third Avenue ... Third Rail Coffee on East 10th Street near Second Avenue ... Think Coffee on Fourth Avenue between East 12th Street and East 13th Street... Everyman Espresso on East 13th Street west of Third Avenue… Pushcart Coffee on Third Avenue at East 12th Street ... the Bean on Broadway at East 12th Street ... not to mention two Starbucks on Union Square… and the Dunkin' Donuts on East 14th Street between Fourth Avenue and Third Avenue ... and all the other places that I'm forgetting…

An afternoon scene in Tompkins Square Park

Photo today by Michael Sean Edwards...

Previously on EV Grieve:
A brief history of humiliating Teddy bears in the East Village

EV Grieve Etc.: Landmark potential for 138 2nd Ave.; Richard Hell at the Strand

[2nd Avenue photo by Derek Berg]

138 Second Ave. up for landmarking (DNAinfo)

A 'super awesome Mario Kart set-up' on East 10th Street (Gothamist)

The joke Craigslist ad for a 'hip artist loft' on the LES that was actually a bar's bathroom (Jezebel)

Richard Hell launches his new essay collection, "Massive Pissed Love," tomorrow night (Strand books)

Alexander Olch discusses the incoming Metrograph cinema on Ludlow Street (The Lo-Down)

No more horse patrol on Hell Square for now (BoweryBoogie)

Because there haven't been enough Black Seed-bagel-opening stories (WWD)

Previewing the Will Ferrell-themed bar called Stay Classy on Rivington (Eater)

A review of Bruno Pizza on East 13th Steet (Grub Street)

Iggy Pop at age 19 (Dangerous Minds)

… and, randomly, a photo of Jack Black outside 770 Broadway (HuffPost/aol, etc.) on East Ninth Street yesterday afternoon…


[Photo by Derek Berg]

In progress

Here's a look tho morning (above) at the mural by Dasic Fernández that has been going up on St. Mark's Place between Avenue A and First Avenue the past few days…

And here's a look at the mural from yesterday morning…

The disappearing 253 E. 7th St.

[Image from 2014 via Massey Knakal]

In July 2014, we reported that 253 E. Seventh St., a townhouse between Avenue C and Avenue D, was for sale.

The listing for the vacant, four-story building noted that the buyer could keep the existing structure and add floor area. Or! "The buyer could demolish the existing and structure and build a new ground-up development."

Well, as we noted previously, the buyer opted for plan B.

An EVG reader who lives nearby shared photos of the demolition underway… (Another neighbor noted that the asbestos removal started in late 2014.)



Per the reader: "Brick by brick, 253 East 7th Street disappears into history, clearing the way for luxury development."



There are permits pending approval at the DOB for a 6-story building with six residences.

The building exchanged hands in August 2014 for $4.3 million to an LLC with a Grand Street address.

Previously on EV Grieve:
Options for this lovely East 7th Street townhouse include demolition

New building in the works for 253 E. 7th St.

Picturesque ivy coming down on East 8th Street

The abundant ivy on the east-facing wall that frames the De Colores Community Yard & Cultural Center on Eighth Street between Avenue B and Avenue C won't be around for much longer.

A volunteer gardener at De Colores explained that the ivy has been obscuring some windows at 309 E. Eighth St. and has been harboring an untold number of pests. ("Lots of bugs, rodents, squirrels, bees, wasps, birds — you name it.")

In addition, parts of the wall that haven't been covered with ivy are also damaged, so there's some hope that the landlord (Steve Croman) of the gut-renovated building will make some repairs on the exterior.

The ivy is nearly 3-feet thick in areas and is nearly 60-feet high.

"The main roots — the size of a tree trunk — have been cut and it will probably start dying soon," the volunteer gardener said. "People love the ivy and stop and take pictures of it all the time, so here's your last chance."

Sixth Street Yoga Junction now open in the Sixth Street Community Center

Sixth Street Yoga Junction opened on Oct. 5 … they are located on the third floor of the Sixth Street Community Center, 638 E. Sixth St. between Avenue B and Avenue C.

Here's more about the studio:

Sixth Street Yoga Junction is a community yoga studio in the East Village of New York City. We offer affordable, vinyasa based yoga classes for all levels. This "junction" is intended as a meeting point for the community as well as a joining of attention, body and breath within ourselves as we practice. We offer you a welcoming space and the guidance to cultivate a relationship to your inner experience.

You can find pricing and more info at the Sixth Street Yoga Junction website and Facebook page.

Free Rat Academy on Friday

Via the EVG inbox...

Free Rat Academy
Friday, Oct. 16
4:30 p.m. to 6:30 p.m.

Dias y Flores Community Garden
520-522 East 13th Street, between Avenues A & B

Kindly RSVP to any of these contacts:
ratportal@health.nyc.gov
646-957-0247

And this is just mere blocks from where Pizza Rat made international headlines several weeks ago… though there's no way of knowing if Pizza Rat will be around for this…

Your friendly neighborhood Spider-Man

Spider-Man fighting overdevelopment on Avenue A and East 11th Street?

Photo today Grant Shaffer

3 new retail tenants for 51 Astor Place: Bluestone Lane Coffee, Chop’t and Flywheel Sports

[EVG file photo]

Here's the news via the EVG inbox...

SRS Real Estate Partners announces the signing of three retail transactions at Edward J. Minskoff’s 51 Astor Place. Leases were recently executed with “best in class” operators Bluestone Lane Coffee, Chop’t Creative Salad Company and Flywheel Sports.

These three tenants join CVS at the building, further transforming the Astor Place streetscape and enhancing the amenities for the office tenants and surrounding neighborhood. Only one retail space remains in the 400,000 SF Fumihiko Maki-designed tower.

Here's more about Bluestone Lane Coffee, which has five Manhattan locations:

Bluestone Lane offers a refined product proposition dedicated to producing the highest quality coffee and complimentary foods, delivered in an engaging way. We are focused on creating environments where customers are immersed in the experience and leave feeling like a local.

Bluestone Lane Coffee is influenced from the renowned coffee culture hub of Melbourne, Australia, where premium coffee is a way of life.