Happy No. 129 to Veniero’s!

Veniero's Pasticceria opened on this day in 1894 on 11th Street between First Avenue and Second Avenue. You can read the EV Grieve opening coverage here. 

You can check out a comprehensive history of the business via Village Preservation.

P.S.

Yes, the VEN was out tonight on the neon signage.

East Village restaurant Cho-Ko comes back into view on 1st Avenue

After nearly three months, workers have removed most of the plywood from outside 59 First Ave., just south of Fourth Street. (We wrote about it on Aug. 16.)

The plywood completely obscured the two storefronts here... Giggles Convenience, an unlicensed cannabis shop, which was already closed.... and the very-much-open Cho-Ko, a homey Japanese restaurant serving a variety of ramen and gyoza. 

Several people we spoke with figured the place was closed... would-be diners had to navigate a plywood tunnel to enter during the sidewalk repair work.

You can find the Cho-Ko website here. They offer delivery via the usual platforms. Phone: (212) 388-0885.

Their listed hours are noon to 2 a.m. daily, with an 11 p.m. Sunday close. 

Saturday's opening shot

A (rare) quiet moment crossing First Avenue at 14th Street early this morning. 

More than an inch of rain is expected in the greater metropolitan (East Village) area today into this evening ... as, per the weather folks, we're getting the rain and wind from Tropical Rainstorm Ophelia. 

And happy fall.

Subsonic Youth

 

Subsonic Eye, an indie band from Singapore, recently released its fourth LP, All Around You. 

The video here is for "Yearning." 

And you can check out the band's brand of jangle pop on tour out at Baby's All Right on Oct. 22.

The 9th Street Block Party scheduled for tomorrow has been cancelled due to rain

The heavy rain expected tomorrow has prompted organizers to cancel tomorrow's 9th Street A-1 Block Association Block Party between Avenue A and First Avenue.

And this will not be rescheduled. As we understand, the city will no longer allow rain dates for events like this.

A shame, as — along with the 10th Street Block Festival — this is one of the best block events around... and organizers have been hard at work planning this year's edition.

H/T William Klayer and Steven 

A last look at vintage video game retailer 8 Bit and Up

Photos by Stacie Joy

8 Bit and Up is expected to close tomorrow — as first reported here — after 15 years in business... most recently at 86 E. Third St. between First Avenue and Second Avenue. (The shop started on the second floor at 37 St. Mark's Place and Second Avenue.)

The owner here is said to be retiring (there's word of an eBay shop ahead).

We stopped by for one more look at this memory-inducing time capsule of video games and consoles from the 1980s, 1990s and 2000s.

As Untapped Cities once said, "The lack of windows, the low ceilings, fluorescent lights and concrete floor seem to recreate our memories of multi-night Counterstrike marathons."

Friday's opening shot

EVG reader Joe shared this photo from last night on 13th Street, noting: "Interesting method to block off drying concrete ..."

Thursday's parting shots

Photos by Stacie Joy

A new mural on the Sixth Street side of Sunny and Annie's at Avenue B courtesy of longtime East Village resident and artist EiLeen Doster...

About Cure Thrift's community-driven new space coming to 3rd Avenue

Cure Thrift is expanding its footprint on the northeast corner of Third Avenue and 12th Street. (H/T Pinch!)

In the months ahead, the eclectic nonprofit that benefits juvenile diabetes research and advocacy will debut The Market at Cure Thrift in the vacant storefront next door (the former Basics Plus, which closed in the spring).

Cure's ownership told us what to expect: 

We are using the basement for much-needed storage for Cure and will be turning the upstairs into a weekend vendors market that is very affordable for second-hand sellers and artists to sell their goods out of! 

During the week, we'll hold specialty events like dollar sales, stuff-a-bag sales, art and rare book nights, fundraisers, etc. It will be an extension of Cure Thrift, but different. It will be community-driven with a strong focus on small businesses, sustainability and affordability. 

The two storefronts were previously connected when Surprise! Surprise! was here (until 2014) ... Basics Plus downsized the space in 2019, becoming two separate retail spaces. 

However, reverting to that previous layout is not feasible now. 

"Unfortunately, we can't connect them since they're technically different buildings, but it's all us. We're very excited. (But we'd love to go back in time to those Surprise! Surprise! days!)"

Cure, which started in 2008, moved to the larger corner space in September 2021... after years on 12th Street between Third Avenue and Fourth Avenue.

ICYMI: The former P.S. 64/Charas is headed to a bankruptcy sale

As we first reported on Sept. 13, the former P.S. 64/Charas/El Bohio Community Center is headed to a bankruptcy sale this fall. 

The auction date for the long-vacant property at 605 E. Ninth St. between Avenue B and Avenue C is Nov. 8... and the qualified bid deadline is Oct. 18.

Yesterday, the Illinois-based Hilco Real Estate, a national real estate disposition services provider, issued a news release about the upcoming sale. 

Most of the information is the same that was on Hilco's website — with an exception (bold ours): 

With an interior that is now down to the studs, the building presents an opportunity for the approved construction of 535 beds for a student/college dormitory or alternatively offers a developer or investor the potential to help mitigate the current homeless and migrant crisis by using the building for that purpose. 

The 135,000-square-foot building is zoned for "community facility use." According to city records, a full stop-work order has been in place via the Department of Buildings since August 2015.

This piece published by THE CITY in March has more background about owner Gregg Singer's efforts here ...

In the 22 years since Singer evicted local activists, he has been unable to get needed approvals to modify the building and garner revenue. In 2006, the city Landmarks Preservation Commission protected the building as historically significant, which prevented any construction of additional floors and protected those elements of the building’s edifice that Singer had not already destroyed. 

Singer’s subsequent plan to turn the building into collegiate dorms were complicated by the arrival of Rule 51, also known as the Dorm Rule, which gives control over the building to the educational institution — rather than the landlord — and mandates 10-year leases. At different times, Adelphi University and Cooper Union tentatively agreed to lease the building before backing out of negotiations, according to court documents. 

Local elected officials have urged all three mayors who have passed through City Hall since the building's purchase to intervene and return the building to the community. None have acted.