Long live Gizmo

Given what's happening the next block up on First Avenue with Village Fabrics... here's an appreciation for Gizmo Notion...a seemingly rare breed these days around here...

Appreciating two newsstands before they are Cemusaed

These days, whenever I see a newsstand that hasn't yet been Cemusaed, I'll take a photo... such as these two down in the Financial District...




For further reading:
Two old-school newsstands that are still holding on (EVG)

Union Sq. Newsstand (Jeremiah's Vanishing NY)

Hey Is Dee Dee Home?

Near 315 Bowery.

Flashback August 1996: A two-week tribute for Merlin

I wanted to follow-up on the Merlin's Memorial post from yesterday...



Bob Arihood, who took the shot above, documented the scene on Avenue A and Sixth Street on Neither More Nor Less after Merlin passed away on Aug. 16, 1996...



As Bob wrote:

A wake and vigil of considerable moment, lasting for the better part of 2 weeks , was held in the neighborhood at Merlin's corner . Some nights the sidewalk and street around the memorial were so densely packed with people that it seemed that everyone in the neighborhood and the surrounding communities was attending , crowded together ,all kinds of folks , from all professions and callings , from high and low paying their respects to Merlin .

Here's Merlin on his corner as many people here remember him...



Jeremiah also writes about Merlin today, asking the following: "Could such a memorial happen for a homeless man in the East Village today?"

Another corner prepping for change on First Avenue

159 First Ave. at 10th Street recently went on the market. Here's the listing:

Existing 6 Story mixed use asset with 4 commercial spaces on the main floor and 30 one and two bedroom units. Corner, Walkup apartment building, 100% occupied. 25 Free Market Units, 4 Rent Stabilized Units, one super occupied. 6 homes per floor: 4 One Bedrooms/ 2 Two Bedrooms with a total of 24 One Bedroom Homes and 12 Two Bedroom Homes. High traffic location. Prime East Village. Air rights

.

The current asking price is $12.75 million. Aside from the "air rights" part, there's nothing necessarily alarming about this... But, given the way things are going around here, why not come in, fix up the joint, double the rent, throw a few extra floors on, boot out all the ground-floor businesses for a high-end eatery.... OK, OK.. don't mean to speculate.... but the combination of this with its corner mate on Ninth Street currently looking for a restaurant or two leaves me uneasy...


[Photo by Blue Glass]

On Avenue A, a flower replaces armpit-sniffing photo of Mariah Carey

FINALLY! Since I can remember, Luster Photo on Avenue A between Seventh Street and St. Mark's has had this stupid photo of Mariah Carey in the window. The one in which she's sort of sniffing the armpit and showing off the hair extensions. Why do they have this photo in the window? What does she have to do with the East Village? This is just embarrassing. Back when the store was on Avenue B near 10th Street, they at least had a Lou Reed photo in the window. (Nothing against Luster... it's just that photo!)



But! No more! The store has changed the photo in the front window.




For now, we will savor this moment....

An ode to the truck bomb

As noted yesterday, Cheap Shots — in an effort to be less youth friendly — has done away with the truck bomb (you know, shot in a pitcher of beer)....

And now, in loving memory of wolfing down truck bombs at Cheap Shots, let's travel to YouTube...









Previously on EV Grieve:
Cheap Shots — sans truck bombs and graffiti — gets the OK for a license renewal

Former Western Union now delivering tacos

Workers have been refurbishing the former Western Union location here on First Avenue near 10th Street....



...per the sign in the window, a taqueria is opening here...

EV Grieve Eatery Etc: Plants for 325 Bowery; cherries for Cherry Tavern; Latin for Italian place

Bello's, the Italian place on St. Mark's near Avenue A...



...is ready to debut a new menu.... (and their entire menu of soon-to-be-leftover Italian fare is now 30 percent off...)



The new diner coming to Bowery and Second Street shows off its new plants....




East Village Thai on Seventh Street near Cooper Union is closed for renovations...



...and, based on the sign, it doesn't seem to be reopening anytime soon...



On Sixth Street near Avenue A... the always-reliable Cherry Tavern...


[Photo by Konstantin Sergeyev via New York]

...now has some cherries outside... (and, uh, I can't say for sure when this happened....)




The Film Academy Cafe on Astor Place East wants you to eat wine...



The new restaurant coming to Second Avenue and Second Street has some fancy lights embedded in the sidewalk...



And if you're a fan of Il Bagatto on Second Street near Avenue B, they're closed per usual this time of year until after Labor Day....



The former dry cleaners here on 11th Street near Second Avenue...



...has moved into the former Plump Dumpling space next door... Plump Dumpling moved to the corner at Second Avenue in December, of course...


[Thanks to Blue Glass for this tip]

Dumpster diving on 10th Street

Blue Glass took these shots from earlier today... the fellows seemed pleased with what they were finding in the dumpster on 10th Street near Second Avenue.....

Dining in the dark soon to be a reality on the LES

We've talked a little about last night's CB3/SLA meeting.... The Lo-Down has the scoop on more action, including a new eatery that will generate a good 10,000 or so blog posts among all of us...:

The most intriguing concept of the night came from the team behind “Dans Le Noir,” the “blind dining” franchise from Paris. Having just flown in from France yesterday, the owners walked community board members through an impressive proposal for the former “Tonic” space on Norfolk Street. The idea, they said, is simple: “Diners eat in the pitch dark and are served by blind people, creating an interesting sensory experience.”

Dans Le Noir co-founder Etienne Boisrond, elaborating on the concept, said, “you become the blind and they (the servers) become your eyes.” It’s a fusion menu with french accents. The owners noted that 10-percent of the profits go to charities around the world.

Read The Lo-Down's full report here.

Meanwhile, several people have asked me... I did not get to play the Community Board/State Liquor Authority Drinking Game last night. But these babies are flying off the shelves....

A memorial for Merlin

There's now a tribute to Merlin here on Avenue A at Sixth Street by the ConEd substation.... marking the anniversary of his death.





Per the Times:

There are few certainties in this changeable city. But on Avenue A and Sixth Street, a place that has been convulsed by change in recent years, one thing has remained constant through the riots and real-estate booms: Merlin, a 41-year-old homeless man who uses only one name, has made the intersection's southeast corner his residence for eight years. Neither blizzards nor blistering heat have routed him from atop a set of wooden pallets in front of a Con Edison substation.

"People move in and out of the neighborhood, but I never budge," he said last week, lounging beneath a pair of tattered umbrellas, his only guard against the sting of the sun. A stroke has left him partly paralyzed, and frostbite cost him several toes three winters ago.

To strangers, he is but another intrusion on the East Village's gritty streetscape, a reason to avert their eyes. But to many local residents, he is a cherished asset: a timekeeper, a message center, a town crier and a source of good, solid conversation. "Merlin is a social hub," said Tatiana Bliss, 25, a local artist. "If you're looking for someone, Merlin probably knows where they are. If you want to leave something for a friend, he'll make sure they get it. He makes this crazy city feel like a small town."

[Thanks to EV Grieve reader Anna for the photos]