Knife and Fork, fish and chips... under one roof

Eater reports that the chef from Knife + Fork, the East Fourth Street eatery that closed closed in June, will revive his old restaurant in the upcoming Percy's Tavern on Avenue A at 13th St. As Eater reports, Percy's will be in the bar section, serving pub fare like fish 'n' chips. And beer. This is at the former Al Diwan space.

The Knife + Fork chef is Damien Brassel. Back in June, Percy owner Larry Watson, an East Village resident, brought his chef with him to the CB3/SLA meeting. He said that he aspires to be like Northern Spy around the corner on 12th Street. And he mysteriously wouldn't name the Michelin-starred restaurant where he currently works out of fear of losing that job. (Watson said everyone will be suitably impressed when they hear where he worked.)

But I don't think the chef with Watson that night was Brassel....

Report: SLA yanks Aces and Eights' liquor license

The Lo-Down has been following the Aces & Eights saga. And as they report today:

One of the reasons Aces and Eights succeeded in conducting business without a basic operating permit from the city’s health department was that the previous tenant of 34 Avenue A, Mo Pitkin’s, had possessed a permanent liquor license. That allowed the Aces and Eights management to secure a temporary liquor license and to open its doors (in April 2009) without having to produce any city permits — while its own application for a permanent license was pending. The city shuttered the bar Sept. 14, after finally catching up with the paperwork loophole.

Late last week, the NY State Liquor Authority followed suit, yanking Aces and Eights’ right to serve alcohol.

Aces and Eights still closed; new bar looking to rebrand and change image

One week after the DOH shuttered Aces & Eights on Avenue A... the bar remains closed...



...groups with events planned for the bar have had to go elsewhere....



On our previous post, Jamie-Lynn Argenta, the new general manager of Aces & Eights LES, left this comment:

Aces & Eights Saloon LES has been closed by the Department of Health and Mental Hygiene due to paperwork and permit issues. We will be open Monday. I am currently General Manager of the bar; my name is Jamie-Lynn Argenta. I understand that our image has been tarnished because of prior wrongs, however I hope we can look towards building a more cooperative and cohesive bond with the community in the future.

We strive to be a positive, successful force in this community. As the former GM Tom Michaelsen pointed out last year on EV Grieve , Aces & Eights LES has made many charitable contributions. We have also supported our customers’ efforts to give back by hosting numerous fundraisers for a wide array of charitable causes, and we will continue to do so when we reopen. This bar strives to be viewed as a professional and respectful establishment within this community. And I would like to encourage people to give us feedback and help us foster our growth with the community.

As EV Grieve posted, we will be changing the name of the bar. Aces & Eights LES will be holding a naming contest when we reopen and I am hoping to get input and support from not only our staff and customers, but also from residents in East Village and Lower East Side . It will give people a chance to help us rebrand and change our image; it will give residents an opportunity to help shape what kind of establishment we will become. We look forward to serving you again.

Monday may have been a little optimistic ... in any event, are you willing to give the bar a second chance?

Clearing up any bagel rumors

Apparently there are some rumors about how Christopher Pugliese plans to operate Tompkins Square Bagels on Avenue A once it opens. He left this comment about the speculation:

I am NOT, NO WAY, EVER, going to stay open 24 hours. I'm 40 years old with a wife and (hopefully) kids on the way. 24 hours ain't going to happen. All 40 of said years have been spent on the streets on NYC. I understand, and have respect for the fact that people LIVE HERE. My Nana and Papa, Mom and Dad, me, we all grew up in busy parts of town. I'm not going to let anything happen in my shops that I wouldn't want to happen if they were living upstairs. THE STORE WILL NOT BE LOUD OR NOISY. But don't take my word for it, go and check out my other shops in Brooklyn and see for yourself. We are small time, hard working, decent guys. WE DON'T and never will sell cigarettes, whatever those things are called that kids roll joints with, beer, win, or lottery tickets. PLEASE, before you go and make all kinds of bad feelings and accusations, get your facts in order.

You may read the rest here.

Previously on EV Grieve:
Coming this fall to Avenue A: Tompkins Square Bagels

Looking for Joey Ramone Place

I wrote about the Joey Ramone drink at Peels on Monday.... some people pointed out that this actually made some sense seeing as Peels is on the corner of Second Street and the Bowery — aka Joey Ramone Place.

True. So I thought I'd walk by and check out the street sign. Don't recall seeing it lately.... So I looked...



...and looked...



...and looked...



....and...



...and...




Oh! There it is way up there!




For a moment, I thought the sign had been ripped off again. (Or removed by the city.) How many times has it been stolen anyway? Five? So now it's up there pretty high ... out of the reach of thieves... The sign first went up in November 2003.

Also, the Times has a great piece from October 2001 ... when the idea of Joey Ramone Place came before CB3. According to the article: "only two of the eight board members said they had heard of his band, the Ramones." They even asked for a Ramones primer...

Today's drink special: The Joey Ramone

Speaking of The Joey Ramone... an old friend of Joey's sent this photo along...



It's the work of rock photographer Joe Stevens (aka, Captain Snaps), who gave me permission to post the picture ...

Paint job at 347 Bowery brings an end to random Heath Ledger graffiti

Someone recently slapped on a coat of paint over the graffiti at 347 Bowery, the former Salvation Army East Village Residence that was almost turned into a sushi empire....

Before!



Now!





And the paint has covered up the two-year-old graffiti... "Gemma Ward killed Heath." ... not to mention the Circle-A anarchy symbol ...



So, anyway, why the paint job? (Workers are repairing the sidewalks too.) Is it being spruced up to woo another tenant? Koi bailed at the beginning of the year....

Post: NYPD has suspects in 1996 murder of Second Avenue Deli owner

Per the Post today:

Cops have finally zeroed in on several possible suspects in the fatal shooting of beloved Second Avenue Deli owner Abe Lebewohl in 1996. Authorities said that development — along with a whopping $130,000 reward — could soon solve the baffling slay case.

On March 4, 1996, Lebewohl was about to make his Monday morning deposit at the NatWest Bank at Second Avenue and Fourth Street when he was shot and killed by unknown assailants.

No sleeping by the Food Emporium

Our friend AWKWORD sent these photos from outside the Food Emporium on Union Square from a little big ago ... a young man asleep...



...was quickly moved along by the NYPD...

As the bagel rolls

As we first reported back in July, Christopher Pugliese planned to open Tompkins Square Bagels at 165 Avenue A... Then! Plans were changed, and he was expected, instead, to open a few storefronts to the north at 171 Avenue A..

Pugliese, who owns the three Bagel World shops in Brooklyn, told me yesterday that he has gone back to 165 Avenue A — and he has signed the lease. A late fall opening is still expected.

He also has encouraging words for small-business owners. "It's a tenants market right now. Don't be afraid to negotiate and be tough about it. If you have a good biz and can pay your rent on time, it actually means something right now," he told me. "That and the fact that — seriously — I would not even be in the game if not for the people at CB3 and the folks (especially Avenue A residents) who put the kibosh on bar after bar after bar."

Previously on EV Grieve:
Coming this fall to Avenue A: Tompkins Square Bagels

A letter about Sin Sin

Last night, members of the East Fifth Street Block Association (and others) convened for the monthly Ninth Precinct Community Counsel meeting....

One nearby resident, Nina d'Alessandro, couldn't make it due to work commitments. This is the letter she asked to be read during the meeting:

I've lived on this block at 231 East 5th Street since 1978 and have seen the neighborhood--and the corner of 5th Street and Second Avenue -- through many changes. The situation at Sin Sin ranks with the worst I've witnessed in all these years.

I'm afraid for the young people who get into fights in the streets below my window. I'm afraid for the pedestrians who might happen by at the wrong moment when violence erupts yet again among the club's patrons. I'm afraid for the residents of this block. I've reached the end of my understanding, good will and patience because the patrons of the club are so rowdy, violent and noisy that I don't sleep until 5 or 6 in the morning over the weekend.

The noise and violence keep me up, frighten me, frustrate and anger me and affect my health, my daily life and my livelihood.
I normally use my weekends to get work done, as well as to see friends and relatives -- I discourage visitors these days because I know they won't sleep if they stay in our apartment. I can't get my work done because there is so much noise in the street at night that I have to sleep in the daytime.

The situation at Sin Sin is affecting my ability to do my job and take care of myself. While the club's owners have a right to make a living, it shouldn't be at the expense of the block's tax-paying residents.

The death of Mr. Thompson outside the club last month was tragic and predictable. I have a sickening sense that there will be more violence. Last Saturday night, September 18 -- really the morning of September 19 -- was the final straw: young people were screaming, fighting, doing drugs and drinking, dancing, and playing their parked car stereos at such high volume that my windows were rattling. Three times, they stopped when the police and/or the Sin Sin staff ushered them away from the middle of the block between Second Avenue and Bowery, and then within ten minutes they returned started up again. I really thought I would go crazy...

Something has to be done to protect the residents as well as our safety and general quality of life, or the neighborhood will change for the worse, all over again.

[Updated: Patrick Hedlund reported on the meeting for DNAinfo. The sister of Devin Thompson confronted the Sin Sin owner about the deadly shooting.

When it's easy to get a cab

From Sunday morning on Second Avenue at 13th Street. On her way to church?