EV Grieve

Monday, July 16, 2018

On the CB3-SLA July docket: Szechuan cuisine for Avenue A; No Reservations on Avenue C

[171 Avenue A]

CB3's SLA committee meeting tonight ... you can find the full rundown of applicants at the CB3 website.

Here's a look at two potential new ventures:

• 171 Avenue A

A restaurant serving Szechuan cuisine and dim sum is in the works for this space between 10th Street and 11th Street.

The applicants, who have not been licensed previously, are looking for a beer-wine license.

Proposed hours are noon to 11 p.m. Sunday through Thursday; until midnight on Friday and Saturday. The PDF on file at the CB3 website includes a sample menu.

Chao Chao, a contemporary Vietnamese restaurant, closed here without any notice to patrons in May 2017 after six months in business. Chao Chao evolved from Soothsayer, which opened in January 2016. Soothsayer, from the same operators, also closed without any notice to patrons at the end of September 2016. The applicants had hoped to secure a full liquor license, but couldn't make the space work with just beer-wine.

171 Avenue A was also the onetime home of Rat Cage Records and 171A, the illegal club-turned-rehearsal studio that produced records by Bad Brains and the "Polly Wog Stew" EP by the Beastie Boys.

[129-131 Avenue C from 2017]

• 129-131 Avenue C

A venture called No Reservations is being proposed for 129-131 Avenue C between Eighth Street and Ninth Street. (Not sure if the No Reservations name is some kind of tribute to Anthony Bourdain.)

The applicants were previously involved with The Grayson, the sports bar at 16 First Ave. The sample menu at the CB3 website shows comfort foods such as burgers, wings and... hot dog sliders.

The proposed hours are pretty varied — 4 p.m. to 2 a.m. Monday to Wednesday; to 3 a.m. Thursday through Saturday (with an 11 a.m. open on Saturday and Sunday)... the applicants are also looking to license the rear garden, which has a different set of proposed hours. You can find the application (PDF) here.

This space was last home to the hookah hotspot Babel Lounge.

CB3's SLA committee meets tonight at the Public Hotel, 17th Floor, Sophia Room, 215 Chrystie St. between Houston and Stanton. The proceedings start at 6:30.

Zen Yai Pho Shop leaving 6th Street for larger space; new concept TK

The Zen Yai Pho Shop was not open this past weekend... This outpost of the Sunnyside-based Zen Yai Pho Shop & Coffee just opened in April at 518 E. Sixth St. between Avenue A and Avenue B.

In an email, the owners explained that Zen Yai is moving to an (undisclosed) new, larger location ... and they will use the Sixth Street space for a new concept.

That Zen Yai Pho Shop was successful enough to move to a bigger space is good news for this address. Last year the storefront saw the quick arrival and departure of both Baron's Dim Sum and Tasty Garden.

Previously on EV Grieve:
Zen Yai Pho Shop coming to 6th Street

GNC closes location in NYU's Third Avenue North retail space

An EVG reader shared the above photo from this past weekend... showing that the GNC outpost on Third Avenue between 11th Street and 12th Street has closed. (The GNC was located in one of the retail spaces in Third Avenue North, the NYU residence hall.)

Signage from the store is in the dumpster out front (FYI) ...

For now, the G of the GNC remains in place...

The GNC arrived here in the summer of 2014. Before that, 79 Third Ave. sat vacant for nearly four years. The space was previously home to East Hardware. A Yogurt Crazy was slated to open here, but that didn't go so well.

Meanwhile, the GNC outpost on First Avenue at 13th Street is still open...

Healthy Greens Gourmet for 10th and 3rd

A quickie follow-up to a post from this past Wednesday... the rest of the signage is up on the northwest corner of 10th Street and Third Avenue... here's Healthy Greens Gourmet...

This storefront was previously the Red & White Spa, which closed at the end of 2017.

Previously on EV Grieve:
Some breakfast and lunch for 10th and 3rd

'A Fresh New Look' coming to the 14th Street McDonald's

[Photo by Pinch]

As noted on July 5, the McDonald's on 14th Street near First Avenue closed without any notice... work permits point to an interior renovation.

This past week, a banner arrived on the plywood promising "a fresh new look" ... meanwhile, workers are gutting the inside ...

An EVG reader left this comment on the previous McD's post:

I live in the building so have this info: They will be closed for 3 weeks and are remodeling: Trying out a mostly black facade in an attempt to class it up.....

Previously on EV Grieve:
The McDonald's on 14th Street at 1st Avenue is now closed, and gutted, for the time being

Sunday, July 15, 2018

Downtown film classics return with 'The Spaghetti Chronicles at Pangea'

Starting tomorrow (Monday!) night, Pangea's back room will play host to a new film series.

Here are details via the EVG inbox...

American Montage’s Eric Marciano and Kevin Malony team up to curate a series of avant-garde downtown film classics every Monday night from July 16 to Aug. 27 at 8 p.m. Served up with $10 spaghetti dinners these $5 cash-at-the-door screenings called “The Spaghetti Chronicles at Pangea” will give you a delectable diet of little-seen and — in some cases — uber notorious downtown hits, including The TWEED Fractured Classicks series, as well as art-house wonders from Marciano, whose groundbreaking work is in the permanent collection at MOMA. It’s a veritable phonebook of household names from the East Village heyday.

Here are highlights from the first two nights in the series:

Screening 1 July 16
Untitled Fracture (Who’s Afraid of Virginia Woolfe?)
Starring: Stephen Pell, Varla Jean Merman, Colleen O’Neill and Shelly Mars
The first of the Fractured Classicks. A legendary cast; an iconic play; a serious fracture that lead to other injuries.

Screening 2 July 23
“Un Chant ‘D’Amour” by Jean Genet (B&W - 25 minutes)
The only film created by Jean Genet “Un Chant d’Amour” offering contemporary viewers more than some unintentional gay giggles. Oh, those French boys!"

“Narrowcast” by Eric Marciano (Color - 21 minutes)
Starring Chris Tanner, Mary Lou Wittmer, Jeff Paul, Don Creech and David Anzuelos
Before Survivor, Big Brother, The Apprentice or Keeping Up with the Kardashian and Ru Paul's Drag Race there was “Narrowcast”, the most prescient film ever made about Reality TV.

The series concludes on Aug. 27 with the "surrealistic gender-fuck noir" "The Mailman Always Comes Twice," a loving tribute to "The Postman Always Rings Twice."

This link has more details on the series.

Pangea is at 178 Second Ave. between 11th Street and 12th Street. Revisit our interview with Pangea co-owners Stephen Shanaghan and Arnoldo Caballero right here.

Hawklet watch on 8th Street

Since fledging on Friday afternoon, Amelia and Christo's chick has been hanging out on a fire escape along Eighth Street between Avenue B and Avenue C. EVG reader Mike shared these ~~bird's-eye-view~~ photos from the scene...

Week in Grieview

[Photo in Tompkins Square Park yesterday by Derek Berg]

Stories posted on EVG this past week included...

After nearly 40 years, Foot Gear Plus is closing on 1st Avenue and St. Mark's Place (Wednesday)

NYU student discusses random weekend attack: 'He got me right to the ground and kept punching' (Monday)

Demolition permits filed for 99-101 E. 2nd St.; first look at the condoplex to come (Monday)

Report: Proposed tech hub appears 'in question' without zoning protections (Tuesday)

Julie's Vintage is closing on 2nd Street (Monday)

Report: LPC wants some revisions to the proposed condoplex for 2nd Avenue and 7th Street (Wednesday)

NYC's first Fithouse is no longer open on the Bowery (Friday)

Mono + Mono reopens on 4th Street after 5-year absence (Tuesday)

This week's NY See (Thursday)

This block of St. Mark's Place lost 2 trees this week (Friday)

There are new plans to expand the mysterious 84 2nd Ave. (Monday)

Young hawk flies the nest (Saturday)

Grey Lady owner looking at new venture for the old Out East space on 6th Street (Thursday)

[Crossing the Bowery the other day via Derek Berg]

A few more details about the new Emmy Squared (Saturday)

East Village Tavern officially (re)opens (Monday)

Taiwan Bear House bringing bento boxes and bubble tea to 10th Street (Thursday)

Dry cleaners where Kim's Video got its start on Avenue A is closing (Thursday)

The Silky Kitchen signage arrives on 13th Street (Tuesday)

Rue St. Denis bids au revoir to Avenue B (Tuesday)

Eggloo closes 1 year in on Avenue A (Monday)

... and workers removed the sidewalk bridge from outside Search & Destroy on St. Mark's Place this past week... a few residents were hoping the bridge next door outside 19-23 St. Mark's Place would come down too... seems as if it's been up for an awfully long time...

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'Low and Slow' on 6th and A

EVG regular peter radley shared these photos of the lowriders that arrived on Sixth Street at Avenue A early last evening...

The cars were here for Cholo Noir's "Low and Slow Night...

SaturdayJuly ,14 @5 pm cholo Noir presents low@and slow night come check out the east coasts dopest low riders in all their class and meet the people who own these gorgeous cars . It will be a LA meets NYC night to remember! #eastcoastlowriders #nyclowriders #lownslow #lowridershow @lowridermagazine @hazardxmedia @jsalyi @lowriderlifemagazine @impalamafia @lowriderscenemagazine @lowriders_and_classics @the_lowriders @lowridersupershowjapan @lowridersunite @lowriderscalemodels @lowriders.li @lowride_x_worldwide @lowridertv @lowrider_oldies_ @lowrider_page_oldies @lowriderclothing77 @lowriderbicycle @100percentlowrider @lowriderflickz @lowrider_daily @hancholodesigns @cholo_sleds @cholo_style_ @chicanos_chicanas @evil_chicanos_car_club @chicano_culture_worldwide @cheechmarinofficial @heytommychong @officialdannytrejo
A post shared by CholoNoir (@cholonoir) on Jul 10, 2018 at 11:30am PDT

The all-day menu features signature dishes from Emmy Squared's Williamsburg and Nashville locations, such as Broccoli Salad with broccoli, radish, pear, dried cherries, peanuts + miso-soy dressing, Spicy Chicken sandwich with salsa pico, pickles, radish, bok choy + homemade ranch and [chef Matt] Hyland’s eponymous burger, Le Big Matt.

A combination of the restaurant’s red and white pies are joined by new selections exclusive to the East Village spot, like the New Orleans-inspired Emmyletta with mortadella, Ezzo pepperoni + olive salad and Curry Row with onions, peppers and cauliflower tossed in Brooklyn Delhi achaar alongside dipping chutneys, an ode to “Curry Row” on the neighboring 6th Street and Hyland’s love for Indian cuisine.

Open first for dinner with lunch service in coming weeks, the bi-level space accommodates over 100 guests upstairs and 30 guests downstairs ... The bar on the second level will open later in August.

Open Tuesday – Sunday; Closed Mondays.

Tuesday + Wednesday 5 pm – 11 pm.

Thursday – Saturday 5 pm – midnight.

Sunday 5 pm – 10 pm.

You can find Emmy Squared menu here.

Previously on EV Grieve:
East Village location of Emmy Squared debuts today on 1st Avenue

Emmy Squared makes it very official on 1st Avenue

After nearly 26 years, Three of Cups is closing on 1st Avenue; Emmy Squared arriving next?