ATM
Saturday, December 22, 2018
Christmas miracle on the Bowery
On Wednesday morning, an EVG reader shared these two photos... showing workers outlining lane lines, crosswalks and other traffic markings on the Bowery at Houston...
The reader [sarcastically] thought that the contractors were marking the location for more roadwork.
Checking back in on the intersection... can it be that the never-ending East Houston Reconstruction Project has maybe actually ended???
As noted off and on through the years
The work was initially scheduled to wrap up in 2013 (!!!), but was delayed again and again as the city reportedly ran into problems with existing underground wiring and pipes and unhinged bureaucracy.
The interactive map accessible via the DDC's website now shows a completion date of 12-25-2018!
Free tree times
If you were waiting to the last minute to pick up a Christmas tree ... then you're in luck. There are many trees for the taking curbside... as more people seem to be tossing their trees early this season before heading out for the holidays elsewhere...
Friday, December 21, 2018
A fine swine
Some hazy shoegaze from Ireland in the form of Just Mustard. The video is for a song called "Pigs" from the band's debut album (made Graham Duff's best-of 2018 list) out earlier this year.
JR's neglected 'Gun Chronicles' on the Bowery Mural Wall
JR's powerful "Gun Chronicles" mural at the Bowery Mural Wall is looking neglected, as these photos by Lola Sāenz show...
The panels are peeling ... and it has been tagged multiple times of late (not including the addition of the 11 and Xll)...
JR's mural features images of 245 Americans who represent various viewpoints on the gun debate. The artist collaborated with Time magazine back in late October for this interactive special report on gun violence in America.
EVG Etc.: Tossing a SantaCon coma suit; playing at the 11th Street Bar
[Photo on 7th Street by Derek Berg]
Mayor's office releases report on legalized pot in NYC (Curbed)
Questions over the future of Mitchell–Lama residential buildings in NYC (City Realty)
Lost Clause! "A SantaCon reveler who landed in a coma after falling down a flight of stairs at a Manhattan bar only has himself to blame for the drunken tumble, a judge ruled." (New York Post)
The city's worst landlord? The NYCHA, says Letitia James's office (amNewYork)
Michael Che, Michelle Wolf and other entertainers coming together on Jan. 11 at the Irving Plaza to raise money for NYCHA (Daily News)
Why musicians love playing at the 11th Street bar (The Villager ... previously)
A Tompkins Square Park landmarks quiz (Off the Grid)
Pier 35 is (partially) open! (The Lo-Down)
Small fire at the Con Ed substation on Avenue C (Town & Village)
Space Invader's tiled mosaic of the Ramones is being chipped away in Soho (Flaming Pablum)
Two chances to see "A Clockwork Orange" in 35mm on Christmas Day (Quad Cinema)
Brooklyn’s 315 Gallery relocating to the LES — Henry Street to be exact (ARTnews)
EVG turns 11 today (First post)
And a fond farewell to Slum Goddess, who's retiring her blog after nine fun, action-packed years! (Final post here) Thanks for chronicling those good times at the Mars Bar... and the the World Famous Pee Phone™...
Nicoletta Pizzeria closes 2nd Avenue dining room, plans move to a new delivery-only location
Nicoletta, the Altamarea Group's homage to Chef Michael White's favorite childhood dish (hint: pizza), has closed its dining room on Second Avenue at 10th Street.
Signage points to a new spot somewhere else in the East Village, where they'll continue on, though only via delivery... and no word just yet where the new Nicoletta will live...
For now, though, Nicoletta fans can still order their pizzas for delivery.
The new EV space will also feature new menu items, per their Instagram, and an expanded delivery zone. (Do you remember when they first started, and their delivery zone was: First Avenue to Third Avenue, and Ninth Street to 11th Street?)
Nicoletta opened to SO Much Hoopla in June 2012, including 90-minute waits for tables.
I don't recall anyone saying that the pizza was all that good. Pete Wells was Real Meh on it in an August 2012 review at the Times in which he bestowed the pizzeria 0 stars.
Per Pete:
Nicoletta’s pizzas are not quite deep dish, but they are heading in that direction. The crust is as strong as epoxy, and Mr. White piles it up with an abundance of toppings that would buckle an ordinary pie. In thickness and heft, a Nicoletta pizza resembles the September issue of Vogue.
There was another reason my table never finished an entire pizza: we lost interest. The style of pizza Mr. White is pursuing emphasizes gut-stretching abundance over flavor. The pies are overburdened conglomerations of cheese, flour and fistfuls of other stuff; in the end, the elements cancel one another out.
And the salads?
The salad recipes might have been nabbed from that corner trattoria you stopped going to a few years ago. There is the Nicoletta, with lettuce, red endive and a sliver of focaccia smeared with goat cheese. Or the insalata mare with clams, mussels, squid and octopus, all as tender as an extension cord, all bathed in a dressing that had no effect on any of it.
A look at the EVG archives and our 4568799000223323 posts about the place shows that some readers were tuned off by Nicoletta's T.G.I. Fridaysish interior and corporate vibe and the clipboard-toting host staff standing guard by the door while keeping tabs on those early line waiters.
By August 2013, Eater put Nicoletta on its Deathwatch.
Anyway, Nicoletta has been able to move past all this, enough to relocate to a smaller spot for delivery at least amid more and more competition. How many high-profile pizzerias have opened since Nicoletta arrived? In the last 12 months alone we've had Joe & Pat's, Emmy Squared, Sauce and Sorbillo Pizzeria, to name a few.
Thanks to Steven for the photos!
New signage arrives for Paquito's on 1st Avenue
[Photo by William Klayer]
The new signage for Paquito's arrived late yesterday afternoon... replacing the quick-serve Mexican restaurant's original circa-1992 awning here on First Avenue between St. Mark's Place and Ninth Street...
As previously noted, the family-owned Paquito's closed on Dec. 11 for a renovation.
[Photo by Steven]
The owners expect to be open next week, likely even sooner than the original projected date of Dec. 28. They'll post the reopening news on their Instagram.
Glad to see that the to-go space is working. Paquito's closed its bar-restaurant next door at the end of last year due to a reported rent increase.
Fashion Pickle has closed
[Photo by Steven]
Fashion Pickle, a women's fashion boutique on Ninth Street between First Avenue and Second Avenue that promised "handpicked trends from all over the world," has closed.
There were hints that the shop wasn't going to be here much longer dating back to early October, like when the landlord put a large "For Rent" sign on the awning...
[Photo by Steven]
The shop opened in June 2016.
Hanoi Soup Shop's on for 115 St. Mark's Place
The owners of Hanoi House at 119 St. Mark's Place have designs on opening a soup-centric cafe a few storefronts away here between Avenue A and First Avenue.
Eater brings the news of the incoming Hanoi Soup Shop at 115 St. Mark's Place:
It will be a far more casual affair than their original restaurant, with sandwiches, coffee, and of course, pho. Hanoi House’s well-known, funky and fragrant pho bac — beef-based pho, here with oxtail — will be an option, as will pork terrine banh mi (banh mi cha lua) and Hoi An chicken over rice. Here, a chicken and vegan pho will also be available. Unlike Hanoi House, Soup Shop will be open during the day instead of just for dinner. It’s also about half the size, with counter seating, takeout, and delivery.
No. 115 last hosted the pop-up shop Mr. Bing... The previous tenant, Water Witch Mercantile, closed at the end of 2016 after just two months in business. Past tenants included Box Kite Coffee and the Tuck Shop.
Hanoi House opened in January 2017.
Thursday, December 20, 2018
The East Village-based adaptation of 'The Nutcracker' returns tonight
The fourth annual production of the alternative, East Village-based adaptation of "The Nutcracker" begins tonight.
La MaMa Experimental Theater in association the GOH Productions presents this production of "The Shell-Shocked Nut," featuring an intergenerational cast of dancers and musicians.
Here's more info via the EVG inbox...
In this unconventional take on the seasonal staple, a wandering child and a war veteran suffering from PTSD take a magical voyage through the East Village. The pair of characters visit Tompkins Square Park, Economy Candy Store, St. Mark’s Place, and other East Village landmarks while exploring themes of loss and recovery.
"The Shell-Shocked Nut is conceived and directed by Martha Tornay and co-directed by Victoria Roberts-Wierzbowski. The pair also spearhead East Village Dance Project (EVDP), a dance development program that has offered after-school classes in ballet, modern and choreography in lower Manhattan since 1997.
The show first emerged as a studio showing in the weeks after Superstorm Sandy created as a means of brightening spirits after a challenging time for the community. “I started thinking about the cathartic process of working through a stressful situation,” Tornay said.
The sister and daughter of war veterans, Tornay was inspired to use the structure of the Nutcracker to tell a more personal story of the effects of trauma, while maintaining the accessible, family-friendly nature of the traditional ballet.
In the years following its inception, the piece has grown to a full-scale production, featuring young students from the dance program alongside an array of professional performers, artists and guest choreographers from NYC and beyond.
"The Shell-Shocked Nut" is tonight, tomorrow and Saturday at 7 p.m., and Sunday at 3 p.m. Tickets are $20, and $15 for seniors, students and children 12 and under. You can buy tix online at lamama.org or at the box office: (212) 352-3101.
Contributor Stacie Joy, who has covered the production in the past (here and here) for EVG, shared these photos from rehearsal last night...
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