Friday's parting shot

Please do not bang on glass plastic. 

 NOTED at the East Village Prescription Center on Avenue A and Third Street... pic by Stacie Joy...

You give love a bad...

 

Dehd's new single, "Bad Love," debuted this week (appropriately enough on Feb. 14 and featuring another rather campy-goofy video — this one is still a fave) ... this is the Chicago-based band's first single from the upcoming album Blue Skies, out on Fat Possum May 27.

And Dehd will be at the Bowery Ballroom on May 24.

[Updated OMG] An Avenue A product available on Avenue A: an investigation

The other day, EVG reader Nancy shared a photo of Avenue A napkins, which she said she purchased at Key Food on Avenue A.

This email caused some confusion in the EVG Newsroom. As far as we knew, Avenue A products — some 370 strong (for real) — were sold exclusively at Associated.

We thought Nancy was confused... perhaps she was at Associated on Avenue C and Eighth Street. (We make this mistake all the time and only realize it when we don't hear any Mike + the Mechanics or Glass Tiger playing via the store sound system.) 

So we headed over to Key to see for ourselves. 

We don't recall ever seeing Avenue A products here. (Then again, we never realized that Key sold firewood, which was upfront by the birdseed and those big tins of Keebler Export Sodas that no one has bought since 1994.) 

Sure enough, one pack of Avenue A napkins was left this morning ...

... seemingly a popular pick at $2.99...

So we don't know why (at the moment) an Avenue A product reserved for Associated, Met, Pioneer and Compare Foods brands ended up here. 

Meanwhile, the firewood is nearby now...

Updated 7:33 p.m. 

Thankfully, EVG Senior Key Food Correspondent Stacie Joy is on the case now... 

An explanation: According to the store, the issue is that this brand has just become available at the distribution warehouse. So the warehouse is where KeyFood/ManDell shops, and you can select/order anything listed as available at the warehouse. This brand is now listed as "available," so Key bought it and stocked it. 

There are three products from this line now at Key: the napkins, paper towels and, oddly, crackers.

The 1980s East Village as seen through the lens of photographer Peter Bennett

Last June, we reported on the passing of Arthur Enrique Guerra, the founder of Guerra Paint & Pigment on 13th Street. The post included a photo of Guerra's mural on St. Mark's Place of John Spacely, aka Gringo, from 1983. Peter Bennett took that iconic photo of the Gingo mural. 

Bennett, a native New Yorker who now resides in Los Angeles, recently shared more photos from the era. He grew up in Greenwich Village and lived in the East Village from 1979 to 1988. (You can read more about him here.) He gave us permission to post these EV street scenes from the 1980s. (Top photo is outside the former Love Saves the Day on the NW corner of Second Avenue and Seventh Street.) 

Here are a few more shots from his archives (click on the image to go big)  ...  

St. Mark's Place...

Second Avenue at Seventh Street...

Second Avenue at St. Mark's Place (NW corner) ...

Second Avenue at St. Mark's Place (SW corner) ...

Seventh Street between First Avenue and Second Avenue...

Fifth Street at Avenue D ...

Fifth Street near Avenue C...

There are some more photos here. 

If you liked these, perhaps we can have an encore one of these days. Thanks to Peter for sharing!

Looker has closed on Avenue B

A for-lease sign is hanging now on the door here at 42 Avenue B between Third Street and Fourth Street, marking the official closure of Looker. 

The bar-restaurant, serving vegan bar food and cocktails, debuted this past April... a sibling to the former occupant here, Post. (Post is open in a larger space around the corner at 217 E. Third St. between B and C.) 

In an Instagram message, ownership told us that business was off, which was made worse during the omicron-fueled COVID surge in December and early January. 

Thank you to Vinny & O for the photo

Thursday's parting shot

Last Christmas, I gave you my beer 

But the very next day, you gave it away

This year, to save me from tears 

I'll give it to someone special 

As seen today in Tompkins Square Park... thanks to Eden for the pic!

[Updated] City is removing abandoned curbside dining structure on Avenue A and 6th Street

City crews are on the NE corner of Avenue A and Sixth Street this morning dismantling the abandoned dining shed outside the now-closed August Laura. (Thanks Goggla for the pic!) 

As of this writing, they have yet to remove the restaurant's longer structure on Sixth Street.

As previously reported several readers-residents have complained about the structure on the Sixth Street side. The bar-restaurant August Laura closed in the corner space here in early December. Neighbors say the space has become "a 24-hour shooting gallery."

Complaints to the city on these two structures date to Dec. 23.

To be continued...

Updated 9:46 a..m. 

Sixth Street side is coming down... pics via Goggla....

Updated 2 p.m. 

And later... thanks to Steven for the photo on the Sixth Street side...

Eileen Fisher makes 9th Street closure official

Photos by Steven

As a follow-up to our previous post (from Feb. 7) about the Eileen Fisher storefront on Ninth Street: The shop has made its closure official.

The Eileen Fisher sign was removed from the storefront ... and there's now a note on the front door  ...

The note reads in part: 

After much thought, we have decided to close our 9th Street Eileen Fisher store. 

We thank you for being part of this special community and will miss you.

The outpost had been closed since late August for "building maintenance." There were rumors the shop had closed in early February, though there wasn't anything official about it made public.

This was Fisher's first location, opening in 1987. Her brand grew to 50-plus shops around the country and sales in various department stores.

As Manhattan Sideways wrote this about the Ninth Street outpost: "[I]t is not even owned by the larger corporation behind the other shops, but rather by Eileen Fisher herself. Sample garments are sold here – some that never made it into production. Many of the pieces found here are different from what is in the rest of the line each season." 

[Updated] Verameat closes on Feb. 22

Updated: Vera has decided to close the shop on Tuesday, Feb. 22 — with a 65-percent off sale going on until then.

While on the topic of Ninth Street ... several EVG readers have noted the for-rent sign hanging in the front window at Verameat at No. 315 between First Avenue and Second Avenue.

Owner and designer Vera Balyura announced (via Instagram) last month that her lease was up here in April... and she was debating what to do next. Perhaps close her physical locations (here and in Brooklyn) and go online only? 

As for staying in this spot... unfortunately,  the landlord apparently isn't interested in negotiating a deal for her to stay (she also had to pay full rent during the pandemic when the shop couldn't even open). 

Balyura has been selling her unique jewelry designs from here since 2011. 

You can follow the shop on Instagram for updates... and visit the store in the weeks ahead.

Measure what you eat at DM Restaurant

DM Restaurant opened earlier this month on the SE corner of 10th Street and Fourth Avenue... officially 71 Fourth Ave., the first retail tenant for the deluxe 10-floor cantilevering condoplex that arrived here in 2019.

This month, ownership received administrative approval from CB3 for a liquor license at this location. The online questionnaire describes DM's food as "Asian fusion (both Chinese and Korean)."

Several EVG readers pointed out this opening ... though no one we know has eaten here just yet.

The DM's Yelp page notes that this is the first North American outpost for the brand with 200 locations worldwide. 

And per the name, you order your food by the decimetre/decimeter. The menu features a variety of wings, fries, beef patties, etc. ... not sure exactly how this all works if someone wants to go investigate...

Some happy campers on 10th Street now as NYPD relocates RV

The camper that had been parked on 10th Street east of First Avenue is no longer on the block. 

Updated 11:30 a.m. 

The NYPD explains what happened in a tweet...

RV illegally parked = tracking down the owner, explaining the violation, & having him relocate the RV to private property. Your Transportation Safety Officer is always out, making sure the East Village Streets are safe. @NYPDPBMS pic.twitter.com/vuO9N2dcTu

— NYPD 9th Precinct (@NYPD9Pct) February 16, 2022

As noted here, some unhappy residents who lived nearby painted messages outside (and on) the camper late last week with directives such as "move" ... "leave" ... and "Camper time to go."

Those messages remain on the sidewalk.

Photo today by Steven

Uncle Johnny is closing on Avenue D

Photos by Stacie Joy 

Updated: Uncle Johnny's last day is now Feb. 21.

Uncle Johnny Grocery Deli Supermarket is closing at the end of the month on the SW corner of Avenue D and Fifth Street. 

Sources told EVG contributor Stacie Joy that the lease is expiring at this grocery where the hot prepared foods, such as roasted chicken, rice and beans and tostones, are a draw. 

We don't know how long Uncle Johnny has been here (a long time) ... Stacie recently stopped by the store as the shelves were starting to empty ahead of the March 1 close date...

Avenue D is also served by Met Fresh Supermarket, Food Emporium, USA Super Stores and various small markets-delis.