A look at the recently completed (as of yesterday) Spider-Man mural on Second Street at First Avenue... created by Chilean-based artist Otto Schade (courtesy of East Village Walls). The mural is a tribute to the late Stan Lee.
Tuesday, December 4, 2018
Superhero's welcome
A look at the recently completed (as of yesterday) Spider-Man mural on Second Street at First Avenue... created by Chilean-based artist Otto Schade (courtesy of East Village Walls). The mural is a tribute to the late Stan Lee.
Well it's 1969 OK
Thanks to the EVG readers who pointed out this post via @NYTarchives... showing Gem Spa (Gems Spa then) on the corner of St. Mark's Place and Second Avenue circa 1969...
Headline H/T
Headline H/T
Where the gas stations were
In the past four years, the last three area gas stations have closed, replaced by high-end new developments. Here's an update...
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Lafayette at East Houston Street
The BP station closed in April 2016... (the Irish pub Puck Fair was also on this parcel)...
[EVG file photo]
... and here's a look at the new 7-story retail-office complex as of Friday at 300 Lafayette St. ... the building will include 30,000 square feet of retail and 53,000 square feet of office space...
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Second Avenue at First Street
The gas station — first a Gulf, then BP — closed in July 2014...
[EVG file photo]
... and here's the 10-story condoplex shaping up as of Saturday...
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Avenue C at East Houston Street
The Mobil station closed in September 2014. It was the last one in business in the East Village...
[EVG file photo]
... and as of Saturday, workers are still down in the foundation of what will be a 10-floor building with 45 luxury rentals via BLDG Management ...
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With these closures, there is one gas station in the city below 14th Street — a Mobil on Eighth Avenue near East 13th Street. There is also a BP on East 23rd Street at the FDR.
Previously on EV Grieve:
How much longer will the East Village have gas stations?
The East Village will soon be down to 1 gas station
RUMOR: Gas station going, boutique hotel coming on Second Avenue? (31 comments)
BP station on 2nd Avenue closes this month
Have you seen the glass tower in the works for Lafayette and East Houston?
Filling up: the status of 2 former East Village gas stations
Report: Boutique office building on East Houston and Lafayette at BP site a go
BP station on East Houston and Lafayette closes April 14
Report: Lack of gas stations downtown a concern
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Lafayette at East Houston Street
The BP station closed in April 2016... (the Irish pub Puck Fair was also on this parcel)...
[EVG file photo]
... and here's a look at the new 7-story retail-office complex as of Friday at 300 Lafayette St. ... the building will include 30,000 square feet of retail and 53,000 square feet of office space...
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Second Avenue at First Street
The gas station — first a Gulf, then BP — closed in July 2014...
[EVG file photo]
... and here's the 10-story condoplex shaping up as of Saturday...
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Avenue C at East Houston Street
The Mobil station closed in September 2014. It was the last one in business in the East Village...
[EVG file photo]
... and as of Saturday, workers are still down in the foundation of what will be a 10-floor building with 45 luxury rentals via BLDG Management ...
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With these closures, there is one gas station in the city below 14th Street — a Mobil on Eighth Avenue near East 13th Street. There is also a BP on East 23rd Street at the FDR.
Previously on EV Grieve:
How much longer will the East Village have gas stations?
The East Village will soon be down to 1 gas station
RUMOR: Gas station going, boutique hotel coming on Second Avenue? (31 comments)
BP station on 2nd Avenue closes this month
Have you seen the glass tower in the works for Lafayette and East Houston?
Filling up: the status of 2 former East Village gas stations
Report: Boutique office building on East Houston and Lafayette at BP site a go
BP station on East Houston and Lafayette closes April 14
Report: Lack of gas stations downtown a concern
Wara bringing Japanese cuisine and Batsu theater to 1st Avenue
[Photo from November]
Wara, a Japanese izakaya restaurant and dinner theater, is slated to open at 67 First Ave. at Fourth Street in the spring.
Wayne Yip, who owns Jebon Sushi at 15 St. Mark's Place and Clay Pot at 58 St. Mark's Place, is also behind this new venture.
CB3 OK'd a beer-wine license for Wara this month. According to the questionnaire (PDF here) at the CB3 website, Wara will be open from noon to midnight daily. The space has 18 tables seating 64 guests.
Real Estate Weekly had a few more details yesterday:
The experiential dining experience features sushi, Japanese pub-style eats and a Batsu theater, a show where actors are comically punished after losing a competition or bet.
Wara, whose name translates roughly to “laughing out loud,” took a 15-year lease at the corner spot ...
The asking rent was $15,500 a month, according to Sinvin Real Estate’s Steve Rappaport, who represented Wara. The landlord, Landlord Icon Realty, was represented in-house by Zach Levine.
Jebron also hosts Batsu theater in its basement lounge.
The Korean cafe Space Mabi closed here without any notice to patrons last month after a year in business.
Previously on EV Grieve:
Guayoyo has been closed now for 1 year
Gastropub — 'Your new playground' — slated for former Guayoyo space on 1st Avenue
Space Mabi closes 1 year in on 1st Avenue
Dim Sum Palace debuts on 2nd Avenue
Dim Sum Palace is now up and running under the sidewalk bridge in one of the storefront spaces at 59 Second Ave. between Third Street and Fourth Street.
We first spotted the signage for the restaurant back in March. As noted then, the owners also run two locations of Dim Sum Palace in Midtown.
You can find their fairly extensive menu here. Their hours are 11 a.m. to midnight daily.
CB3 OK'd a beer-wine license for them this month.
Previously on EV Grieve:
Dim Sum Palace planned for 59 2nd Ave.
The incoming Dim Sum Palace has a large menu on 2nd Avenue
On 2nd Avenue, 16 Handles is temporarily closed for the season
[Photos by Steven]
The 16 Handles outpost on Second Avenue between Ninth Street and 10th Street is currently and temporarily closed, per the sign on the front door...
The email to people on the 16 Handles mailing list notes that this location is "temporarily closed for the season" (thanks to the EVG reader who shared this) ...
The Chelsea and Murray Hill Handles remain open. This location, which opened 10 years ago, has been closed several times before (here and here and here) for renovations ... but never for the season.
Monday, December 3, 2018
A new 2nd Avenue home for the NYPD's light tower
As noted on Saturday, the NYPD removed its portable lights from the northwest corner of Seventh Street at Second Avenue... and as several EVG readers have pointed out, the lights have moved down the Avenue... to the northeast corner of Third Street ...
A reader passed along these photos from yesterday... showing that the lights are now fixed on the southwest corner of Third Street, a spot where people have been known to congregate...
H/T Choresh Wald!
Previously on EV Grieve:
Report: It's 'Crusty vs. Postie' on 2nd Avenue
NYPD installs light tower on 2nd Avenue and 7th Street
A reader passed along these photos from yesterday... showing that the lights are now fixed on the southwest corner of Third Street, a spot where people have been known to congregate...
H/T Choresh Wald!
Previously on EV Grieve:
Report: It's 'Crusty vs. Postie' on 2nd Avenue
NYPD installs light tower on 2nd Avenue and 7th Street
Cookie Walk this way this weekend
The 10th Annual Cookie Walk is set for this coming Saturday (11 a.m. to 4 p.m.) and Sunday (noon to 3 p.m.) at St. Nicholas of Myra Orthodox Church on Avenue A and 10th Street.
And here's how it works via the Church's website:
Our Cookie Team bakes over 70,000 holiday confections — about 75 varieties. What makes the Cookie Walk unique is that you are in charge. You “take a walk” around tables ladened with cookies and hand-pick your favorites to fill an empty box. There are two sizes of boxes to fill: $15 & $35.
Find more details at this link.
MaKiinNy is now open in the East Village Thai space on 7th Street
On Friday, MaKiinNy debuted at 32 E. Seventh St. between Second Avenue and Cooper Square.
This is the former home of East Village Thai, which closed in July after 20-plus years in business. As EVG contributor Stacie Joy first noted, the owner's daughter was taking over the space for her own take on Thai cuisine here.
An EVG reader shared these photos from Saturday.
There are several rice and noodle options, such as the popular Thai dish khao mun gai ($10)...
The beverages include a Thai iced tea and Thai iced coffee.
MaKiinNy is open Monday-Saturday from 11:30 a.m. to 4 p.m. and then 5 to 9:30 p.m. They are closed Sundays. The interior includes a counter and several stools for eat-in dining.
Their delivery isn't set up just yet.
Updated
MaKiinNy will reopen on Dec. 17.
H/T to Steven for checking on the opening last week!
Matthew Kenney expands his 2nd Avenue plant-based empire; eyes former Cucina Di Pesce space
Plant-based celebrity chef Matthew Kenney continues to add to his Second Avenue empire.
To recap, he has Plant Food + Wine (the former Arata) on the southwest corner of Fourth Street.
Kenney is also involved with 00 + Co. and Bar Verde right next door on Second Avenue.
And most recently, the now-former Kona Coffee and Company, which just opened in November 2017 a few storefronts away at No. 57, is now under the Kenney umbrella...
Back in March, Kenney teamed up with Pure Green to launch PlantMade, a cafe on Second Avenue between Ninth Street and 10th Street. He is apparently no longer part of that Green team...
Meanwhile, Kenney plans to take over the former Cucina Di Pesce space at 87 E. Fourth St. near Second Avenue for a venue (rumored to be called Medium) in early 2019. He's on this month's CB3-SLA agenda for a new liquor license for the address. (The questionnaire has not been posted online yet.)
That seafood-focused Italian restaurant closed in September after 32 years in service.
Previously on EV Grieve:
Matthew Kenney bringing yet another plant-based restaurant to 2nd Avenue
More details about the Tao Group's eating-drinking options at the Moxy East Village
Back on Friday, I noted that reps for the incoming Moxy East Village will appear before CB3's SLA committee tonight to seek liquor licenses for the hotel's four eating-drinking establishments.
Tao Group is the food and beverage operator and the Lightstone Group's partner at the Moxy East Village, 112 E. 11th St. between Third Avenue and Fourth Avenue. In addition to operating the eating-drinking choices at the Moxy Times Square and Moxy Chelsea, Tao runs more than 20 venues throughout New York City (Beauty & Essex, Tao Downtown, Stanton Social, etc.).
The questionnaire on file at the CB3 website for the Moxy, a Marriott brand, is 121 pages.
First, from the questionnaire, an at-a-glance listing of all the eating-drinking options inside the hotel...
The 13-stoy hotel's rooftop bar seems to be of particular interest to nearby residents, so I'll focus on that, starting with the diagram...
The questionnaire states that the rooftop bar is 2,600 square feet, with a capacity of 179. The proposed hours are 4 p.m. to 2 a.m. The kitchen closes at midnight. As for that kitchen, here's the menu...
Meanwhile, the main restaurant-lounge in the sub-cellar looks to be called MEV, short for Moxy East Village...
... which is awfully close to MEH.
The committee meeting starts tonight at 6:30. Location: The Perseverance House Community Room, 535 E. Fifth St. between Avenue A and Avenue B.
Previously on EV Grieve:
6-building complex on East 10th Street and East 11th Street sells for $127 million
Preservationists say city ignored pitch to designate part of 11th Street as a historic district
Permits filed to demolish 5 buildings on 11th Street to make way for new hotel
Moxy East Village reps to appear before CB3 in bid for liquor licenses for new 11th Street hotel
First sign of Madame Vo Barbecue on 2nd Avenue
The sidewalk bridge signage has arrived for the incoming Madame Vo Barbecue, coming to this northeast corner of Second Avenue and Sixth Street — officially 104 Second Ave.
As Eater reported back in July, the owners of Madame Vo at 212 E. 10th St. between First Avenue and Second Avenue are opening the sister restaurant specializing in Vietnamese barbecue.
The Madame Vo team was OK'd for a new beer-wine license back in September.
In a preview post, Eater had this to say about the new venture:
This barbecue offshoot will have tabletop grills for meat and seafood in various marinades including curry, lemongrass garlic, and honey fish sauce. It’s typically a celebratory food in Vietnam, and here, the barbecued proteins then go into customizable summer rolls.
The Vo-sters have also been posting a few dishes on their Instagram account...
No. 104 previously housed several forgettable concepts, such as Wall 88. Previously, the address was the Lions BeerStore — part retail shop, part restaurant, all BeerStore! — for 16 months.
Sunday, December 2, 2018
Remembering Jimi Zhivago
Longtime East Village resident Jimi Zhivago, a musician, producer and composer, died on Nov. 8. He was 67. (This link has more on Zhivago, born James Daley in Brooklyn.)
There is a musical remembrance and celebration of his life tomorrow night at Drom, 85 Avenue A near Sixth Street, from 6 p.m. to midnight.
Ahead of that, his friend and collaborator Chris Riffle, a local singer-songwriter who recorded and toured with Zhivago over the past nine years, shared this remembrance...
"I wanna stay in those moments"
How could I have known when I first met you nine years ago with a guitar on your back and a coffee in your hand that we were about to embark on a musical journey together that would stretch to Hawaii, Alaska, Germany, Belgium and both U.S. coasts... that would include three full-length albums and two EPs... and that I would write you a song today and not be able to play it for you... which is too bad because I think you’d love the chords and I’m not sure if it’s done and I never really was until you gave me a sign...
I remember being asked in an interview quite a while back what exactly a producer was and I remember thinking I wasn't really sure... Someone who was there to support the creation of an album? To make sure the songs felt complete and to help along the journey of putting it out? I remember being so sure of myself and headstrong and thinking who else could possibly know what these songs needed. Well, I just walked out of the studio yesterday and I kept looking for you to give me that sign... bring the cymbals in later... change the intro... it's too cluttered... guitars too muffled... or leave it, it's perfect.
I really just listened to the track and I felt so deeply unsure of myself. I realized that the differences we had are what I think I miss the most now. I could so easily be the optimist with you looking out for me. I listened to so much lo-fi music growing up and loved the homemade sound of a 4-track demo. The click of the microphone. But you tirelessly pushed me to make albums that sounded like they were made with all the best gear and musicians money could buy. We passionately disagreed on many things along the way because we both were so deeply part of the work we did together. It was the compromise, the space in the middle, where we found this magic.
At your hospital bedside you asked me to finish the album. Implied in that timeless moment was that you wouldn't be there to do it with me. You told me how you so believed in me and that you knew so many good things were ahead and then you had this deep look of sadness... knowing you wouldn't be there for this next journey with me.
After the album was always the best part really. The reactions... the way something sounds when you step back from it and it feels like something complete, able to exist in the world on its own. And the touring... the way a song sounded after 20 shows, after you both inhabited it completely. I wanna stay in those moments... in all those songs we made together. In that intimate space of creation, I think you find a connection to life itself. It's such a deep way to inspire someone. You gave that so freely to so many. You always loved to give.
You were so much larger than life. To me, you always were, and you always will be. I told you that that last day. I told you you were my best friend. I told you I didn't know what I could have possibly done to deserve your deep unending belief in me and my music and that it meant the whole world to me. I told you that you'd always be there pushing me to be better than I was. And that I wouldn't always agree with you but sometimes I would listen.
Week in Grieview
[Sunrise pic on Bond Street the other morning by Lola Sáenz]
A visit to the Tompkins Square Library branch on 10th Street (Friday)
202 Avenue A has been gutted on its way to doubling in size to become the Topanga (Tuesday)
Thanksgiving-weekend fire temporarily shutters Bruno Pizza on 13th Street (Monday)
Tenant activists praise lead reform, urge for more protections from city against predatory landlords (Friday)
After 12 years in Bushwick, Grace Exhibition Space relocates to Avenue C (Thursday)
A Tompkins Square Park tree lighting reminder (Wednesday)
Last call at the Continental now set for Dec. 15 (Tuesday)
This week's NY See (Saturday)
There's improved pedestrian access for businesses along the L-train construction corridor (Monday)
Actual renovation work continues at the long-dormant 32 Avenue C (Wednesday)
Milk & Hops Astor Place closes (Friday)
Retail space for lease now at 131 1st Ave., which has a new owner (Wednesday)
Reader report: Christmas tree market's generator damages mosaic pole on 2nd Avenue (Saturday)
Construction watch: 688 Broadway, aka 1 Great Jones Alley (Monday)
A moment with former First Lady Michelle Obama on 7th Street (Saturday)
Cocoa Grinder softly opens on 1st Street (Monday)
In the West Village, Integral Yoga Natural Foods is closing after 45 years (Wednesday)
Relish this?: Amazon revives Carnergie Deli for a week to promote 'The Marvelous Mrs. Maisel' (Monday)
You better watch out: Miracle on 12th Street pops up for the holidays (Thursday)
'tis the season... spotted at Doc Holliday's...
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Dante and Diego have been adopted, and are going together to a new home in Brooklyn!
Diego and Dante, the two labs that belonged to Chile, the longtime 12th Street resident who recently passed away, have been adopted together by a couple in Brooklyn.
This past Tuesday, Animal Haven, a nonprofit animal shelter, took the dogs away to find them a new home.
The folks at Animal Haven shared the photo below and this message on Instagram Wednesday:
Chile was one of those kind individuals who knew everyone on East 12th Street and, in turn, the neighborhood also cared for his beloved senior dogs, Dante and Diego. The threesome would sit together on a local bench welcoming neighbors home from a long workday. Together, they were unique characters that made the East Village welcoming and a true neighborhood. So it's no surprise that everyone came together soon after Chile's passing to make sure the dogs were safe and a call was made to Animal Haven for help.
When our community outreach team arrived yesterday to pick up the dogs, they were met by a handful of residents and friends of Chile. 💙💙💙 A group of eight friends walked the dogs to the transport car where photos were taken, hugs were given, and tears were shed.
A tipster says that NY1 will be featuring this adoption. I'll link to that clip once it's online. Updated: Here's the link to the NY1 piece.
Updated 12/5
Read an update here!
Urban Etiquette Sign of the day
Spotted on 12th Street and Avenue A... (thanks to EVG regular Trixie for the photo)...
Saturday, December 1, 2018
A moment with former First Lady Michelle Obama on 7th Street
[Video screengrab]
Earlier today, former White House chef Sam Kass was thought to be the main event in a talk on healthy eating over at the Lower Eastside Girls Club on Avenue D and Seventh Street.
Then!
[A]s Kass detailed the former first family's nightly dinners, Michelle Obama entered, and the girls screamed, cheered and embraced in excitement.
Obama and Kass then served food to each individual girl before the group sat down for lunch and conversation.
That passage was from ABC 7. (This Vanity Fair piece has more details on the event.)
Yesterday, the Crown Publishing Group announced that Obama's memoir, "Becoming," has sold more than 2 million copies after 15 days, reportedly making it the year's best-selling book.
Also yesterday, Obama signed copies of the book at the Barnes & Noble on Union Square.
Meanwhile, around the Girls Club, word spread about the special guest (Obama, not Kass) ... and a crowd gathered outside. East Village resident Angeline Rodriguez shared this video clip...
"It was a really nice community moment, with everyone meeting or recognizing neighbors and talking about how much they admired Mrs. Obama's work," Rodriguez told me.
Grant Shaffer's NY See
Here's this week's NY See, East Village-based illustrator Grant Shaffer's comic series — an observational sketch diary of things that he sees and hears around the neighborhood ... and NYC.
Another Year Without a Trailer Park Santa Claus on 14th Street, though there is a bear
EVG regular Pinch shares this top photo from the Christmas tree vendors on the northwest corner of 14th Street and First Avenue.
In what may be a first for this spot, there's an inflatable bear on the scene this year. (We need to check the EVG microfiche to be sure.)
And unlike previous years, the tree vendor does not have the Cousin Eddie-style camper parked on 14th Street (because of the new SBS lane?).
Also, the Santa inflatable is new and clean, unlike the grubby ol' St. Nick — Trailer Park Santa Claus to some — that had been greeting the corner in recent years...
[On loan from the EVG Permanent Collection]
Previously on EV Grieve:
The Year Without a Trailer Park Santa Claus
Grubby ol' St. Nick inflatable makes triumphant return to 14th Street after 2 (long) years
Another year without grubby ol' St. Nick on East 14th Street; what to tell the children?
New, improved inflatable Santa arrives on East 14th Street tree lot
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