Packing up the last of The Pyramid Club

Text and photos by Stacie Joy

Tuesday marked the final loadout at the now-shuttered Pyramid Club at 101 Avenue A. 

After a year-long closure during the pandemic, the owners of the iconic East Village venue decided that they would not reopen the two-level space. 

I was there to see manager Maria Narciso, her fiancé, general manager and house DJ TM.8 (aka Quirino Perez), and filmmaker Rob Barriales, who often shot at the club, remove the famed window mannequin, the party sandwich boards, velvet rope stanchions as well as monitors, speakers and supplies (plus the 1980s electronic game Simon!).

"If it wasn't for the community love and support, the Pyramid Club would not have lasted 41 years," Quirino said. "We're moving on, taking that spirit with us to our new homes. Together, we can keep the Pyramid Spirit alive forever."

Of note is the fact that the club was recently listed on Loopnet for rent as a retail space here between Sixth Street and Seventh Street. That listing, first posted on March 6, has subsequently been removed, but you can view the cached version here.

This past Friday, someone affiliated with the building removed The Pyramid Sign from the doorway.

To keep up with what's happening with Pyramid parties going forward, check this link. 

Previously on EV Grieve

• Exclusive: Iconic East Village venue The Pyramid Club will not be reopening after year-long PAUSE

45-47 2nd Ave. has a new owner

There's a new owner for 45-47 Second Ave., a 6-unit building that dates to 1867 here between Second Street and Third Street.

A tipster notes that house flippers David Luttway and Dana Lowey Luttway (via HOLLISWOOD2AVE LLC) are now the owners.

Several of the residences are currently vacant, and two other remaining tenants are in rent-stabilized units without leases, per the real-estate listing. 

As the Westside Rag has noted, Dana Lowey Luttway "is known for her skill at flipping upscale townhouses." It's not known what their plans are for this building. There was an original $9.9 million asking price.

There are currently two commercial spaces (one vacant) and one with a lease until December 2022. That would be Timbuktu, a tranquil shop that specializes in items from Morocco. 

H/T Upper West Sider! 

Wednesday's parting shot

First light today ... looking toward the Con Ed building on 14th Street... thanks to Jeanne Krier for the photo!

Gotta get up, gotta get out: 'Russian Doll' returns for Thursday filming

While there have been reports of "Russian Doll" (aka "Black Gumball") filming around the city, the East Village remains a prime locale for the time-looping Netflix series now shooting its second season. 

Crews will be back tomorrow... with notices pointing to the east side of Avenue A from Fifth Street to 10th Street, the north side of Seventh Street from Avenue A to Avenue C and the north side of Eighth Street from Avenue B and Avenue C...

Thanks to Steven for the photos...

Reopenings: Indochine, Kindred and Van Da

This is an update to a post that we first published on March 7 ... and again on March 17. Several more bars-restaurants have reopened after a winter break ... several of the places closed in December when Gov. Cuomo ended indoor dining (at 25 percent) on Dec. 13. Indoor capacity moved to 50 percent on March 19.

Recent additions to the list include Indochine, Tarallucci e Vino, Van Da and Kindred, which reopens today with a new chef and expanded selection of housemade pasta dishes, per Eater.

The recent reopenings include: 

• Ace Bar, 531 E. Fifth St.

• The Ainsworth, 64 Third Ave. 

• Amor y Amargo, 445 E. Sixth St.

• Avant Garden, 130 E. Seventh St. 

• Barcade, 6 St. Mark's Place

• Cherry Tavern,  441 E. Sixth St.

• Empellón Al Pastor, 132 St. Mark's Place at Avenue A 

• Good Night Sonny, 134 First Ave.

• Huertas, 107 First Ave.

• Indochine, 430 Lafayette 

• Josie's, 520 E. Sixth St.

• KGB Bar,  85 E. Fourth St.

• Kindred, 342 E. Sixth St. 

• Ladybird, 111 E. Seventh St.

• Lucky, 168 Avenue B

• Lucy's, 135 Avenue A (photo of Lucy below by Lola Saénz)

• Mary O's, 32 Avenue A

• Mister Paradise,  105 First Ave. 

• Mona's, 224 Avenue B 

• The Penny Farthing, 103 Third Ave.

• Phebe's, 361 Bowery at Fourth Street

• Proletariat, 102 St. Mark's Place

• Ruffian, 125 E. Seventh St.

• San Marzano, 117 Second Ave.

• Saramsam, 111 E. Seventh St. 

• Sophie's, 507 E. Fifth St.

• Superiority Burger, 430 E. Ninth St.

• Tarallucci e Vino, 163 First Ave.

• Tile Bar, 115 First Ave.

• Van Da, 234 E. Fourth St. 

• The Wayland, 700 E. Ninth St.

Van Da photo by Stacie Joy

Rendering watch: 650 E. 6th St.

There doesn't seem to be much activity over at 650 E. Sixth St., where a new residential building is in the works (for some time). 

The previous building on the lot, a four-story apartment building, was previously demolished here just west of Avenue C to make way for a 6-story structure that will apparently house five residences.

A rendering of the new condoplex is now on the plywood... 

This comes more than five years after the building's new owners filed plans for the project. (The DOB OK'd the new building permit in December 2017.) The completion date on the rendering is fall 2022.

As New York Yimby noted in January 2016: "The 8,491-square-foot project will include 7,761 square feet of residential space, which means units will average 1,552 square feet apiece, indicative of condominiums."

Public records show that this building changed hands for $2.8 million in August 2013. The new owner is named East Village LLC in the filing.

This will be the second new building in the corridor ... joining the one just starting on the northeast corner of Sixth Street and Avenue C.

Previously on EV Grieve:
• Report: Plans in the works to convert 650 E. 6th St. to condos

A Penny Arcade 'History' lesson this Saturday via the Tompkins Square Library branch

Get ready for a career-spanning virtual session with Penny Arcade this Saturday afternoon via the Tompkins Square Library branch on 10th Street:

Per the Library:

We are very excited to host a performance of Penny Arcade, New York's undisputed queen of the underground, and the grande dame of downtown performance art. 

This bespoke segment created specifically for the Tompkins Square library will focus on a survey of Penny's 50-plus year residency in the East Village and her larger-than-life mentors.

The session, titled "My Life As History," is from 3-4 p.m. this Saturday. You can register here to receive the online meeting link (Zoom).

The performance is designed and directed by Steve Zehentner and Arcade, and co-hosted by the Hudson Park Library. 

Doc Holliday's turns 27 while closed during the pandemic; 'We will be back'

Doc Holliday's on Avenue A and Ninth Street turned 27 yesterday (b. April 6, 1994).

The bar has been closed since the PAUSE in March 2020. 

A few people have asked if Doc Holliday's will reopen... they are one of several bars that has remained closed, and without an official closing announcement or the arrival of a for rent sign outside (see also: The Library, d.b.a., Blue & Gold, Milano's and Tom and Jerry's). 

In an Instagram Story from yesterday, the bar said that they will be back...

In a post from March 20, the bar wrote:

... 50% or even 100% capacity means nothing to us without bar seating, with the 11 p.m. imposed curfew, no standing & drinking and about fifty gazillion other reasons. BUT, don’t worry we will be back. We just can’t predict the future. When we know, you will know. Miss you much!

EVG file photo 

Spring break

Goggla shares this photo... showing that the magnolia tree in the New York City Marble Cemetery on Second Street between First Avenue and Second Avenue is in full bloom...

At the first East Village Flea of 2021

The first East Village Flea (aka Nexus Flea) is in the books... the nice weather this past Saturday brought out residents who took in live music from the Carvels NYC (above) and Claudi from Pinc Louds (below) ... not to mention the local vendors selling everything from handmade jewelry to Vaccinated t-shirts...

Here's a look at the scene on First Street and First Avenue via EVG contributor Stacie Joy... the next Nexus Flea is scheduled for April 17 ...

Fresco will not be reopening at 138 2nd Ave.

Siblings Ilias, Vanessa and Anna Iliopoulos have decided to give up their Fresco space at 138 Second Ave. between St. Mark's Place and Ninth Street.

A for-rent sign arrived on the storefront late last week. (The sign disappeared over the weekend.)

As you may recall, the family — citing a decline in business during the pandemic — temporarily shut down their 8-year-old gelateria-cafe and returned to their native Greece last October. 

They had hoped to reopen in January, but those plans didn't materialize with the surge in COVID cases and continued limits on indoor service. 

However, Ilias will be back in New York City next month to hunt for a new home for Fresco. In an email, he told EVG correspondent Steven that they will be looking exclusively at spaces downtown. Hopefully, they will land back in the East Village.

Photo by Steven

This photogenic East Village wisteria now has its own jigsaw puzzle

The wisteria outside 35 Stuyvesant St. at 10th Street is a thing of beauty each spring... and now it's the backdrop — along with the homes that form Renwick Triangle — for a new (as of March 5) 500-piece jigsaw puzzle...

An EVG reader spotted this at the Barnes & Noble website ($14.99) ... the puzzle — titled 500 Blooming Streets — from Galison Books "features a beautifully illustrated floral NYC street" ... from art by Jay Joy Laforme. 

The real-life wisteria — a favorite on Instagram – should be starting to bloom in a few more weeks. 

EVG photo from May 2020

Corner report: 14th and A

From the EVG inbox... a reader notes the progress with the deli-grocery going in on the southwest corner of 14th Street and Avenue A.

As noted previously, some of the gang from the old Stuyvesant Market on the southeast corner of 14th Street and Avenue A (RIP May 2010) will be behind the counter here.

The market takes over from Dion Cleaners, which closed in November after 35 years in business.

A look at Full Tank Moto Cafe, now open on Monroe Street

Full Tank Moto Cafe opened this past Friday down at 49 Monroe St. in the Two Bridges neighborhood.

The cafe portion of the business serves bread and pastries from C&B Cafe on Seventh Street. (C&B owner Ali Sahin was also said to give Full Tank an espresso machine.)

The exhibition portion of the space is currently showing "Group Sex" through April 18 via the East Village-based Ed. Varie... (read EVG contributor Clare Gemima's review of the show here).

Full Tank also includes space for people to park and work on their motorcycles...

The space previously housed Kaplan Philip Glass Works before becoming a restaurant called Monroe... and later the Ground until the indoor soccer facility moved over to Madison Street. 

Group Sex is on view through April 18 at 49 Monroe St. (roughly across the street from Coleman Skatepark under the Manhattan Bridge). Full Tank Moto Cafe is open daily from 7 a.m. to 4 p.m., and the gallery will remain open until 6 p.m.