Tuesday, October 25, 2022

Memphis Seoul coming to 1st Avenue

Ownership of Memphis Seoul has signed a lease to open its first Manhattan outpost at 123 First Ave. between Seventh Street and St. Mark's Place. News of the deal was first reported by the @TradedNY account. 

This will be the second location for the restaurant, which describes itself as "Southern cookin' with a Korean kick!" (You can check out the menu here.) 

Founder Bart Hubbuch opened his first Memphis Seoul in Crown Heights. 

In case his name sounds familiar... Per Grub Street: "Originally from Dallas, Hubbuch was a career sportswriter who’d spent 27 years in the business before getting fired from the New York Post for a tweet about Donald Trump winning the 2016 presidential election." 

Grub Street also states that "Hubbuch had always been a home cook... and had long been interested in running his own business." 

A Memphis Seoul Instagram post lists a 2023 opening. 

This address became available after Organic Grill relocated to West Third Street this past spring.

Monday, October 24, 2022

Pruning day for the great wisteria of Stuyvesant Street

Workers were out this morning to prune the wisteria ("purple paradise of flowering beauty") outside 35 Stuyvesant St. at 10th Street. 

We received several messages about the activity... (thanks to Harold Appel for the top photo and an anonymous reader for the one below)...
This is how the wisteria — previously captured in puzzle form — was looking later in the afternoon... (photos via Steven)....
A couple of residents who contacted us about the pruning thought it looked pretty severe... however, as we randomly read on the internet today: "Proper pruning can help you manage a wisteria and produce a truly spectacular flower show. At a minimum, pruning should be done twice a year..."

And as we learned back in the spring, wisteria hysteria has proven to be unfounded here. 

At the Tompkins Square Halloween Dog Festival

Photos by Stacie Joy 

The Tompkins Square Halloween Dog Festival — the 32nd of the event FKA Tompkins Square Halloween Dog Parade — took place this past Saturday

On a perfect fall day, crowds descended onto Tompkins Square Park for the event, co-hosted by Dan Schachner, a former NFL referee who now serves as host of the Puppy Bowl, and Jolie Dudley, co-founder of Must Love Dogs and Comedy. (They are pictured below with event organizer Joseph Borduin in the middle.)
The main stage was in the center of the Park, where EVG contributor Stacie Joy was stationed. There was also a second stage on the ballfields/skate area.
As for the hundreds of entrants... standouts included topical costumes, such as the spotted lanternfly and the FBI/Mar-a-Lago presidential papers ... and plenty of pop-cultural outfits (the "Star Wars" franchise is always popular) ... and the Midtown Uniform tribute with Brad and Chad and the bodega kitty, complete with a moveable shop.  Oh, and there was also an opossum.  (You can find a list of the winners here. You can vote for the Best in Show at this link.)

And now just a few of the many contestants...
The Dog Parade/Festival occurred in East River Park in 2018, 2019 and 2021. (That venue is no longer available.) The 2020 pandemic version was mostly virtual, with a small in-person/dog event at Lucky on Avenue B.

After nearly 30 years, Meg has left the East Village

Photos by Steven

Meg, the locally made, independent clothing line, has closed its East Village location... bringing an end to 28 years of business here. 

Back in February, the shop moved its flagship location down to 262 Mott St. However, founder Megan Kinney used the original storefront at 312 E. Ninth St. between First Avenue and Second Avenue for a Meg Archive ... where patrons could sell or trade Meg clothes ... with proceeds going to Planned Parenthood. 

A letter on the door — addressed to "Meg babes" — thanks patrons and acknowledges the "amazing moments" at the store...
Kinney started her business here in 1994 ... she and her husband lived in the basement at the address for a while. 

The Meg locations remain on Mott Street and in Boerum Hill in Brooklyn and Toronto.

Plywood arrives ahead of Gen Korean BBQ House on 14th Street and 3rd Avenue

Workers have surrounded the storefront on the SW corner of 14th Street and Third Avenue in plywood as renovations begin for the arrival of Gen Korean BBQ House.

The brand — known for its all-you-can-eat specials — has 18 locations in California, Hawaii, Arizona, Nevada and Texas ... with a handful more in the works. 

Community Board 3 OK'd a beer-wine license for the address back in July. (The previous tenant, 5 Napkin Burger, had a full liquor license.) Alcohol is only part of table service — there won't be any bar seating, per CB3 minutes.

The restaurant is taking the former 5 Napkin Burger space as well as the storefront next door that served as the 5 Napkin Express, then Taman Falafel. Those businesses closed at the start of the year

Mealz debuts on 14th Street

Mealz is in soft-open mode now at 245 E. 14th St. between Second Avenue and Third Avenue. (Thanks to Pinch for the tip!

The quick-serve restaurant offers all-day dining with a variety of breakfast-lunch-dinner options... with coffee service starting at 7 a.m. There is limited seating inside, so it will likely be more of a to-go operation.

No sign of a menu online... a quick look at the one posted on the door shows standard fare like sandwiches, omelettes, burgers ... not to mention specials like bacon cheese fries and avocado buffalo ranch chicken. 

Mealz takes over for the blink-and-you-missed-it Fries Factory, which was open for a week or so. (Not sure at the moment if the two have the same owners. Perhaps they decided to revamp the place and offer more than just fries.)

Sunday, October 23, 2022

Week in Grieview

Posts this past week included (with "A Clockwork Orange" jacket sighting on 1st Avenue via Derek Berg) ... 

• Unveiling Donald Suggs Jr. Way on 6th Street and Avenue B (Tuesday

• About Love Not Money, a new record store on the LES (Thursday

• Report: Man shot on St. Mark's Place on Friday night (Saturday)

• Resurrection: Halloween Adventure is open on 4th Avenue (Thursday)

• The Pyramid is closing once again (Thursday)

• Coming attractions: Beer and wine for the AMC Village 7 on 11th Street and 3rd Avenue (Monday

• ICYMI: The new athletic fields at Pier 42 (Monday)

• The 'See You Next Tuesday' book from Sophie's will be here next Tuesday (Tuesday

• A familiar new owner for the development site at 280 E. Houston St. (Wednesday)

• Otto's Shrunken Head celebrates 20 years on 14th Street (Monday

• The 3rd annual Mask-Querade taking place on 7th Street this Oct. 30 (Tuesday

• New ovens for Two Boots Pizza on Avenue A (Monday

• Legends of the fall: Lucy (Wednesday)

• For rent: space ideal for a gallery on 6th Street (Wednesday

• Catching up with Jimmy McMillan (Saturday

• Reader report: A single-car crash on Clinton takes down a light pole (Wednesday

• Another new broker for the long-vacant 20 St. Mark's Place (Monday)

• Check out this mural of Mia Farrow from "Rosemary's Baby" outside the Bean on Second Avenue (Tuesday)

• Another day, another cannabis operation arrives (Tuesday

... and noting a new awning for the great Gena's Grill at 210 First Ave. between 12th Street and 13th Street ... (thanks to Steven for the photo)...
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Follow EVG on Instagram or Twitter for more frequent updates and pics.

Sunday's opening shot

There's a clothing swap this afternoon (Sunday, Oct. 23) from 2-5 at La Linea Lounge, 15 First Ave., just north of First Street... you can bring by some men's, women's or gender-neutral clothing to exchange for something else (clothing, not drinks) ...

Saturday, October 22, 2022

Saturday's parting shots

A few photos from today... as people were headed to the Tompkins Square Halloween Dog Festival ... top two pics by Derek Berg...
... and inside the Park, doggie Jesus was a hit... first photo by Grant Shaffer, the second via Steven...
We'll have more photos and a recap via EVG contributor Stacie Joy in an upcoming post (updated here)...

EVG Etc.: Creating more accessible housing; launching a Ramones fan club

Sky views from Third Avenue

• Local organizations come together to create more accessible housing through community land trusts in the East Village (The Indypendent ... previously on EVG

• What NYC's community aid groups need most to help migrants (Gothamist

• Roughly 1 in 10 rent-regulated apartments were vacant in 2021, Census survey data reveals (The City)

• 4 ballot measures facing New York City this general election (NY1)

• New York City saw its unemployment rate drop from 6.6% in August to 5.6% in September (Gothamist

• Thieves posing as art students robbed galleries on the Lower East Side (artnet)

• Residents sue to halt new towers in Two Bridges (The City

• A book excerpt on creating a Ramones fan club from the forthcoming memoir by Kid Congo Powers (Literary Hub

• The 95-square-foot EV studio with a shared bathroom that's asking $1,100 (CNBC ... we mentioned these units on St. Mark's Place in 2018

• Anna Delvey, now living in the East Village, discusses post-prison life (Page Six ... her "amazing audacity" Vogue

The great old Milady's on Prince and Thompson "revived as a cocktail bar with appletinis and Jell-O shots" (Eater

• Reminders: Hitchcocktober continues at Village East by Angelika (Official site)

... and save the date...

Friend of a Barber would like its bench back

Early Thursday afternoon, two women walked away with a homemade bench outside Friend of a Barber on Fourth Street between First Avenue and Second Avenue. 

Pleas for the bench's return are going viral on Instagram, as a growing number of residents and businesses are sharing the images taken from surveillance footage. 

The Post is also on the story, referring to the alleged bench takers as "shameless 'pumpkin spice' thieves." (There is some thought that the two believed the bench had been discarded and was available to stoop.)

The shop opened in 2020 ... and the bench was a way "to ensure clients had a comfortable place to wait in the COVID-free fresh air."

Per co-owner Josh Livingston: "The bench has sentimental value for us. It was a labor of love. It's sturdy and long enough for people to social distance. Can I get another bench? Yes, but you can't just take things."

There is a reward for the return.

Report: Jimmy McMillan still fighting to keep his East Village apartment

Photo from February 2013 by James Maher 

Jimmy McMillan, the founder of the Rent Is Too Damn High Party, made a name for himself by running for a variety of offices, including NYC mayor and New York State governor, with his slogan: "The Rent Is Too Damn High." 

We haven't heard much about McMillan, who has had a St. Mark's address for more than 40 years ... a long point of contention with the landlord who has been trying to evict him.

City Limits has an update on the 75-year-old McMillan, currently staying at the Veterans Administration nursing home in Queens. "McMillan, who served in the Vietnam War, has been staying there since February when a stroke sent him to the hospital. He blames an improper dose of medication."

And what about the eviction proceedings on St. Mark's Place? 
Improbably, he is still fighting to hold onto his apartment. The owners of his building at 107 St. Marks Place first moved to eject him from the then-$872/month unit in 2011, arguing that he kept another place in Flatbush as his primary residence and allowed his son to stay in the East Village apartment. McMillan countered that the Flatbush address was the headquarters of the Rent Is Too Damn High Party, not his home, and secured a stay of eviction in 2015 that allowed him to remain in the unit. 

But McMillan then fell behind on rent a year later, court records show. He told City Limits that the owner, a limited liability company connected to developer Nader Ohebshalom, would not give him a key in an effort to drive him out of the unit. The landlord’s attorneys from the firm Borah Goldstein have not responded to emails and phone calls seeking comment. 

In July, McMillan made a $10,737 arrears payment to the landlord after giving them another roughly $9,000 in March and April, according to court documents. His regulated rent is now just under $900 a month—not so damn high relative to most East Village apartments—and the court appointed the Jewish Association of Services for the Aged (JASA) as McMillan’s guardian during the previous eviction case. He has challenged that guardianship and said he now appears remotely to prove his capabilities.

H/T John Penley 

Report: Man shot on St. Mark's Place last night

Photos by Steven

A man was shot in the stomach last night around 11 on St. Mark's Place between Avenue A and First Avenue, according to published reports and witnesses. 

The Post reports that the 25-year-old victim was taken to Bellevue Hospital and is expected to survive. 

An exact address wasn't listed. The Citizen app changed the address of the shooting several times, starting with 100 St. Mark's Place. Another resident said it was near 113 St. Mark's Place, where a police presence remains this morning. 

Word-of-mouth from the scene was that three men approached the victim with one of them pulling the trigger. The Post reported that the NYPD recovered three shell casings.

This block of St. Mark's Place is closed to traffic on weekends for sidewalk/street dining.

No arrests have been made.
Updated 10:30 a.m.

CBS 2 has this report...

Friday, October 21, 2022

Friday's parting shot

A moment at the Bowery Mural Wall this evening ... via Lola Sáenz...

Slow burn

 

Last month, Preoccupations released Arrangements,  the Canadian band's fourth record ... the video here is for "Slowly." 

Album release day for East Village singer-songwriter Jim Andralis

Photo from July by Stacie Joy

Back in early August, we published an interview with East Village singer-songwriter Jim Andralis

A quick update, as people asked us about it: His new LP, "I Can't Stop Trying," is out today. And you can catch him live at the Mercury Lounge on Nov. 6.

Revisit Stacie Joy's Q&A with Jim at this link.

Reminders: The Tompkins Square Halloween Dog Festival is tomorrow!

As previously noted: The 2022 version of the Tompkins Square Halloween Dog Parade has a new name — and a familiar location. 

The Tompkins Square Halloween Dog Festival takes place TOMORROW (Oct. 22) starting at 1 p.m. in Tompkins Square Park. Dan Schachner, a former NFL referee who now serves as host of the Puppy Bowl, is the host. 

Alex Carpenter and Maegan Hayward of the East Village Vintage Collective interviewed organizer Joseph Borduin in this podcast for Jason Charles.net. Listen here.

The Dog Parade/Festival, which outgrew Tompkins Square Park, took place in East River Park in 20182019 and 2021. (That venue is no longer available.) The 2020 pandemic version was mostly virtual, with a small in-person/dog event at Lucky on Avenue B.

Visit a Marble cemetery in the East Village this weekend

Photos by Steven

Both historic Marble cemeteries in the East Village are hosting open days this weekend. (Despite the similarities in name, there isn't any formal connection between the two cemeteries.) 
• The New York City Marble Cemetery (above) on Second Street between First Avenue and Second Avenue is available to visit tomorrow and Sunday from noon to 5 p.m. Read more about the history of the space here. As far as we can recall, this is the first time the property has been open to the public since 2019.

• The New York Marble Cemetery (below), 43 1/2 Second Avenue between Second Street and Third Street, is open tomorrow and Sunday from 10 a.m. to 6 p.m. Find its history here. This space has been welcoming visitors on several weekends dating to April.
Steven also took in an aerial view of the New York City Marble Cemetery on Second Street... 

Thursday, October 20, 2022

Thursday's parting shot

Photo from Tompkins Square Park today by Derek Berg...

The Pyramid is closing once again

Photo from July 2021 by Stacie Joy 

Updated 11/28

On Nov. 22, Nick Bodor (the Library, Cake Shop, etc.) shared with us his plans for Baker Falls at 101 Avenue A. The old Pyramid will also feature a collaboration with the Knitting Factory

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The second iteration of the Pyramid Club comes to an end on Oct. 31. 

We've heard rumors from multiple sources about a pending closure this month here at 101 Avenue A between Sixth Street and Seventh Street. 

Pyramid management made it official with a late-night Instagram post
After many glorious years of being part of the East Village community, we will be closing our doors at the end of the month after our final party. 

Thank you so very much to all of our new and longtime patrons and the promoters and DJs who have hosted events at The Pyramid Club. And a heartfelt thank you to The Pyramid Club team that has kept everything running smoothly and kept everyone safe. We are appreciative and grateful to all of you, your support means the world to us. We have loved serving the community and providing a space for all to be free and expressive through the arts, fashion, music and dance. The wonderful memories and friendships we have made will be cherished forever. Spread the love and keep on dancing...
A quick recap of what has happened here. The iconic East Village venue shuttered its doors in the spring of 2021 after 41 years in business, as we first reported. The club had been closed since March 7, 2020, at the onset of the pandemic.

However, the club made a comeback at the end of July 2021, opening on weekend nights in subsequent months.

As we understood it, the daughter of the longtime club owners, who are also the building's landlord, was running the show with a few familiar faces who previously worked at the venue. 

Previously on EV Grieve: