Jorge Colombo is the cover artist... you can read a short Q&A with him here.
His first Cube-related prokect came about in 1999...
Wednesday, November 1, 2023
East Village cultural landmark Nuyorican Poets Café now closed for a 3-year renovation
Photos by Stacie Joy
After celebrating its 50th anniversary this past month, the Nuyorican Poets Café has closed for a long-awaited $24 million, three-year renovation project.
This so-called "Nuyoricanstruction" phase will usher the organization into into the next 50 years, leadership says.
Here's more about the extensive renovation at the iconic space on Third Street between Avenue B and Avenue C, as reported by The City:
There will be new elevators, a new first-floor performance space, a green room and changing area in the basement, and more offices and performance spaces on the second, third, and fourth floors, according to a spokesperson for the city's Department of Cultural Affairs, which is partially funding the renovation along with the City Council and borough president's office. The electrical and mechanical systems will also be completely overhauled.
And...
The space at 236 East 3rd Street was an abandoned tenement building, built more than 100 years ago, when it was purchased in 1971 by the La MaMa Experimental Theatre Club. The Poets Café founders bought it in 1981 after starting off in an East Village living room eight years earlier.The Café owns the building, but has had a restrictive covenant on its deed since 2013, which is a requirement for all city-funded capital projects on private property.
Through the years, the Café has been a venue for for underrepresented artists through weekly Latin jazz, slam poetry, theatrical performances and open mic events.
The staff is planning on staging pop-ups and collaborating with other New York institutions during the three-year renovation. You can check Instagram or the Café website for updates.
Puerto Rican writer and poet Miguel Algarín founded Nuyorican in 1973 as a living room salon on Sixth Street along with Lucky CienFuegos, Bimbo Rivas, Pedro Pietri and Miguel Piñero. Algarín died in December 2020 at age 79.
East Village photographer's fascination with empty bars at dawn is the subject of a new book
Photo at McSorley's by Daniel Root
An East Village photographer's "bars at dawn" series has seen the light of day!
While out on early morning walks in recent years (dating to 2016), Daniel Root began taking pictures through the windows or doors of empty neighborhood bars at daybreak. The shots became part of an ongoing #nybarsatdawn project on Instagram. In the end, he shot 974 bars and walked some 1,500 miles.
Now that project in the subject of a new book, "New York Bars at Dawn," which debuted yesterday via Abbeville Press. The book includes 200 of his most compelling bar portraits, many of them in the East Village.
A description:
Nearly every day, Daniel Root sets out before sunrise to wander the streets of Manhattan with his camera. In those comparatively quiet hours, the entire city wears a different face, but Root is particularly fascinated by the scenes to be glimpsed through the windows of its bars. Empty of patrons and illuminated by an odd mix of artificial lights — neon beer ads, red EXIT signs, a single bulb above the cash register — they present a more hushed and mysterious aspect than in the busy evening hours. Nonetheless, each one — whether a dive bar, a sports bar, or a restaurant bar — still conveys an individual character, a distinct personality.
We interviewed Root about the project in 2019. Revisit that Q&A here.
There is a book signing at 7B/Horseshoe Bar/Vazac's — which graces the book cover — on Seventh Street and Avenue B Friday evening from 6-8.
Tuesday, October 31, 2023
6 posts from October
• A round-up of the old-school Chinese restaurants in the East Village (Oct. 25)
• The milling of the multipurpose courts in Tompkins Square Park is underway (Oct. 17)
• A last look inside Wegmans before its grand opening on Astor Place (Oct. 16)
• This nearly block-long parcel on 2nd Avenue is now for sale (Oct. 16)
• Posse officially in Effect now with the Beastie Boys on 14th Street and Avenue A (Oct. 5)
• Why the benches were removed from across the street from the 9th Precinct (Oct. 2)
Downtown Burritos Cocina Mexicana — the former Downtown Bakery — returns to service this Friday
Photos and reporting by Stacie Joy
After being closed for nearly eight months, Downtown Burritos Cocina Mexicana (FKA Downtown Bakery) will open this Friday morning at 69 First Ave. between Fourth Street and Fifth Street.
Daily hours moving forward: 7 a.m. to 9:30 p.m.
Co-owners and brothers Ivan (left) and Mario Marín passed the Health Department inspection yesterday... and they previously got the OK from Con Ed for the gas service ...
As we first reported, Ivan and Mario, the longtime managers (20 years) of Downtown Bakery, bought the longtime business (established 1990) earlier this spring when the owner retired.
This came on the heels of a DOH-mandated closure in February for Downtown Bakery operating with an expired health permit. The new owners then decided to take the opportunity to update the interior.
In renaming the business, the brothers mentioned the confusion regarding the inclusion of "Bakery" — people would call and ask about baked goods.
Signage alert: Instant Noodle Factory on 7th Street
Photos by Stacie Joy
Signage is up now for Instant Noodle Factory, opening next month at 130 E. Seventh St. just west of Avenue A...
This fast-casual DIY concept offers up instant noodles — more than 150 types.
The first outpost opened this past summer in Long Island City... Eater's Robert Sietsema gave it a whirl (and liked it!):
When you enter, you are advised to study the ramen matrix ... mainly from Japan, China, and Korea, though a few originate in Thailand, Singapore, and other locations.Yet, this is a factory and you are the worker responsible for preparing your own meal. I was entirely bewildered when I first walked in, wondering how to approach the place. But this bewilderment was delightful — because perplexed is not a bad way to feel at the start of a meal. My advice is to select one of the preset noodle combinations, eight in number, which include type of ramen; added objects like sausages, herbs, fish balls, and boiled eggs; and condiments. If you don't pick a preset combo, you could spend hours considering your million or so options.
No. 130's former tenant, Avant Garden, moved around the corner to Avenue A and Sixth Street in July.
Openings: The Avenue Cafe on St. Mark's Place
The independent/minority-owned shop offers a variety of coffee drinks and housemade pastries. (There's an avocado croissant waffle available only on Saturdays and Sundays.) The shop is open daily from 7:30 a.m. to 4 p.m.
This marks the first storefront for the owners after two-plus years inside the Jamaica Market food hall in Queens.
If you're on Instagram, you can follow The Avenue Cafe here.
All the Kings Horses Café announces year-end closing date
Owner Robbie Lecchino made the announcement about his Australian café in an Instagram post on Sunday:
We will be closing our doors December 31st this year. We have spent 3 of the best years nestled here in the East Village and have made so many friends and relationships continue building each day that we will cherish for many years to come.Thank you for the continued support during one of the toughest times in our lives during and beyond Covid-19.Please continue to support us as we will be operating right through until December 31st. Thank you welcoming us with open arms we will miss y'all...
Hours: 7 a.m. to 5 p.m. Monday-Saturday, with an 8 a.m. open on Sundays.
ATKH opened in October 2020.
Image via Instagram
Monday, October 30, 2023
Noted
Pinc Louds and InCircles headline a Halloween afternoon show in Tompkins Square Park
The free show is on from 2 to 6 p.m.
It's time for new clocks on the Most Holy Redeemer bell tower on 3rd Street
Photos by Stacie Joy
Restoration work has commenced on the bell and clock tower at Most Holy Redeemer/Nativity Parish on Third Street between Avenue A and Avenue B.
The four clocks on the tower that reaches 232 feet have been in a state of disrepair for the past two-plus decades.
Below is a letter to the community about the project from Father Seán Connolly:
I am happy to announce to you the beginning of the restoration project of our church's bell and clock tower!This historic and beautiful tower reaches into the sky far beyond most structures of the East Village at 232 feet, but as you are aware, has been in a state of disrepair for over two decades. The clock dial no longer works and the wood of its four faces is deteriorating making it an eyesore for our local community. Of the five bells only a single striker on one provides a lone toll at the noon hour.In consultation with our parish finance council, we have accepted a bid from Elderhorst Bells, Inc. to restore our bell and clock tower. The dial will work again and there will be four restored faces that will be lit at night, even in different colors depending upon liturgical feasts or civic holidays. There will also be five working bells that will beautifully chime and an electronic carillon system that will play a seasonal hymn at certain hours.
The church is also accepting donations "to help alleviate the burden this restoration will have on our parish budget." You can find a link here.
Construction of the current church was completed in October 1851 (EV Grieve was the first media outlet to report on this in 1851!)
And more history:
A major overhaul of the church began in 1912. Many of the renovations are still evident. With a tower that today reaches into the sky far beyond most of the structures of the East Village at 232 feet, it is hard to believe that it once was even taller. The 250-foot tower was reinforced and lowered to its current height and capped with a new copper dome and gold cross.
And a view of the church dated 1875...
Reports: Mount Sinai proposed July 2024 closing date for Beth Israel's 16th Street campus
Photo by Stacie Joy
The date was revealed after the health system presented a plan last Wednesday to state authorities on the closure of the 799-bed teaching hospital on First Avenue.
Last month, Mount Sinai officials stated they would phase out operations here, though didn't provide a timeline.
Per Becker's on Friday:
"We do not take this decision lightly, but due to the changing healthcare landscape and the unfortunate economic reality at MSBI, urgent action is required to preserve the health and vitality of the overall system," Mount Sinai said in a statement.The hospital is running at only 20% to 25% capacity and has incurred more than $1 billion in losses, with 2023 losses expected to be approximately $150 million, the hospital said.
Mount Sinai officials have said that they remain committed to other facilities it operates downtown.
There's also speculation that Mount Sinai Beth Israel, the parent corporation of the New York Eye and Ear Infirmary, might try to sell the property it owns on 14th Street and Second Avenue, 13th Street and Second Avenue, and 13th Street between First Avenue and Second Avenue — which "could fetch up to $70 million if sold for apartment-building construction," per the Post back in February.
'Death' becomes her?: Rachel Bloom is up next at the Orpheum Theatre on 2nd Avenue
Signage is up now for the next production — Emmy and Golden Globe Award-winner Rachel Bloom's "Death, Let Me Do My Show" ...
The musical had a successful run earlier this fall off-Broadway at the Lucille Lortel Theatre.
The show is in the EV from Dec. 7 through Jan. 6. You can find tickets here.
Bloom might be best know as the star (and co-creator) of the CW musical dramedy, "Crazy Ex-Girlfriend" (2015-2019).
"Stomp" ended its 29-year run at the Orpheum in early January. The first post-"Stomp" production, the burlesque "Star Wars" parody "The Empire Strips Back," closed on July 20 — one month earlier than planned.
"Death" seems like a throwback to the theater's days in the 1980s, when the Orpheum was well-known for Off-Broadway productions such as Sandra Bernhard's "Without You I'm Nothing," Eric Bogosian's "Sex, Drugs, Rock & Roll" and John Leguizamo's "Mambo Mouth" (not to mention "Little Shop of Horrors").
Sunday, October 29, 2023
Week in Grieview
• City using the former St. Brigid School to help asylum seekers with transportation (Tuesday)
• Honest Chops Butchery has left 9th Street (Friday)
• A round-up of the old-school Chinese restaurants in the East Village (Wedensday)
• Checking in on Superiority Burger 6+ months in; weekend breakfast & lunch and Chrissy's Pizza coming soon (Thursday)
• A "boutique micro hotel" is in the works for this former Bowery flophouse (Monday)
• Openings: Ayat on Avenue C (Tuesday)
• Report: LLC pays $44 million for the loan to the former P.S. 64 (Wednesday)
• You will be able to hone your comedy skills at a former 7-Eleven with the Upright Citizens Brigade (Monday)
• 1 week in on the reconstruction of the Tompkins Square Park multipurpose courts (Monday)
• At the Tompkins Square Halloween Dog Parade (Sunday)
• 14th Street wishes you an early happy holiday season (Saturday)
• A bust at LA Convenience on Avenue A (Thursday)
• Montauk's Memory Motel is popping up on 3rd Avenue and 13th Street (Thursday)
• This East Village building is now Untitled (Monday)
• A quick look at Manhattan Pawffice, opening next week at 20 St. Mark's Place (Wednesday)
• Momofuku Ko is closing in Extra Place (Wednesday)
... and St. Mark's Place lives thanks to the ongoing events at Village Works at 12 St. Mark's Place... Eden shared this clip from Friday night...
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EVG Etc.: Tensions at Cooper Union; 'Basquiat x Warhol' at the Brant Foundation
A view inside La Plaza Cultural the other afternoon
• The body of 13-year-old Kavion Brown Godfrey, a student at Lower East Side Prep, was pulled from the East River. He was last seen entering the river near Sixth Street on Oct. 20. (CBS News ... People)
• Tensions at Cooper Union over Israel-Hamas war protest (CBS New York ... The New York Times ... NBC New York)
• Early voting is underway — here's a primer on this year's elections in NYC (The City)
• Eleven years after Sandy, the Army Corps of Engineers' plan to protect the city from coastal storms still on the drawing board (City Limit)
• Report: Chains are using theft to mask other issues (CNN Business)
• Life at 58-72 Avenue A under the new landlords (Hell Gate ... previously on EVG)
• A look at the new "Basquiat x Warhol" exhibit, opening Wednesday at the Brant Foundation on Sixth Street (Time Out... previously on EVG)
• Details on "Connected Cozmos,' a new art exhibit curated by two NYU students at the recently opened Cozmos on 10th Street near Avenue A (Washington Square News)
• The well-reviewed "Past Lives," filmed partly in the East Village, is enjoying another run at Village East by Angelika on Second Avenue — several screenings are in the large Jaffe Art Theatre auditorium (Official site)
• The H.P. Lovecraft-inspired series continues through Nov. 5 (Anthology Film Archives)
• Thurston Moore discusses his new autobiography (The Guardian)
• Q&A with "Gen Z thrifting icon" Emma Rogue, who has a popular shop on Stanton Street (Mashable)
Sunday's opening shot
Photo by Robin McMillan
As seen in Tompkins Square Park this Halloween weekend...
Saturday, October 28, 2023
Deer Gallery presents 'Steven Hirsch: BIG and small'
Here's more via the EVG inbox...
Steven Hirsch's artistic journey has undergone a transformation since he moved into his new studio at the former Boys Club of New York, now reimagined as an arts center. His latest works transcend the confines of mere inches, expanding to encompass near meters, offering a captivating exploration of larger canvases that will be unveiled for the first time.
The opening reception is from 2-5 p.m. today.
The exhibit is up through Dec. 23 at the gallery on the NW corner of Avenue A and 10th Street. After today's opening, hours are Saturday 12-5 p.m. and by appointment.
Find the gallery's website at this link.
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