Friday's parting shot

A just-finished mural of Ukraine President Volodymyr Zelenskyy in First Street Green Art Park by Lexi Bella... ...

'Swamp' thing

 

Everything Is Recorded (aka Richard Russell, owner of XL Recordings in the UK) is back with his third studio release (on XL Recordings!). 

The above video is for "Swamp Dream #3," featuring Mary and The Junkyard's Clari Freeman-Taylor on vocals.

Yummy Hive vanishes in the night on 2nd Avenue and 10th Street

Yummy Hive, the year-old market on the SW corner of Second Avenue and 10th Street, seemingly vanished late Wednesday night or early Thursday morning. 

Someone removed all the deli and refrigeration cases, along with the products, which appears to have happened quickly. Given the state of the interior, several EVG readers speculated that the store looked as if it had been looted.

Plus, the brightly lit 24/7 deli was bombed by taggers, giving it abandoned-for-months vibes.

Thanks to EVG reader Andrew V. for these photos...   

Yummy Hive opened almost a year ago, offering an extensive menu of sandwiches, salads, smoothies, etc. The menu seemed too big for the volume of business. (Did anyone ever order the Seafood Sampler Platter, which cost $19.99 and featured chilled shrimp, tuna salad, smoked salmon, calamari rings, lemon wedges, cocktail sauce, and crackers?) 

The prime corner space had been vacant for five years, with the last tenant being Capital One®.

Win Son Bakery set to debut East Village outpost on March 19

Win Some Bakery makes its EV debut on Wednesday, March 19, at 23 Second Ave. between First Street and Second Street.

The cafe has been open for a few days, though strictly for DoorDash deliveries picked up through the side door. (Patrons are not permitted inside the space, where the windows remain covered.)

Like the popular Taiwanese-American outpost in East Williamsburg, the EV location will serve as a café, bakery and restaurant. (They were previously OK'd for a liquor license.) 

The bakery opened in September 2019 at 164 Graham Ave. at Montrose Avenue, several years after the Win Son restaurant debuted. Many of its goods have been celebrated, like the mochi millet doughnuts. The New Yorker once called its Mortadella Pancake a perfect breakfast sandwich. You can check out the Win Son Bakery menu here.

Thursday's parting shot

As seen near M363 The Neighborhood School on Third Street...

Final orbit for the 2nd Avenue Star Watchers

A dispatch from Felton Davis of the Second Avenue Star Watchers... 

There will be a late-night eclipse of the Full Moon on Thursday evening, March 13, starting around midnight and becoming total from 2:30 to 3:30 Friday morning, just above the celestial equator in the constellation Leo. 

This also marks the end of Felton's role as the unofficial official leader of the Second Avenue Star Watchers.

He explained in an email. 

Unfortunately, over the course of 12 years of wrestling with my bulky telescope, I have developed a chronic stiff neck and cannot continue to be the sidewalk astronomer of Second Avenue. 

I have no regrets about this project and the enthusiasm that people brought to it, including the eclipse of the Sun last April, but the repetitive motion of turning my head and reaching over to twist the adjustment knobs took a gradually increasing toll.

If another person wants to continue this project, I would advise them to: a) get a smaller and more manageable telescope b) always work with another person c) dress warmly in cold weather d) try to become aware of potential stress. 

Profound thanks to all who came and shared the challenge and the joy! 

Thank you, Felton, for being on the NE corner of Second Avenue and Third Street during key celestial events.

... and giving everyone a chance to capture the cosmos — and level up their Instagram feeds with stunning celestial shots...

And a few Star Watchers photo sets from:

• 2024

• The August 2017 total solar eclipse

• 2022

Construction watch: 183 Avenue B

Here's a look at the in-progress, all-new 183 Avenue B between 11th Street and 12th Street.

As we've noted, this 8-floor, 12-unit residential building is going as the Village Garden Condominium.

The Village Garden website states that "all units are flooded by natural light. Lower floors provide views of the beautiful historic buildings of the Lower East Side; upper floors afford sweeping views of the neighborhood and Tompkins Square Park ... The two full-floor penthouse units include two terraces, perfect for inviting friends or a romantic evening. The delight of your private outdoor space can be appreciated during the morning sunrise or in the evening with a glass of wine." 

Amenities include a fitness room and the opportunity to buy one of six individual garden spaces in the back of the building. Pricing has not been announced. 

Here's the plywood rendering...

In January 2017, Corcoran listed the property at an asking price of $4.75 million. According to public records, the building—with intact air rights—sold for that exact amount in April 2017. The DOB permit lists Richard Pino as the owner via Tompkins 183 LLC. 

The existing four-story building was later demolished on this lot in early 2020. 

A December 2024 completion date remains on the plywood rendering.

These bars and restaurants are temporarily closed, and at least one is permanently shuttered

In recent weeks and months, we've received several reader queries about a handful of bars and restaurants that have not been open during advertised business hours. 

Among them: 

• Taverna East Village 

Taverna East Village has been closed since at least early December at 228 First Ave. between 13th Street and 14th Street. 

According to a patron in December, the Greek restaurant was closed without any notice to the public until a sign later arrived noting the closure due to a "required Con Edison" inspection. The rolldown gates have been down lately. 

The restaurant's website still notes: "We are currently closed due to a Kitchen Renovation project. We are working very hard to reopen as soon as possible." 

The outpost of Astoria's favorite Taverna Kyclades opened in the fall of 2013. However, ownership changed hands, and the name change to Taverna East Village was made public last June.

• The Cabin 

The bar-restaurant remains closed at 205 E. Fourth St. between Avenue A and Avenue B. 

An Instagram post from Dec. 26 states the bar-restaurant is temporarily closed due to "building maintenance." 

Yelp states that the Cabin will reopen on March 31.

• Grillify-NYC 

The bar and grill specializing in burgers has been closed in recent weeks at 540 E. Fifth St. between Avenue A and Avenue B. 

A Feb. 26 Instagram post states, "Sorry we are temporarily closed." 

Estefanie and Luis Cuahutle, a brother-and-sister team, took over ownership of the former Le Burger space last summer. People seem to like this low-key spot, so hopefully, they will return.

• Down & Out NYC 

The bar at 503 E. Sixth St., between Avenue A and Avenue B, has been dark for months, and we have been waiting for an official notice about its closure. (Google lists the business as permanently closed, but we have not received a reply to our messages about its status.) 

The top photo, from Jan. 12, showed legal documents affixed to the front door. 

The cocktail and oyster bar opened in late 2022. 

The address was previously Cholo Noir, the Chicano-inspired bar-restaurant that closed in August 2018 after 13 months. No. 503 was also home for five weeks to Long Bay, a Vietnamese restaurant that closed in the spring of 2015. 

Several years earlier, the space housed Gladiators Gym.

Zine takes a fresh look at Keith Haring's public school murals on the Lower East Side

East Village native Rainer Turim is releasing the second edition of his zine on Keith Haring's Public School 97 murals from 1985 to 1988. 

The new edition is hand-numbered and limited to 100 copies. Turim said it features never-before-seen photographs, video stills, and glossed-over news articles from the first edition that give context and meaning to the murals Haring painted in this elementary school courtyard, which now belongs to Bard High School Early College Manhattan, 525 E. Houston St.

The zine opening will be tomorrow (Thursday!) from 6 to 9 p.m. at Village Works, 12 St. Mark's Place, between Second Avenue and Third Avenue. Copies will also be available at Printed Matter. 

Otto's Wednesday open mic: music and community in the tiki bar’s back room

Article and performance photos by Addie Selch 

On a cold Wednesday night in February, I hustle down the blistering expanse of East 14th Street and into Otto's Shrunken Head. The outdoor display under the bright neon lettering is stuffed with tiki mugs and thrift-store memorabilia.

The lights are bright inside, and two booths are filled up with men and their guitars tapping away on laptops, settling in for a long night at the bottom of the open mic list. The weekly open mic is already underway at the back of the bar, past a photobooth with the bottom half of a repairman sticking out. 

I tentatively push through the closed doors, nearly bumping into the mid-performance keyboard player. When he finishes, I step into the surprisingly full room. The walls are cobalt blue, studded with yellow stencil-painted Hawaiian flowers. Wooden idols leer from their niches. The elevated stage is backed by bamboo panelling and sparkly gold cutout stars. Tall, quilted, red leather booths line the two farthest walls with small tables set just in front and three more rows of chairs facing the stage. Almost all of the seats are full. I count 35 people, in addition to Dave, the enthusiastic host dressed in a rainbow trout iridescent blazer. 

Otto's Wednesday Open Mic was started in July 2021 by Ira Zadikow. Before COVID-19, he ran a jam at the old Nublu Classic on Avenue C. In the summer of 2021, he started shopping around for a place to host a new jam and open mic, considering locations like Parkside Lounge and Theatre 80, before speaking with the owners of Otto's (Nell Mellon, Steve Pang, and Patricia Lou) and coming to an arrangement that would offer Wednesday nights for the open mic once the venue fully reopened. 

Ira recalls that the jam and open mic started as a pretty quiet affair. But after two years, the increasing popularity of the open mic forced him to drop the jam and reduce the number of songs per performer from three to two. Even so, some nights, the mics can run as late as 12:30 a.m.

Dave, who recently took over as host in mid-December, says that he knew the open mic was special the first time he attended three years ago, following a six-year hiatus from music. A performer made a mistake, and he prepared to give an encouraging cheer, but for the first time in his open mic experience, someone else beat him to it. "Everybody here is very supportive," he says.

J Band, a three-piece band with two guitars and a harmonica, gets on stage to play Johnny Cash's "Folsom Prison Blues." An East Village open mic regular walks around banging his tambourine as they perform. As the tambourine drifts off, Dave, in his hosting duties, gets the crowd clapping. 

The next performer forgot her guitar strap, and in a room full of musicians, no one can seem to find one for her to borrow. She sits on stage with her pink electric guitar, and the harmonica player from the previous band accompanies her with a recorder. 

"Pink frosting 'til you're puking," she sings. The room claps. 

The performances continue. Carlos plays two jazz standards on his cello. Michelle debuts a song she wrote only the previous week. Jonathan promotes his charity show at the end of the month. Liam plays a "lyrical collage" on the keyboard, which samples a few words of at least 30 songs strung together. One woman raps over her own beats. She dances around the stage to a few enthusiastic whoops from the crowd. 

Megan, a regular at the open mic, personifies a doll in her original song, "A Doll in a Sale, Window Jail." Later in the night, another performer introduces his song by saying he's excited to share it with Meg. Unfortunately, she has already left.

Most performances feature original music, with a fair smattering of covers. The crowd ranges from 21 to 75 years old, and as the night goes on, the host pauses to read out the next five names from the sign-up clipboard, reminding everyone that there are a lot of people present and to keep things moving along. Whisperings among the crowd indicate a general awareness that this particular Wednesday is more packed than usual. Perhaps, like myself, many others are here for the first time. 

By 9 p.m., the crowd has barely dwindled. Some people have left, but more have come, likely signing up earlier in the evening and returning closer to their performance time. A lot of people seem to know each other and wave across the dark room or make their way over to say hello. One man goes around the room, introducing himself to a few people very loudly and eagerly. 

Next to me, a regular at the open mic lights up as David swaggers onto the stage. David's eyes are concealed by cheap red-framed sunglasses, and he's wearing a tight navy turtleneck and pants. 

"I came for you, David!" the man next to me yells, and the room suddenly quiets. "Woah," David responds nonchalantly, and several people, including the host, burst out laughing. 

David performs two originals, and his music is unnerving. The whistling, combined with the effect of the electric guitar pedal he uses with his acoustic guitar, makes my skin prickle.

At this point, I've been at Otto's for nearly three hours. I find myself watching the shimmering water reflection projection on the back wall and counting the red objects in the room. Drum kit, quilted booths, exit sign, sunglasses. I am likely one of the only attendees who is not performing or accompanying a performer, and I can understand why. Open mics can be long, unpolished, and lack continuity by nature, as they have many short sets. Even as a performer, a primary part of the open mic experience is waiting around. 

However, open mics are also important for musicians of many levels. They are a starting point for new musicians, a place to workshop and present music without all the restrictions and accountability that come with venues or clubs, and a scene to jump back into, as Dave did. 

Both Dave and Ira, in their willingness to pause what they're doing and talk with me about the open mic, shouting out their favorite regulars along the way, personify the openness and kindness that they speak of feeling here. As we chat, a young woman greets Dave with a hug and Ira with a warm wave. Open mics, as Ira put it, are a home base. It's clear that many people have comfortably found that at Otto's on Wednesday nights. 

Otto's Shrunken Head is at 538 E. 14th St. just west of Avenue B. Otto's Wednesday Open Mic starts at 6 p.m. (It begins at 8 p.m. on the first Wednesday of every month.)

Work commences at the long-vacant 11 Avenue A, due for a residential conversion and 3 new floors

We spotted workers yesterday pumping concrete into the basement of 11 Avenue A between Houston and Second Street. 

This is the first worker we can recall here in nearly a decade. 

For years, residential conversion plans have been pending here. Public records now show new permits (as of late February) to convert this existing three-story commercial structure into a six-story residential building with retail space on the first floor.

The permits show five dwelling units for the 5,000-plus square feet of residential space. 

Some history: Ben Ari Arts, which had been at this location since 1960 (it opened on Allen Street in 1945), closed at the end of 2013. It was said to be the last Judaica shop on the Lower East Side.

Ben Ari Arts owner Yakov Melmed, who started helping his father sell menorahs, ceremonial wine cups, and prayer shawls at the store in 1973, decided to leave the neighborhood. According to public records, he sold the building for $3.4 million. 

Ariel Soudry of Better Living Properties is listed as No. 11's owner. 

Tuesday's parting shot

Photo by Derek Berg 

As seen on Seventh Street, a springtime procession of several NYU students throwing flower seed "bombs" into places with bare dirt.

At LaMama, 'Above Ground' brings aging, improv and the art of being seen to the stage

"Above Ground — Not Exactly a Comedy" starts a two-week run at LaMama Experimental Theatre Club on Thursday. 

"This theater project has been a labor of love, and we can't wait to share it with you," said one of the cast members, longtime East Village resident Christine Koenig (pictured). "Performers tell stories about the experience of getting older, remembering how it was to be young. Music, movement and improvisation are woven into the piece." 

The play is part of the You're Never Too Old To Play group at Westbeth, with actors ranging from 74 to 98 in age.

Performances are at 7:30 p.m. Thursdays through Saturdays, and a 3 p.m. matinee on Sundays from March 13-23 at La Mama's The Club, 74 E. Fourth St. between Second Avenue and the Bowery. 

The first 10 tickets sold for each performance are $10. You can get tickets here.

Fundraiser underway for patron killed at Tom & Jerry's on March 1

Tom & Jerry's has launched a crowdfunding campaign to support the family of Anton "Munch" Albert, a patron fatally shot in the early hours of March 1 at the longtime Elizabeth Street bar.

Here's more via the GoFundMe account: 

On the morning of March 1st, our friend Anton "Munch" Albert was killed in a shocking and callous act of violence. Contrary to some media reports, he was not an employee of ours, but he was a very much admired and loved member of our community. His gentle and warm nature made him many friends in Tom & Jerry's, and he will be greatly missed by our team and those who, like Munch did, call T&J's a home from home. 

He leaves behind a loving family, including his 9-year-old daughter, who will need all the support they can get during this untimely period of grief. The proceeds from this fundraiser will directly go to Munch's family to cover the costs of his funeral and to support his daughter. 

You can find the campaign at this link. 

Albert reportedly lived on Staten Island. He was 39.

Little information has been made public about the shooting, including a description or photo of the alleged shooter who, according to multiple published reports, fired several times into the bar, striking Albert. 

According to the Post: "Witnesses told cops there was no interaction between the two men before the shooting, but police were unsure if the victim was targeted, cops said."

Beverly Hills 10003: An outpost of the Best Damn Breakfast Burrito is coming to 12th Street

A business with the Instagram slogan "We Make The Best Damn Breakfast Burrito..." is opening on 12th Street. (Thanks to EVG reader Taylor for the photo and tip.) 

The Best Damn Breakfast Burrito, an off-shoot of Otro Día Tacos on South Santa Monica Blvd. in Beverly Hills and via delivery in Brooklyn, are taking over the former Sauce space at 345 E. 12th St. between First Avenue and Second Avenue. 

The quick-serve spot offers a range of burritos, including breakfast options, tater tots and smoothies.

Find the menu here. And the backstory here. (The owner is also behind Spooning and Roni's in Beverly Hills.)

Closings: Tallgrass Burger on 1st Avenue

A for-rent sign hangs on the storefront of 214 First Ave., the now-former home of Tallgrass Burger between 12th Street and 13th Street. 

There's no mention of a closure via Google or Yelp, though the Tallgrass website is now offline.

Tallgrass opened in 2010 (bring back Elvie's Turo-Turo!), and as The Infatuation noted, it "was one of the first burger spots in New York to use organic halal meat."

Signage alert: El Camino on 1st Avenue

Photo by Steven

We had our first sign of signage for the new tenant at 135 First Ave. between St. Mark's Place and Ninth Street. 

El Camino is the Spanish tapas bar coming to the space via Will Wyatt and Edie Ugot from Electric Burrito around the corner on St. Mark's Place.

According to its Instagram account, El Camino is "a little bar coming soon to the East Village." Representatives for El Camino appeared before Community Board 3 last August. The questionnaire includes a sample menu. 

The two are also involved in HighLife, the burger joint that opened right next door on Feb. 26. 

El Camino and HighLife are in the space that previously housed Dan & John's Wings. 

Updated...

Photo by William Klayer...

Monday's parting shot

Early evening view from Tompkins Square Park...

Revisiting the art of the Avenue A Trader Joe's

Yesterday, the Times published an article about Julie Averbach, who has written an unauthorized book celebrating the displays, murals and installations at Trader Joe's stores nationwide.

Averbach is a Trader Joe's fan with an art historian’s eye. She became so fascinated by what she saw in Trader Joe's locations that she wrote the book, "The Art of Trader Joe's: Discovering the Hidden Art Gems of America's Favorite Grocery Store," after devoting her thesis at Yale to Trader Joe's as a contemporary cabinet of curiosities. 

This is a good time to revisit a January 2020 post about the new East Village Trader Joe's, which opened at 436 E. 14th St., near Avenue A. 

If you've been to the new East Village Trader Joe's ... then you've likely noticed the nearly 200 drawings that adorn the store's interior ... 

East Village-based illustrator Peter Arkle created the drawings, which are an appreciation of street scenes and architectural details that he has spotted throughout the neighborhood... from more celebrated sites such as the Cube on Astor Place to the lesser-known features like the water fountain/wash bowl with the bronze figures (circa 1890s) outside the Immaculate Conception Church on 14th Street. 

Revisit the piece with Stacie Joy's Q&A here.

9th Street condo project turns former parking garage into construction zone

Top photo from Thursday by William Klayer 

Work picked up last week at the former Little Man Parking garage (aka LaSalle Parking) on Ninth Street between Second Avenue and Third Avenue.

There are partial demolition permits on file with the city. Part of the existing structure will be used (for residential parting!) in the conversion and vertical enlargement of five to six floors for residential use. 

A tipster on the block told us this: 

Workers arrived this past week and began loading materials onto the roof to build scaffolding. By Friday afternoon, the scaffolding had grown to occupy the sidewalk, bike lane, and part of the street.

Back to the tipster: 

Friday evening was chaotic for a while when an MTA bus could not pass the barricades placed on the street to protect the scaffolding. This caused a roadblock, and the cars behind it honked their horns for about 15 minutes. Eventually, the cars and bus all backed out onto Second Avenue, and traffic flowed across Ninth Street again.

The power is off in the building and as of now there are no exterior lights on the sidewalk so a significant portion of the block is pitch black. Traffic can't see the construction site or narrowing of the street until they are right up on it. 

It's not immediately clear what caused the mini traffic jam on Friday. It's possible someone double-parked and left their vehicle unattended. There should be enough room for buses and box trucks to navigate the construction zone.

Meanwhile, expect more scaffolding this week as workers wrap up the structure's remains.

As for background, the new 74-foot-tall building will include 31,231 square feet of residential space, including 18 units and likely condos, as NYY previously pointed out. Per public notices, Colberg Architecture is the architect of record.

According to public records and the TradedNY account, Arcus Development, operating through Astor Nine LLC, is the new owner of the vacant property. 

The garage has been closed since late April 2023 after the Department of Buildings issued a vacate order on the property following the deadly collapse at the Little Man garage on Ann Street in the Financial District. 

Per the DOB vacate order: "The occupied parking structure with concrete framing observed to be in a state of disrepair at several locations in cellar level... crushed column base observed at several locations in cellar level ... vertical cracks observed inside elevator shaft and on masonry walls."

The address was offered as a "redevelopment project" in August 2023. 

Thanks to Steven for sharing photos of the site.