The annual Sirovich Holiday Art Sale returns today and tomorrow

The annual Sirovich Holiday Art Sale is happening today (Friday!) and tomorrow (Saturday!). 

You can stop by from 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. ... in the auditorium at the Sirovich Center for Balanced Living at 331 E. 12th St. between First Avenue and Second Avenue. 

As noted in previous Sirovich posts, we've bought a few things here through the years, and the proceeds support the art programs at Sirovich.

Friday's opening shots

The early morning supermoon! 

Thanks to Cecil Scheib for the photos.

Thursday's parting shot

Photo by Steven 

The Mudspot Family Christmas Wreath is now outside (as of yesterday) the cafe at 307 E. Ninth St. between First Avenue and Second Avenue...

Behold the last full moon of 2025, as seen from Tompkins Square Park

Per Space.com: 

The December full moon is sometimes known as the "Cold Moon" in reference to the plummeting temperatures that are common this time of year and also as the "Long Night Moon," to reflect the lengthening nights and shorter days as the northern hemisphere sinks deeper into the winter months. 

This month's full moon will occur as Earth's natural satellite passes within 90% of perigee, the closest point to our planet in its 27-day elliptical orbit, giving rise to a majestic "supermoon." Its close proximity to Earth can make a supermoon appear up to 14% larger and 30% brighter than the smallest full moon of the year — sometimes referred to as a micromoon — when viewed with the naked eye.

Harvey Epstein to be sworn in this morning as City Council District 2 representative

Photo from March by Stacie Joy 

Harvey Epstein will be sworn in today as the new City Council member for District 2. 

The ceremony takes place at 9 a.m. inside the City Council Chamber at City Hall. 

His resignation from the New York State Assembly — where he has represented the 74th District since 2018 — officially took effect at 11:59 last night. 

Epstein, an East Village resident who won the District 2 race with nearly 80% of the vote in a four-person field, has focused his legislative work on affordable and accessible housing, disability rights, and climate issues. 

He joins the Council, taking over for the term-limited Carlina Rivera, along with members of the incoming class. 

Meanwhile, the race is on to fill Epstein's Assembly seat in a special election in early 2026. 

East Village resident Sarah Batchu, a former aide to Mayor de Blasio, was second to Epstein in the final round of ranked-choice voting for the City Council District 2 seat in June. 

She will face term-limited City Council Member Keith Powers ... Democratic socialist Josh Arnon ... and Marquis Jenkins, a local district leader and director of advocacy for Housing Works.

On Monday, Epstein endorsed Powers to succeed him. 

2nd man sentenced for East Village assault spree that included Ray's Candy Store

Gerald Barth was sentenced yesterday to five years in state prison for his role in a series of assaults and robberies in the East Village in 2023, including the attack on Ray Alvarez, the then 90-year-old owner of Ray's Candy Store. 

Barth previously pleaded guilty to three counts of attempted assault in the first degree. His plea follows the earlier sentencing of his co-defendant, Luis Peroza, who received a 10-year prison term in 2024 for his part in the same string of attacks. 

As EVG previously reported, Alvarez was assaulted outside Ray's Candy Store around 3 a.m. on Jan. 31, 2023, after stepping outside for some air. Prosecutors said Peroza struck Alvarez with a belt weighted by a rock, leaving him with a black eye, several broken facial bones and a dislocated jaw. The incident reportedly began after Alvarez declined to buy seltzer water from the suspects. 

A short time later, prosecutors say Peroza and Barth attacked two additional victims in separate incidents — one outside a deli on Avenue C, and another on Avenue B — each sustaining serious facial injuries.

Barth, whose erratic past behavior earned him the nickname "Insanity Claus" in Tompkins Square Park after donning a discarded SantaCon suit, was initially charged with first-degree assault and two counts each of first-degree robbery and first-degree attempted robbery. 

"Gerald Barth attacked three strangers over the span of hours, including an assault at Ray's Candy Store — a pillar of the East Village community," Manhattan District Attorney Alvin L. Bragg Jr. said in a statement. "For his actions, Barth will now serve a state prison term, and I thank our prosecutors for securing accountability for the victims." 

Previously on EV Grieve: 

• A timeline of events after the assault outside Ray's Candy Store

A new chapter on Avenue A: Café-bookstore proposed for the former 7-Eleven

There's a new storyline unfolding at 170 Avenue A and 11th Street, where the former 7-Eleven could – what? — potentially become a Paris-inspired café and bookstore.

According to the application on file at Community Board 3, the space will be modeled after European book cafés that double as gathering places for people who want to "participate in intelligent conversations about history, current events and great works of literature past and present," per a letter to local community groups and block associations. Expect author readings, book clubs and other events. 

The café menu will include breakfast pastries, sandwiches, cheese and charcuterie boards, and desserts. The ground-floor space (2,684 square feet) is slated for eight tables (16 seats) and an 18-seat bar (beer and wine) ... for  34 seats in total. 

Background music will play during the day, with occasional acoustic live performances. Hours are proposed as 8 a.m. to midnight Sunday through Wednesday, and until 1 a.m. Thursday through Saturday. There are no outdoor areas.

The owner, Marianna Vaidman Stone, a lifelong New Yorker with a JD from NYU Law and a background in city government and nonprofit work, says she aims to create a welcoming neighborhood spot.

She previously tried for space on Bleecker Street near the Bowery, but those plans didn't move forward.

Community Board 3's Licensing & Outdoor Dining Committee will hear this and other applications Monday evening at 6:30. 

The 7-Eleven closed last November after 11 years. The owner told EVG's Stacie Joy that rampant theft was the cause of the closure. 

Before its transformation into a suburban convenience store, the SE corner of Avenue A and 11th Street was home to Bar on A, which closed in August 2012.

Surprise Scoop closing on 1st Avenue; skewer concept next?

Surprise Scoop, billed as "the world's first flavor roulette ice cream shop" after debuting in January, is closing after service on Dec. 14. 

The shop at 139 First Ave. between St. Mark's Place and Ninth Street recently reopened after a DOH-related visit on Sept. 13. 

The owners of the previous business here, Stuffed Ice Cream, closed in October 2024 to make way for this new concept. You order from a touch-screen menu. And there's only one item: "Surprise Ice Cream." 

Here's more from a Surprise Scoop Instagram post on Tuesday: 

It's been a short but very memorable journey. Testing a new bold concept in NYC is a dream come true, but due to a lot of circumstances, we've decided to give the space to friends who are interested in opening a skewer concept in the East Village. 

Thank you for all the love and support throughout the year, including the person who wrote us a review but never tried, and the person named Skibidi Toilet. 

Although our time is coming to an end, we're opening our doors for two more weeks. Thursday - Sunday 12/4-12/7 and 12/11-12/14. 

Surprise Scoop's social-media-friendly gimmick garnered media coverage locally from Fox 5 and NBC 4 to the Post.

Supermoon prep

The last Supermoon of 2025 (sob!) will light up the EV sky tomorrow evening. 

Per NASA, it will look around 30% brighter and up to 14% larger than the usual moon. 

Peak viewing time: 6:14 p.m. 

Here's the moon view from this evening right around 6:14... for a pre-Supermoon preview...

Cookie Walk returns — with a centennial twist

Photos by Stacie Joy 

Signage is up for the 2025 edition of The Cookie Walk, the annual neighborhood tradition that brings dozens of varieties of homemade cookies and desserts to St. Nicholas of Myra Orthodox Church on Avenue A and 10th Street. 

This year's event takes place in the church basement on Dec. 13 from 11 a.m. to 4 p.m. and Dec. 14 from noon to 3 p.m. (or until everything's gone). 

As always, the setup is simple: grab one of the provided boxes (or two) and make your way around the cookie-lined tables, choosing your favorites as you go. 

This year's Walk has added significance. St. Nicholas recently celebrated its 100th Anniversary Jubilee, and the parish is marking the milestone with 100 varieties of cookies, keeping the tradition's familiar format intact. 

They've also created a children's storybook about the Cookie Walk that begins and ends in the East Village, with a few stops in Manhattan along the way. 

More details to come as we get closer to the big weekend.

Openings: Godunk on the Bowery

Godunk debuted last night at 332 Bowery, bringing Thai street food to the block between Great Jones and Bond. 

The restaurant is led by chef Nate Limwong, who previously earned a Michelin Bib Gourmand at Chalong in Hell's Kitchen. Godunk's menu draws from street food traditions across Thailand, from Isaan in the north to Limwong's hometown of Surat Thani in the south ... plus with "movie-themed cocktails" by Ryan Saputra, who previously worked at Angel's Share. 

Godunk's Instagram account describes itself as "born from a love of bold flavour, big energy, analog soul." 

Since 2013, the storefront has been home to various retail shops, including Burkleman and Intermix. Before that, it was the deli-grocery Steve's on the Bowery.

Tuesday's parting shot

Porto Rico Importing Co. dressed for the holidays on St Mark's Place just east of Second Avenue...

Bill Rice’s East Village on view uptown

Bill Rice, Untitled (detail), 1980. Photo: Kunning Huang. Courtesy of Donald Ryan Gallery

Donald Ryan Gallery is presenting a new exhibition of work by East Village painter Bill Rice (1932-2006), whose loft on Third Street was a gathering spot for artists, writers and filmmakers for decades.

Rice, active in downtown theater and experimental film, spent nearly half a century chronicling the neighborhood's quieter corners, everyday figures and solitary moments. 

The show, running through Dec. 13, features paintings that capture Rice's intimate view of the East Village and includes archival images, such as a 1983 rooftop photo of Rice and Peter Hujar. 

The gallery is at 15 E. 71st St., between Fifth Avenue and Madison Avenue (road trip!).

Hours: Tuesday to Saturday from 11 a.m. to 6 p.m.

The Brant Foundation to host major Keith Haring exhibition next spring on 6th Street

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A post shared by The Brant Foundation (@thebrantfoundation)

The Brant Foundation is at 421 E. Sixth St. between Avenue A and First Avenue. 

The Brant Foundation started its exhibits here in the spring of 2019, with a show featuring art by Jean-Michel Basquiat — some 70 works collectively valued at $1 billion. 

Peter Brant bought the building — a former Con Edison substation and Walter de Maria studio — for $27 million in August 2014.

Tuesday's opening shot

There's apparently an issue with the thermostat in the new sauna in Tompkins Square Park...

OK, they were just power-washing some graffiti off the outside of the men's room. 

Meanwhile, there's a lousy weather forecast for today (Dec. 2). Per Accuweather: "Drenching rain; some snow can mix in early; heavy rain can cause localized flooding and slow travel." 

The sun returns tomorrow...

Noted

An updated look at the new mural outside the Second Avenue F stop... someone has covered the ICE on the uniforms and added a misspelled "Comunist Democrats" message... (H/T to the commenter for pointing this out...)

When is the tree lighting in Tompkins Square Park this year?

The question we've been asked about now that Thanksgiving is over: the 34th annual tree lighting in Tompkins Square Park is scheduled for Sunday, Dec. 14, from 4-5 p.m. 

The event this year is once again sponsored by C&B Cafe and features the Carolers of Olde New York from Theater for the New City, along with refreshments from Veselka ... an enduring staple of December in the neighborhood.

Why neighborhood staple Casa Adela will be closed this week

Photos and reporting by Stacie Joy

If you had plans for any meals at Casa Adela this week, the lively Puerto Rican restaurant will be closed today through Friday for "structural chimney repairs," per signage for patrons.

The decades-spanning business will reopen on Saturday at 66 Avenue C, between Fourth Street and Fifth Street.

Top Secret Comedy Club makes its U.S. debut tonight on Avenue A

Photo by Stacie Joy 

The Top Secret Comedy Club is set to debut TONIGHT at 44 Avenue A and Third Street (the former Upright Citizens Brigade Theater's UCBeast space). 

Signage notes $1 admission (or "pay what you want") for the show starting at 8 p.m. You can visit the Top Secret website for more details and a list of comics. 

Owner Mark Rothman, who started the UK-based comedy business 13 years ago, talked with EVG's Stacie Joy about what to expect. You can find that post here.

Game over for 8-Bit Bites on 2nd Avenue

It's game over after two-plus years for 8-Bit Bites on Second Avenue.

An EVG reader shared this photo from the other day, showing that someone has closed up the quick-serve space that served smash burgers, fried chicken sandwiches, and wings alongside retro video games at 77 Second Ave. between Fourth Street and Fifth Street. 

Google also reports this location as "permanently closed." 

The chainlet's other NYC outposts remain open.