At Night Club 101 with Pop Music Fever Dream

Photos by Stacie Joy 

We had to catch another set by EVG favorites Pop Music Fever Dream last Friday at Night Club 101 on Avenue A. 

One thing we've learned: You never quite know what's going to happen. A band member might end up in the crowd. Someone might be climbing on the amps. The songs rarely let up. 

PMFD — vocalist-guitarist Tim Seeberger, guitarist Nicole Harwayne, bassist Carmen Castillo and drummer Violette Grim — continues to deliver a thrilling mix of punk fury and no-wave chaos.

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Tim from PMFD encouraged us to arrive early for the first band — singer-songwriter Lex Walton... we're glad we did...

Friday's opening shot

EVG reader David H. shares this recent photo of a juvenile red-tailed hawk in Tompkins Square Park...

Thursday's parting shot

Photo by Stacie Joy 

As seen at Spooksvilla + Friends, the cool gift shop at 309 E. Ninth St. between First and Second Avenues... here's Mazyar, owner Shahrzad Ghadjar's son, who comes with a warning sign and a toothy grin.

Noted

A ready-made depressing Christmas, spotted in Stuy Town last night. 

Thanks to EVG reader Annabelle for the pic!

About 'Gin Joint,' the Apple+ series that filmed in the East Village yesterday

Photos and reporting by Stacie Joy 

We fielded a lot of questions about the filming in Tompkins Square Park yesterday...

Film notices pointed to a TV series called "Gin Joint." However, crew members were tight-lipped about what exactly this was. 

A little digging via Deadline turned up an Apple+ series with the working title "Gin Joint" — an "upcoming untitled thriller series created by Alex ("Homeland") Cary and starring Dakota Fanning and Stellan Skarsgård." 

And! 

Plot: An undercover Treasury agent (Fanning) infiltrates a massive international conglomerate and grows conflicted about her target, the corrupt corporate heir. Cast: Features Dakota Fanning, Stellan Skarsgård, Daryl McCormack and Grace Gummer. 

Other working code names for the show include "Ella" and "Foxglove." 

Filming yesterday took place on the closed-off multipurpose courts/TF...

The casting call for Park extras went like this: 

Seeking NON-UNION to portray various park goer roles such as: Shaved Ice Vendor, Park Goers w. Dogs, People Smoking Pot, Moms, Men Playing Ping Pong, Sunbathers, Basketball players, Etc. Some of these roles will change over into diner patron/bartender/waiter roles as well later in the day. 

Being very method-y, we spent the day smoking pot to prepare for the call... but fell asleep and missed the whole thing. 

Also, the cast cooled their heels in some nice production trailers on Fourth Street between Avenue A and First Avenue...

Above shot by EVG

Another location of the Bean closes, leaving 1 East Village outpost

Photos by Stacie Joy

And then there was one.

The Broadway location of the Bean at Ninth Street has closed, following the May shuttering of the café's Third Avenue outpost. 

A 14-day eviction notice is on the front window over the closure notice...

This closure leaves just one remaining East Village location: 54 Second Ave. at Third Street. 

At one point, the brand had five NYC locations.

Reminders: 'Irregular,' filmed at Sophie's, makes its world premiere on Sunday

"Irregular" — an independent feature filmed largely inside Sophie's on Fifth Street — makes its world premiere on Sunday at the Chain Film Festival. 

The first screening at 6 p.m. is sold out... and so organizers added a second at 8 p.m.

Directed and co-written by Sophie's bartender (and photographer and filmmaker) Kyle de Vre, the 80-minute film unfolds through a series of barroom vignettes set over random Tuesdays, populated by quirky regulars, curious newcomers and the occasional unexplained smell. (Trailer here.)

As we noted in our January Q&A with de Vre, who also plays The Bartender, "Irregular" is a love letter to both Sophie's and the East Village. 

Find the screening details at this link. The Chain Theatre is at 312 W. 36th St., between Eighth and Ninth Avenues. 

You can revisit our January conversation with de Vre here. 

Champions Martial Arts taps out on 11th and C

Photos by Stacie Joy 

A recent closure to note: The Champions Martial Arts outpost on the SW corner of Avenue C and 11th Street shut down earlier last month...

The business also offered Little Tigers, a program for kids. 

EVG regular Jose Garcia first told us about the closure, noting: "What was most lovely about it over these last years was the parents who would bring lawn chairs and sit on the sidewalk on the 11th Street side to watch their kids inside. They brought their dogs, too." 

There are more than a dozen other locations for the brand in the metropolitan area... 80-plus in the US. 

Champions Martial Arts arrived here in 2019... taking over from the New York Health Choice (aka Eastside Market): RIP 2017. 

As for what is next, a reader said: "I hope it doesn't become a bar."

Sunday in the Park

Photos by Stacie Joy 

People of all ages gathered in Tompkins Square Park on Sunday afternoon as the annual Tompkins Square Riot Reunion unfolded. Here's a look at some faces in the crowd...

Buyer found for long-vacant Second Avenue development site

Photo from March by Stacie Joy 

The long-vacant development site on the east side of Second Avenue between Second Street and Third Street appears to have found a buyer. 

The listing from brokerage BKREA is now marked SOLD, though the transaction has not yet appeared in public property records.

As previously reported, the 14,019-square-foot parcel, which hit the market in March, offers more than 100,000 buildable square feet and has been at the center of years of stalled development plans, litigation and neighborhood concern. (See this post.) 

The site was assembled by Gemini Rosemont in 2020 through the purchase of several properties, including the former Church of the Nativity. 

Plans for an 11-story mixed-use development were later derailed after the Department of Buildings revoked permits following an audit prompted by complaints from neighboring property owner Robert Proto. 

Gemini ultimately decided to market the assemblage for sale.

New innovation hub opens at Jacob Riis Houses

Photos by Stacie Joy

A new innovation hub officially opened this past Saturday at the Jacob Riis Houses, featuring computer and podcast labs designed to provide residents with educational and career opportunities. 

The space includes desktop computers, Chromebooks, printers, podcast recording equipment, desks, chairs and conference tables. 

The project was funded through a donation from Amazon to the Public Housing Community Fund. According to organizers, the Jacob Riis Houses hub is part of a $500,000 initiative to create up to 50 learning labs at NYCHA developments across the five boroughs. 

Representatives from the Public Housing Community Fund, Thrive Collective, Amazon, NYCHA and the Jacob Riis Houses Resident Association joined residents for Saturday's ribbon-cutting ceremony.

The 13-building Jacob Riis Houses complex spans from Sixth Street to 13th Street between Avenue D and the FDR Drive. 

Signage alert: RedWhite Boneless Ramen on Allen Street

Photo and reporting by Stacie Joy 

A new vegan ramen spot is preparing to open on Allen Street just south of Houston. 

RedWhite Boneless Ramen specializes in vegan ramen and sushi rolls, with an all-electric kitchen (though it also has a functioning gas line). 

The concept started in Japan before expanding to Boston, where it has built a following, and now makes its New York debut. (VegNews has more about the biz here.) 

Chef Kei (above left) and restaurant manager Ikuma said they're aiming for a soft opening as early as Friday, with a grand opening planned for Aug. 20.