Angels & Kings closed; did anyone notice?

The Pete Wentz-backed bar on 11th Street just east of Avenue A closed several weeks ago ... we didn't actually notice or hear about it until this past Friday...

Via their Facebook page:

Unfortunately, its with great sadness that we announce that Angels & Kings NYC has officially closed for good. We’ve had an amazing run and met so many amazing people on the ride but it was time for a change. If you are in Chicago, LA or Barcelona, check out our other sexy locations and you never know, we could be back in NYC in the near future ;-)

Here's how UrbanDaddy announced the bar's arrival back in April 2007:

Launched in part as a hangout for the members of Fall Out Boy, The Academy Is... and Gym Class Heroes, Angels and Kings — or AK-47, as the kids are calling it — is your chance to sip a cheap bottle of beer and chat up attractive TRL aficionadas.

And here's how Joshua Stein announced the arrival on Gawker.

When emo-troubadour Pete Wentz opened Angels and Kings, a bar in the East Village, our douche canary in our douche mineshaft keeled over and died. First of all, Pete Wentz is going to be there. As he tells Page Six: "Yeah, I'm just gonna be local and drink umbrella drinks." So this isn't your normal dive. According to one of his business partners, this is a dive where "anyone can go and have sex in the bathroom and not get in trouble." So it's located in international waters?

Cops shut the place down briefly in May 2009 for underage drinking... sparking headlines worldwide (seriously).

Eventually the emoness wore off... The bar became the home to Penn State football games last fall...

As for what's next... I recall that, in January, the CB3/SLA OK'd the people behind Keybar on East 13th Street taking over the space and opening a bar-restaurant serving Hungarian food. With DJs on Thursday, Friday and Saturday nights. (You can read the official CB3ese here.)

Fine Fare moves recycling to Avenue C

Back in October, DNAinfo reported that some neighbors were angry about Fine Fare's recycling center on the East Fourth Street side of the grocery store at Avenue C. The residents noted constant problems such as fighting, drinking, urinating in public...

One commenter on our post said, "Noise in NYC makes sense... but the degree of noise on that corner is just absurd."

Among other things, Fine Fare put up some signs and painted a no-hanging-out zone along East Fourth Street.

In a follow-up story in March, DNAinfo reported that the store would move the recycling operation to the front of the store on Avenue C... and, late last week, the move became official...

[EVG reader Steven]

... and a look at the East Fourth Street side now...

Have any nearby residents noticed a difference already with the move?

Sunday's sorta supermoon

On Saturday, the moon came as close to Earth as it will all year. Allegedly. I cut-n-paste this from somewhere: the supermoon was 14 percent closer to Earth and 30 percent brighter than when at its farthest point.

But Saturday evening's overcast skies didn't make for very good viewing.

Still, last night's moon wasn't any slouch.

Photos by Bobby Williams.

On this date in 1984: Spinal Tap turns it to 11 at CBGB

[Breaking it like the wind at CBGB. Photograph: Ebet Roberts/Redferns]

A little trivia via the History Channel:

Only two years removed from a disastrous 1982 world tour that not only failed to turn the album Smell The Glove into a comeback hit, but also led to the group's breakup, Spinal Tap now had to suffer the indignity of seeing the Marty DiBergi-helmed behind-the-scenes film of that tour gain widespread theatrical release. Would the numerous embarrassments catalogued in the hard-hitting rockumentary This Is Spinal Tap provoke public sympathy for and renewed interest in the band that Nigel Tufnel, David St. Hubbins and Derek Smalls began back in 1964 as The Originals? Or would the group behind such familiar classic-rock hits as "Give Me Some Money" and "Tonight I'm Gonna Rock You Tonight" be consigned once and for all to obscurity? In this atmosphere of uncertainty, Spinal Tap elected to go back to their roots, kicking off a tour of small American rock clubs with an appearance at New York City's legendary CBGB's on May 6, 1984.

h/t @cbgbandomfug

People's Pops now open; something else to stand in line for on Seventh Street

People are apparently popping by the People's Pops pop-up Popsicle stand (sorry!) ... which opened this past week on Seventh Street near First Avenue.

Apparently summer is here. But we still think it will snow one more time before June.

Previously.

[Photo by Bobby Williams]

Pop-up party is over at Riff on the Bowery

Just catching up on a few items that I didn't get to this past week.

Such as!

Riff, the pop-up store at 313 Bowery, closed last Sunday.

The place opened last October and featured the rock-inspired clothing line called Andrew Charles created by Andy Hilfiger and Steven Tyler... (Tyler performed there during a grand opening last fall.)

In fact, the only thing left in the space is this cutout of Tyler with his daughter Chelsea...

Not sure what's coming here next... the Morrison Hotel Gallery was here for several years..

And, once upon a time ...

[Corbis]

There was the CBGB Record Canteen and, later, the 313 Gallery.

313 had been on the market for months...

However, RKF has removed the listing...

Week in Grieview

[East Fourth Street at the Bowery]

Q-and-A with Patricia Krasnausky, president and CEO of Cabrini Eldercare, soon to be home to condos (Tuesday)

Remembering MCA on Avenue A (Friday)

Big changes coming to 243 E. Second St. (Monday)

18 photos of the LES/East Village that you may not have seen before (Wednesday)

The Neighborhood School library spared for now (Wednesday)

Why Zaragoza should be able to sell beer (Friday)

New gallery space at Dixon Place (Wednesday)

A New York Met in Tompkins Square Park (Thursday)

Meatball Factory closes, now a pop-up restaurant called Hole Foods (Friday)

Jane's Sweet Buns now has a bar (Thursday)

Proto's Pizza opens, and people seem to like it (Thursday)

Bishops & Barons now open on IHOP Way (Monday)

About this weekend's Kinofest NYC (Wednesday)

May Day at Union Square (Tuesday)

Hey, look at Chloe Sevigny's bathroom (Monday)

Tough times for Avenue B (Tuesday)

8:47 a.m., Avenue A, May 6

Open call for Art Around the Park

As we noted yesterday, the Howl! Festival is June 1-3 in Tompkins Square Park. ~ Joan sent along the photo of the poster for Art Around the Park on June 2-3. Check the Howl! website here for more details.

Fallout from last night's Bear Crawl continues

Wow. The carnage continues.

Photo by Bobby Williams.

Previously on EV Grieve:
Bear crawl ends predictably enough on Avenue A

Today on Union Square

Photo by Bobby Williams

Was that a UFO over the East Village yesterday?

From reader Brian B. ... this incident occurred yesterday.

I was walking west on 10th Street between Ave A & B at 5pm today, I looked up and spotted a small red dot floating stationary way up in the clouds.

At first I assumed the red dot was a a child's "toy" balloon that had floated up out Tompkins Square Park. For most of the sixty seconds it took me to travel the block, I watched the red "ballon" remain in a stationary position (against the edge of the buildings in the distance).

When I got to the corner of 10th & A, I watched the "balloon" for a few more seconds, then turned my attention to the pedestrian traffic in front of me as turned right and began walking north on Avenue A.

While I was waiting for light at 12 Street, I looked up and noticed that the "red ballon" that had been floating stationary back over 10th Street was now traveling in a straight line across the horizon acting very much UNLIKE a balloon.

I took out my camera and shot this video. (Canon PowerShot ELPH 300HS 13X optical zoom)

The sun was still pretty bright at 5pm and I my camera's display was too dim for me to see if I was capturing the tiny dot that was hardly visible to my eye. I figured that with the camera zoomed in all the way, the footage would be too shaky to show much.

For most of the footage, the object looks dark, but during the last few seconds of the footage, you'll notice the red coloring I saw when I first mistook it for a balloon.

I don't think it's an alien space craft or anything, but it was definitely a UFO in the sense that it was flying and I couldn't identify it. I'm postive it wasn't a plane or a helicopter. Some kind of surveillance drone? Anyone have any idea what this could be?

I'm totally going with alien spacecraft. But I'm a realist.

You? Your thoughts on what this was. (Aside from Lady Gaga or Lana Del Rey, of course.)

And keep in mind: This isn't the first time for something like this happened around here. Remember this. Or this.

Breaking: World's largest pink stretch Hummer spotted on Avenue B

At East Ninth Street. Woo! x 2.

Howl! Festival set for June 1-3

Several readers pointed us to the Howl! Festival's Facebook page... where we found the following announcement posted this morning:

HOWL! Festival 2012 arrives June 1, 2, and 3 in Tompkins Square Park. Non-stop fun and nonsense for kids of all ages~

Check the Howl! website here for more details.

Our previous coverage is here.

Bear crawl ends predictably enough on Avenue A

Avenue A at Second Street.

Same shit every weekend. The SB&T (stuffed bear and taxidermy) crowd invades the neighborhood... and we have to see this kind of thing the next morning. Spent an hour cleaning the stuffed white cotton off my front stoop.

Snakes on an Avenue

[Photo by Marjorie Ingall]

You may have seen this last evening... above, on Seventh Street... and, later, a show on St. Mark's Place and Second Avenue... via EV Grieve reader Rob



Times like these we turn to the Hollywood classics, such as Ice Cube in "Anaconda" — "They got snakes this big?"

3 church/school flea markets today

Multiple flea markets today...

At the St. Brigid School on Avenue B and Seventh Street...

...at Trinity on Avenue B at Ninth Street...

A reader also said that there are tables with clothes set up outside the Graffiti Church on Seventh Street between Avenue B and Avenue C...

Someone stole this bike from outside Table 12 on Avenue A yesterday morning

[Click to enlarge]

Spotted on Avenue A and 10th Street...

Shooting the moon

Bobby Williams took these last night...

If you look closely enough at the detail of this last photo, you can see the moon's new 7-Eleven...

And tonight – SUPERMOON!

10:08 p.m., 171 Avenue A, May 4

Previously.

Photo by Shawn Chittle

Dogs day afternoon

Today in Tompkins Square Park via EV Grieve reader Caiti....

Voices

Ultravox with "The Voice" circa 1982. And an admirably cheesy video.

Remembering Adam Yauch in the East Village

As you likely have heard by now, Adam Yauch, aka MCA of the Beastie Boys, died today after a battle with cancer. He was 47.

Shawn Chittle points us to 171 Avenue A, former home of 171A — the studio used by the Beastie Boys to record "Polly Wog Stew" in 1982.

Per Brooklyn Vegan:

In September of 1980, Jerry Williams would begin renovating the interior of 171A. Previously the place had been a glass shop, but after moving in their PA equipment Williams went on to build a stage at the front and an audio booth in the back. By November the 171A Studio was a venue used to house after hours parties where downtown bands like the Cooties would perform [but] with a huge New Year's Eve show coming up, the New York Fire Dept. stepped in and stopped further shows from proceeding...

By now though 171A had gained a lot of name recognition around town, so instead of shutting it down completely Williams decided to change it into a rehearsal studio. At the time, most of the available rehearsal spots in New York City were tiny little rooms, but 171A offered much more. Jerry described it as being like "...a full sized room with 15 foot ceilings and a floor space 60 feet long and provided recording artists with a quality PA system suspended from the ceiling. It was a cut above other rehearsal studios and since it was about half the size of CBGB's it produced a very similar sound."

Williams, aka Jay Dublee, died in September 2010.

Bad Brains and Reagan Youth were among the other bands to record here... We hear that a few Beastie Boys fans plan to put out candles in front of 171 this evening right now.

The Meatball Factory is now temporarily the Hole pop-up restaurant called Hole Foods

[EVG reader Michael]

It looks as if the Meatball Factory has served its last Meatball... at least for now...

Right under our noses at the Times today:

The Hole gallery opens a conceptual pop-up restaurant called Hole Foods, with a 40-person dinner. The artist Joe Grillo designed the Day-Glo-colored space.

Hole Foods, 231 Second Avenue. Saturday from 8 p.m. Invitation only.

It's the new (previously) secret project from The Hole Gallery on the Bowery. And this explains why several tipsters insisted that the Meatball Factory was a goner.

Previously on EV Grieve:
[Updated] Renovations for the Meatball Factory

Rally Monday for East Third Street residents facing eviction

The flyer is pretty self-explanatory...

We were first to report on the looming evictions back on March 15... You can read more via the links below...

Previously on EV Grieve:
Reader report: Three apartment buildings sold on East Third Street

Know your rights: Help with understanding NYC rent laws

More about the lease renewals at 50, 54 and 58 E. Third St.

Tenants at 50, 54 and 58 E. Third St. banding to together in face of building sale

Related:
And Economakis gets the whole building for his dream mansion

At the 47 E. 3rd St. protest

Here is the beer menu for the new bar behind Jane's Sweet Buns

At least the beer menu for tonight... Thanks to a reader for sending this along...

There are also 25 bottles ranging in price from $8 to $31 (the De Dochter van de Korenaar Embrasse Peated Oak Aged — wolf it!) ... you can find the list here.

The 10-seat Proletariat is now open in the rear of Jane's on St. Mark's Place... you can read about the place here ... and here.

The bar is open from 5 p.m. to 2 a.m.

Noted

From the Village Pourhouse Facebook page:

What are YOU doing on Cinco de Mayo? If your answer remotely resembles "traveling to multiple downtown bars while drinking awesomely cheap tequila & beer specials and wearing a sombrero/mustache" then you belong with us at Village Pourhouse!

What's the over/under on Saturday, May 5 being more of a shitshow than Saturday, March 17?

Making the case for Zaragoza Mexican Deli & Grocery to serve beer

[Photo via Serious Eats]

EV Grieve favorite Zaragoza Mexican Deli & Grocery on Avenue A between 13th Street and 14th Street is on this month's CB3/SLA docket for a beer license... Here, EV Grieve reader Charles Hutchinson makes his case for Zaragoza...

One of the few truly unspoiled eateries on my stretch of Avenue A, Zaragoza Mexican Deli & Grocery, has been hurting since they lost their beer license in September.

Zaragoza is a 10 year-old family-run business (husband, wife and grown son — Pompeyo, Maria and Ruben Martinez, respectively, all of whom live in the neighborhood). Zaragoza makes authentic, good, affordable fare — tortas, tamales, burritos — with fresh ingredients every day. For years it has been a convivial and crowded take-out with a few tables that were always filled.

Unfortunately, much of that has changed since the Fall when Ruben filed papers to change the establishment from a limited partnership into a corporation. What he didn't know, and now regrets, is that the change in legal status would complicate and possibly jeopardize his liquor license.

Since then, Zaragoza hasn't been permitted to sell a single can of Tecate or any other of the Mexican Beers that it used to stock. And that has put a serious crimp in their business.

So how dead is it now? When I went over there [last Friday night], weaving past the throng of revelers in front of one or more neighboring bars, the place was empty save for an occasional take-out like myself. Ironically, part of what is complicating the license renewal is the proliferation of bars that for most part didn't exist when Zaragosa started selling beer there many years ago.

Zaragoza is now seeking neighborhood support as it gathers signatures prior to pleading its case before the Community Board. Can you alert your readers of the need to sign the petition and help revive this venerable establishment?

Yes. There aren't many places like this left. [Added] They are collecting signatures of support for the CB3/SLA meeting at Zaragoza. You can stop by and sign. Ask Ruben or anyone behind the counter.

You can read a recent review of Zaragoza here at Serious Eats.

Zee's Pet Shop is now closed

[Bobby Williams]

Zee's Pet Shop on Avenue B just off East 10th Street had been going out of business for, well, a seemingly really long time...

As of yesterday, the store is officially now closed. I had a post in March 2010 about the space being for lease.

Mikey's on Seventh Street and Furry Land are other recent casualties... I don't own a pet. So, where do people shop these days for pet supplies in the neighborhood?

Space on the Bowery and Bond for 'the fashion crowd'

Over on Bond and the Bowery, the corner retail space (officially 57 Bond) has sat empty since WaMu moved out in March of 2009 ... But it's still ready for something fabulous, according to the new listing at Massey Knakal:

A retail condominium located on the southwest corner of Bowery and Bond Street - one of the most desirable locations in the neighborhood. The unit has exposure on Bowery and Bond Street with an entrance on Bond. ... This corner space sits on the rapidly emerging fashion district surrounding the intersection of Bond Street and the Bowery. No cooking is allowed. With tenants nearby including Billy Reid, Rogan, Blue and Cream, John Varvatos, and United Nude, this space is likely to draw significant attention from the fashion crowd.

The space is for sale for a fashionable $4.2 million; asking rent "upon request."

Previously, the space was "the new intersection of cool."


It was also a photogenic intersection for Bringing it On...


Anyway, this is just one more opportunity for my Bowery-Bond nickname to take off — BowBo.

Previously on EV Grieve:
The Post discovers that the area around Bowery and Bond is pretty nice these days — and getting nicer!

Noted

[Click to enlarge]

Letters addressing what you can and can't flush down your toilet are always so... awkward. Haven't seen it done well yet. And who dumps cat litter down a toilet? (Wait, don't answer that...)

Via Shawn Chittle.

[Updated] Renovations for the Meatball Factory

A few readers got further than we did with information on why the 7-month-old Meatball Factory on 14th Street and Second Avenue was randomly closed yesterday... EV Grieve reader Michael, who took the above photo, talked to a worker on the scene last night who said they were "doing some renovations." A commenter mentioned, "They've painted some crazy colors and designs all over the walls and ceilings. The bar is also gone."

Updated:

Eater has more on the Meatballers here.

This is what a view from East River Park looked like on April 29, 2012

This year, we'll post photos like this of various buildings, streetscenes, etc., to capture them as they looked at this time and place... The photos may not be the most telling now, but they likely will be one day...

Photo by Bobby Williams

Michael White now hiring at Nicoletta

Yesterday, we took a look at the incoming Michael White pizzeria on Second Avenue at 10th Street ...

Anyway, a reader sent us a link to a Craigslist ad ... apparently, if you're interested, they're hiring front-of-the-house positions... Per Craigslist: "Focused on pizza and Italian cuisine, we are seeking staff to share in our love of food, passion for service, and desire to develop a new brand offering the highest levels of quality, hospitality and professionalism."

Bonus ad except for host/hostess: "Able to multitask while remaining calm and hospitable."

Happy birthday Keith Haring

If you've been to Google today... then you probably saw the Google Doodle honoring Keith Haring on what would have been his 54th birthday today. Haring died of AIDS-related illnesses in 1990 at the age of 31.

And an EVG repost from March 12, 2009:

Blogger Jack Brummet at All This is That today posts a Polaroid that he received in 1982...It's a shot of Keith Haring's mural on Houston and the Bowery....


The photo was affixed to a postcard and mailed to him from San Francisco...the former NYC resident was living in Seattle. You can see the postmark on the bottom left of the photo....