Work starts on the 2 Caffe Bene spaces in the East Village

[Photo by EVG contributor Steven]

A few Mondays ago we reported that Caffe Bene, the coffeehouse chain based in Seoul, South Korea, is opening two locations in the East Village.

Work has started at both of the incoming Caffe Bene spaces… paper and permits are up at 24 St. Mark's Place between Third Avenue and Second Avenue … in the former Pinkberry space (above) … and the plywood arrived last Thursday at the southeast corner of Avenue A and East 13th Street…



The proprietors of the Avenue A location are seeking a beer-wine license for the address. (They will make their case tonight before CB's SLA committee.)

The previous tenant, Kim's Laundromat & Cleaners, got rent-hiked out of here in July 2014.

We were trying to find out how long the corner storefront was home to a laundromat… we traced it back to at least 1983 via this photo by Sally Davies…



And we used Google's Street View to [try to] match up for a then and now…



Previously on EV Grieve:
2 Caffe Bene locations coming to the East Village (45 comments)

Reader report: Rent hike washes away longtime Avenue A laundromat

New East 14th Street retail space already gone to pot

There's news about the new retail tenant at 212 E. 14th St., a building that is coming off a two-year gut renovation with one-floor extension here just east of Third Avenue.

Columbia Care NY signed a lease to occupy 3,500 square feet here, as The Real Deal reported. Columbia Care is one of the five companies selected to run medical marijuana dispensaries in New York.

However, this won't be like buying a bag of weed from [redacted], who you can always find selling over by the [redacted].

DNAinfo had the guidelines about buying marijuana from one of 20 dispensaries set to open in New York:

• So far, the medical conditions approved for marijuana prescriptions are limited to cancer, HIV/AIDS, ALS, Parkinson's disease, multiple sclerosis, spinal cord tissue damage, epilepsy, inflammatory bowel disease, neuropathies and Huntington's disease. The Department of Health can add medical conditions to this list as it sees fit.

• To register as a patient eligible to purchase marijuana, you'll need to get certification from your doctor demonstrating your medical need and detailing your prescription. You'll also have to be a New York resident, or a patient receiving treatment in the state.

• You won't be smoking the pot you buy. Dispensaries will sell no larger than 30-day supplies of marijuana in the form of oils, pills, or tinctures.

This East 14th Street location is not expected to open until after Jan. 1.

The Real Deal noted that Columbia Care, who's paying $140 per square foot, signed a five-year deal with a five-year renewal option.

The storefront was most recently the Super Saving Store, which closed in June 2011.

Previously on EV Grieve:
Residential, retail and an additional floor for 212 E. 14th St.

Full exposure at 212 E. 14th St.

Cantonese-style restaurant coming to Avenue B

Sum Restaurant, serving a Cantonese-style menu, is in the works for the recently refurbished retail space at 165 Avenue B between East 10th Street and East 11th Street.

The restaurant is the creation of chef Ben Pope. According to paperwork (PDF!) on file ahead of tonight's CB3-SLA committee meeting, Sum will have daily dinner service from 5 to 11 p.m., with opening hours at noon on Saturday and Sunday. (The PDF has a working menu for Sum.)

And the configuration shows 15-17 tables good for 40 seats. (There is a service bar with 3-5 seats.) Sum is seeking a beer-wine license. However, this item will not be heard during tonight's committee meeting.

Pope was the executive chef helping launch 2 Duck Goose, another Cantonese-style restaurant, in Brooklyn last year.

According to the Times in a preview piece on 2 Duck Goose last August: "The chef Ben Pope, a native of Hong Kong, studied at the French Culinary Institute and found himself missing the Cantonese food he grew up with."

Before a top-to-bottom renovation last year at 165 Avenue B, the ground-floor unit was a residential space. However, prior to this, it was a storefront housing the great junk shop Waldorf Hysteria.

Is 26 Avenue B ready for its new building now?

It appears that work is ready to resume at 26 Avenue B between East Second Street and East Third Street, where there have been approved plans for a new 8-unit, 6-floor residential building.

Work stopped here in April 2013, after excavation at the site caused the evacuation of the residents (and Croxley Ales) next-door at No. 28. A resident at No. 28 started to notice cracks in her ceiling after construction began, DNAinfo reported. Debris also reportedly fell from the building.

In subsequent months/years, workers made structural repairs to No. 28.

The empty lot now has freshly painted plywood … and a rendering, basically showing the apartment building above the Duane Reade next door…



The lot itself remains empty…



… though it does seems like a good spot for some sun…



This space was once home to the Croxley Ales beer garden.

Previously on EV Grieve:
[Updated] 6-story apartment building ready to rise from the former Croxley Ales beer garden

[Updated] Report: 28 Avenue B has been evacuated

Full-stop work order served at construction site adjacent to evacuated Avenue B building

Resident wants stuff back that workers took from not abandoned apartment

D-Lish Pita has closed on Avenue A

D-Lish Pita has joined former neighbors Benny's (and Benny's to-go) in going out of business on Avenue A at East Sixth Street.

A for rent sign hangs from the D-Lish sign… and three storefronts are now vacant here.



D-Lish opened in late 2010… taking over the space from Habib's Place. We never actually tried D-Lish. Difficult to break out of the Rakka Cafe or Mamoun's habit on St. Mark's Place.

New Petco ready to be Unleashed on Aug. 31

The signs are up in the retail space at 31-33 Second Ave., aka The Luxe East, where an Unleashed (by Petco) outlet has been in the works.

Signs on the door now point to an Aug. 31 opening here between East Second Street and East First Street...



What is Unleashed?

As pet stores go, we’re anything but ordinary. Unleashed by Petco hit the pet scene in 2009, with our first store in San Diego’s Hillcrest neighborhood. Our concept is simple – provide the same knowledge and know-how offered by Petco in a unique, smaller package.

This location will also include dog training…



Developer Ben Shaoul bought this property for $5.6 million in 2011. He then added three floors to the existing building … and unloaded it for $29 million.

Week in Grieview

[Sunset crows on East 10th Street via Bobby Williams]

The Bowery Mission is in urgent need of food donations (Wednesday)

B&H Dairy reopens (Friday)

RIP Ian Jones (Wednesday)

A.K. Shoe Repair needs a new home (Tuesday)

East Seventh Street package thief caught on surveillance camera (Thursday)

Out and About with Arthur Rivers (Wednesday)

Tenant advocacy group names Icon Realty and Steven Croman among NYC's worst landlords (Wednesday)

Sustainable NYC has closed (Monday)

Hey, it's Jones LES (Monday)

Tay Tay fans talk shit at Ballaro (Wednesday, 76 comments)

Residents seeking to block the Cock from moving into the former Lit Lounge space on Second Avenue (Friday)

Gutting the former Lan Cafe space (Thursday)

Michael Jackson impersonator wanted to be starting something, like dancing (Thursday)

Marymount Manhattan College's Cooper Square dorm opens on Aug. 28 (Thursday)

Corner of East Houston and Orchard now an empty lot (Monday)

An appreciation: 9th Street Community Garden (Friday)

Here's the Bowlmor Lanes-eating 23-story condo coming to University Place (Wednesday)

5-week old restaurant space now on the market (Monday)

Buy the Robyn, it's a deal (Tuesday)

Former Mercadito Cantina space remains on the market, and now with a new broker (Tuesday)

A 95 percent full reveal at 185 Avenue B (Thursday)

… and an important story to note via the EVG inbox…

"I am writing to report a ratastrophe on East 12th Street … I looked at the window of the exterminator shop, and I saw that the rat that is usually perched on top of the fake rock in the window display was lying on its side! I don't know when or how this happened, but I felt bad for the rat, even though it is likely made of plastic and doesn't have feelings."

KW Body Work Inc. rubbed out

A few readers noted that the massage place on East 10th Street between Avenue A and First Avenue closed last week… Not sure what else to say about this other than that they had been there for awhile.

A mural for Ben Shaoul's Bloom 62, which is no longer for sale

[Photo by Stacie Joy]

Several readers pointed out that a mural went up on the wall Thursday at Bloom 62, the 81-unit rental building on Avenue B at East Fifth Street.

Here's another view… via @SquareMusings …



Anyone happen to know the name of the artist? Thank you in the comments… The artist is Ludo … and it was for the Lo Man Art Festival.

Meanwhile… Back in March we reported that landlord Ben Shaoul put Bloom 62 on the market … with an $80 million asking price for the former Cabrini Center for Nursing and Rehabilitation.

Now, according to The Real Deal, Shaoul "opted not to sell – and instead secured $63 million in recapitalization financing." So Shaoul is here to stay…

Barnyard Cheese is back open on Avenue C

[Photo by Will Steacy via nycgo]

After a 10-day closure for various renovations/improvements (like a new AC system), Barnyard Cheese Shop reopened yesterday at 149 Avenue C between East Ninth Street and East 10th Street.

And we missed their early-evening deal…

Barnyard is BACK!!! CRAZY special!! FREE SPINACH EMPANADA now til 8:30pm with ANY purchase!! Just out of the oven! Magic word is CHEESE

— Barnyard Cheese Shop (@BarnyardCheese) August 15, 2015

Previously

Os Gêmeos on 2nd Avenue

If you been walking on Second Avenue near East First Street, then you've likely seen the new mural going up next to the former BP station on the corner.

As BoweryBoogie noted yesterday, this is the work of the Brazilian twins Os Gêmeos … Goggla shared the above photo from yesterday… we walked by earlier this morning, and they were just starting work…



… and a view from the cherry picker…

A video posted by osgemeos (@osgemeos) on Aug 14, 2015 at 5:46pm PDT

A 10-story retail-resident complex has dibs on the former BP property.

P.S.
There is a new mural going up at Bloom 62 on Avenue B as well… will post about that later. Update: That post is here. (Ditto for the new mural on East Third Street next to the shelter.)

Last Saturday for Summer Streets

[Photo of 4th Avenue from Aug. 1]

From 7 a.m. to 1 p.m. today… to refresh your memory…



And avoid Broadway…

Rock of ages

Harpist and singer/songwriter Joanna Newsom released her first new music in five years this week with "Sapokanikan."

The video above for the song shows her meandering around the East Village.

Drag City drops the full album, Divers, on Oct. 23.

And for the record, I'm more of a Joanna Gruesome fan.

EV Grieve Etc.: New legislation protecting tenants; a visit to Gem Spa

[Bendy thing sighting this a.m. at 98-100 Avenue A]

City Council approves legislation protecting tenants from hard-sell buyouts (The Lo-Down)

A visit to Gem Spa (Gothamist)

The 89-year-old East Village resident behind the "Ask My Neighbor Lorraine" video series (DNAinfo)

The New York Mandolin Ensemble performs in a free show tomorrow night at 7 at La Plaza Cultural Garden on Avenue C and East Ninth Street. (La Plaza Cultural)

Minneapolis writer on her Kavasutra Kava Bar experience on East 10th Street (CityPages)

More about the rape accusations at Happy Ending (Jezebel)

New mural by Os Gemeos on Second Avenue at East First Street (BoweryBoogie)

Historic 130 Orcahrd St. has sold, "retail reposition" on the way (The Real Deal)

Department of Justice: It’s unconstitutional to ban the homeless from sleeping outside (The Washington Post)

A young hawk discovers the Marble Cemetery (Gog in NYC)

Cult favorite "Carnival of Souls" screens tomorrow night (Anthology Film Archives)

An interview with Beastie Boy Mike D. from 2001 (Flaming Pablum)

That Iggy Pop-Steve Jones cover of "Purple Haze" (Dangerous Minds)

The Spanish dancer who captivated 1890s New York (Ephemeral New York)

A resident noted the mess that the crew of "Mozart in the Jungle" left behind on Wednesday on East Sixth Sixth between Cooper Square and Second Avenue...



... and nice to see Lucy's back open last night at 135 Avenue A after her usual summer break... back one day earlier than advertised, even...

[Updated] A grand reopening at B&H Dairy

After nearly five months, B&H Dairy reopened this morning ... and there was a line of people waiting for one of the 76-year-old lunch counter's handful of seats...



East Village resident Elinor Nauen was among the first to arrive... waiting up the block...


[Photo by Sheila Rothenberg]

The diner was set to start serving again at 9 a.m., though it was actually 9:27 before the doors opened, EVG contributor Berg noted.

Here's a look inside...

A photo posted by Michael Scotto (@mgscotto) on Aug 14, 2015 at 6:44am PDT

B&H remained closed after the deadly gas explosion that leveled three buildings on March 26. Owners Fawzy Abdelwahed and Ola Smigielsk faced multiple hurdles (we documented this here) to get the diner back open here between East Seventh Street and St. Mark's Place.

Per NY1:

With the darkest days behind them, Abdelwahed is now relieved that his wife didn't listen to him several months ago when he was ready to give up.

"Since this happened, I explain to her, 'Let's go look for another job,'" he said. "She said, 'No way. This is our dream and we're going to fight for it.'"

B&H is expected to be back to its usual 7 a.m. opening time tomorrow.

Updated noon:

NBC 4 is on the scene talking to B&H patrons about the reopening...



Photos by Derek Berg

An appreciation: 9th Street Community Garden

EVG reader Dan Efram shares these photos of his favorite local community garden — the 9th Street Community Garden on the northeast corner of Ninth Street and Avenue C.

"I lived upstate and this garden registers with me because it has such a home-grown appeal," Efram says. "The people there are always very welcoming, but you do know that you are entering their home. They put so much love into it."





















The garden, which encompasses an acre, started in 1979. Its hours are Friday 5-8 p.m., and Saturday-Sunday from noon-6 p.m. Find more info here.

Of course there are nearly 40 other community gardens in the neighborhood to enjoy. Find a list here. Meanwhile, The Guardian filed a story this week looking at the past, present and future of the local community gardens. Find that article here.

Residents seeking to block the Cock from moving into the former Lit Lounge space on 2nd Avenue

[EVG file photo]

As we noted last week, there is a new tenant seeking a liquor license for the former Lit Lounge space at at 93 Second Ave. between East Fifth Street and East Sixth Street.

Turns out the Cock is looking to move up Second Avenue from its current home between East First Street and East Second Street. They are on this month's CB3 SLA committee meeting docket.

Meanwhile, there's already opposition — via the the East Fifth Street Block Association — forming to block the Cock…



This will not be the first time that the Cock has faced unhappy residents. Last fall, the Cock was looking to move from Second Avenue to 25 Avenue B, home at the time of Idle Hands. The Cock reportedly decided to withdraw when it became clear that the SLA committee was going to issue a denial.

Lit Lounge quietly closed at the end of July after 13 years at 93 Second Ave.

The August CB3 SLA committee meeting is Monday at the CB3 office, 59 E. Fourth St. between Second Avenue and the Bowery.

Previously on EV Grieve:
Confirmed: Lit Lounge is closing on 2nd Avenue

Reports: Prep school teacher arrested for having sex with 16-year-old girl in bathroom at Lit Lounge

'Ten Thousand Saints' opens today at the Village East Cinema

It's opening day for "Ten Thousand Saints," the low-budget film adaption of the Eleanor Henderson 1980s novel of the same name.

As you may recall, directors Shari Springer Berman and Robert Pulcini filmed around the East Village in early 2014 for the movie.

Here's the official plot outline:

Jude (Asa Butterfield) is a teenage boy who is trying to reconnect with his father Les (Ethan Hawke) in 1987 Manhattan. When Jude's friend, Teddy (Avan Jogia), dies of a drug overdose, Jude finds himself befriending a group of friends who are against drugs, alcohol, profanity and sex and live for punk-style rock music. When he meets Eliza (Hailee Steinfeld), who is sixteen years old and is pregnant with Teddy's child, he and Les are forced to be her rock as she struggles through her pregnancy and early motherhood while Jude struggles with his feelings for her and his relationship with his father.

And here's the trailer ...



The Los Angeles Times has an interview with the filmmakers here. The the article, Spring Berman, who lived in the East Village during the Tompkins Square Riots of 1988, which serve as a backdrop to "Saints," discusses filming challenges and then vs. now:

The tops of buildings hadn't changed, and there are still street signs and a few landmarks that have not been turned into a Chipotle or a gourmet frozen yogurt shop. But they are becoming fewer and farther between. Even graffiti had become a scarce commodity — which led to some creative solutions.

"If we saw a graffiti-covered truck, we'd flag it down and give them 50 bucks to park in front of a Citi bike stand," Pulcini said.

The filmmakers did make use of one natural resource that always seems to be in abundance in the city. "I would often see our production designer picking up garbage," Pulcini said. "I'm not going to pay for garbage in New York," Springer Berman added.

"Saints" looks to capture both the beauty and messiness of the past, to walk up against a line of romanticization while being careful not to cross it. "I get irritated sometimes when people say how difficult it is in New York now and how much better it was then," Pulcini said. "Yes, it's hard because it's expensive and you're living with 13 roommates if you're in your 20s. But back then you were mugged and pulled into a stairway at gunpoint. There was a rat in every apartment. I don't know that it was easier."

As for the film, the Daily News was dismissive with a two-star review ... while The Village Voice praises Ethan Hawke and says "the movie has a lilting, generous spirit." And the Times says that "Saints" is "full of quietly impressive performances and young characters who register as authentic."

And the trades: Variety declared it a "warmly conceived dramedy [that] will likely resonate strongest with audiences who have a direct connection to the story’s place and time" … while The Hollywood Reporter called it "a sensitive but not overserious coming-of-age pic with a strong sense of place."

The Village East Cinema is on Second Avenue at East 12th Street. Find more info and showtimes here.

Previously on EV Grieve:
Filmmakers will recreate the Tompkins Square Park Riot of 1988 this Thursday night

Film crew recreates 'tent city' in Tompkins Square Park

Film crew uses 'D Squat' and phone booths to recreate an 1980s East Village on 6th Street

[Updated] First Avenue subbing for Avenue D today

Another 'riot' in Tompkins Square Park, this time for the cameras

What it costs 'to own one of the few remaining totally raw lofts downtown'

5 E. Third St. just east of the Bowery is new to the market. Here's the listing via Brown Harris Stevens:

Amazing opportunity to own one of the few remaining totally raw lofts downtown. This is the one you've been waiting for. A modern key lock elevator opens into this top floor loft in the historic Wyoming Arts Condominium, a boutique CONDO building of eight full floor residential lofts.

This ninth floor loft has 16 windows and four exposures. The wall of south facing windows give great light and views of sky, iconic water towers and the Bowery Hotel across the street. The bones of this generous space are superb. There is a full bath and an additional water closet providing the plumbing and waste lines for two baths. Restore the original wood floors and expose as much of the brick walls as you choose.

Price: $2.6 million.

The viewings start tomorrow.

Speaking of views, here's a look out a window to the southwest...



There is a 13-story, 30,000 square-foot mixed-use residential development going in on the northeast corner of the Bowery and East Third Street that might spoil the view from a few of the west-facing windows.

Images via Brown Harris Stevens