Wednesday, November 28, 2012

Naked Pizza now on vacation 'until after' Dec. 4

A few weeks ago we noted that Naked Pizza on East 14th Street near Third Avenue had been closed of late. Per the NP website, they were on vacation until after Nov. 20.

The gluten-free pizzeria remains closed. The latest update from their website — after Dec. 4.


Do you think they'll ever return from vacation? Do you care if they ever return...?

Owning the Pudgie's-Nathan's-Arthur Treacher's is now $61k closer to reality


The Pudgie's-Nathan's-Arthur Treacher's action-packed combo that opened this past summer on First Avenue has been on the block... and now, it will cost even less to own the business. The price was reduced by 24.4 percent ($61k) last week ... the asking price is now $189,000.

Per the listing at Trulia:
New Franchise restaurant ...together all in one resturant for Sale. Resturant features in low competition area. Very high traffic location. 10 year lease, low low rent. High Income. Includes all fixtures, inventory and lease. Owner is relocating. Very Motivated to sell.

Now who's motivated to buy?

Tuesday, November 27, 2012

That laser in the Jersey sky


EVG reader Brian Teasley sends this photo along... taken tonight around 9:15 on Broadway and Eighth Street looking west... is that a laser?

"It originates from the top of a building across from (approximately) the Chelsea Piers and the light is static in the sky. The beam is pointed south and diminishes in that direction. In the photo is appears blue-ish, but it looks like it is a very high-powered green laser. It has been on for at least 30 minutes or so ... and has not been observed on any other night."

Anyone have an idea what this is...?

Updated:

Oh, a reader just said that it's a tribute to victims of Hurricane Sandy... read more here.

One of those nights...


An empty Tompkins Square Park ... photo by Bobby Williams.

EV Grieve Etc.: Mourning Edition

[A hint that your car's trunk needs toning up...? Via EVG reader Mike]

Why the 4 and 5 trains have sucked of late (The Post)

Short-term AirBNB listings on the rise in Stuy Town (Escape Stuy Town)

Sweet Things bakery on Avenue C gets a new temporary kitchen (DNAinfo)

Revisionist rental history on Ludlow Street (BoweryBoogie)

Arto Lindsay performing at the New Museum Friday (The Lo-Down)

Remembering the noise rock of Harry Crews (Flaming Pablum)

Wildlife extravaganza in Tompkins Square Park (The Gog Log)

A map of the oldest NYC cocktail bars (Eater)

A West 18th Street now and then (Jeremiah's Vanishing New York)

The great Sunny's in Red Hook needs help (Grub Street)

And Gothamist posted a whole bunch of videos from the Ritz (Webster Hall) from the 1980s and 1990s... like this U2 clip from 1980 ...

[Updated] Longtime favorite Natori closing for good Friday on St. Mark's Place

[Photo via The Village Voice]

Sad news via the EVG tipline... a reader passes along word that Natori, the hole-in-the-wall Japanese restaurant at 58 St. Mark's Place, will close on Friday night. The tipster understands that the owner has to return to Japan for family reasons. A Natori employee confirmed the closing as well.

Hirokazu Takaya opened Natori here in the late 1980s ... among other reasons, the place was well-known for its generous early-bird specials. Last year, The Voice named it as a "Best of" in the Japanese — Sushi category.

Updated:
Back on Nov. 26, a worker confirmed that Natori was closing. However, Natori remains open for now ... we'll see if we can get an update on what's happening here. Anyway, good news for now...

Retail space that included Soho Billiards is up for grabs on East Houston Street

Late last month, EVG regular Spike noted that 22-year-old Soho Billiards on East Houston and Mulberry had closed... workers cleared out the space two weeks ago, as BoweryBoogie reported.

And the for lease signs promptly went up...


The listing (PDF) is now online at CBRE... and it turns out that more than just the former Soho Billiards home is available – the whole block between Mulberry and Mott on the north side of East Houston is up for grabs...


Which just might signal the end for the dry cleaners and Subway that share the building... This is prime real estate, as the listing points out, adjacent to the recently unveiled Bleecker Street Subway Transfer and retail neighbors like Adidas, Rag N Bone, REI, Hollister, Whole Foods, Crate & Barrel and John Varvatos. Terms of lease aren't disclosed.

Blackbird is now Dream Baby on Avenue B

Blackbird is the new bar that opened in the former Lakeside Lounge space in August ...

Well — say goodbye to the Blackbird. But just the name!

Maria Devitt, one of the bar's partners, explained that [a restaurant group in Chicago] is giving us a hard time about [the name] and we don't have the money to fight with them."

So. They need a new name. Per Devitt: "We are now named Dream Baby in honor of two of my favorite songs — the Roy Orbison classic and also 'Dream Baby Dream' by Suicide. Nothing else has changed except the pretty new lights in the back bar."

Suicide? Dream Baby Dream? Don't mind if we do...



Previously.

The Museum of Reclaimed Urban Space (MoRUS) opens Dec. 8

From the EV Grieve inbox...


The Museum of Reclaimed Urban Space (MoRUS) will open its doors to the public on Saturday, December 8 at 3pm following a year’s effort by community members and the museum’s all-volunteer staff. This museum and archive of urban activism is itself the latest instance of the collaborative spirit of New York City’s East Village.

Originally slated to open in mid-November, MoRUS was forced to push back its grand opening date due to flood damage following Hurricane Sandy. In the days following the storm, MoRUS created a cell phone charging station for the community using a bike generator lent to the museum by environmental group Time’s Up! Volunteers are now in the process of restoring the damaged basement. MoRUS is on track to open on December 8.

Saturday’s afternoon events include a chain-cutting ceremony, museum and community garden tours, slideshows, and presentations by community organizers. The grand opening party starts at 8 pm and will feature food, drinks, and music, including an appearance by the Rude Mechanical Orchestra, East Village’s own radical marching band.

Co-founded in 2011 by Bill Di Paola, director and founder of environmental organization Time’s Up!, and Time’s Up! volunteer Laurie Mittelmann, MoRUS is located in the building also known as C-Squat, a former squat that is part of the very history the museum aims to preserve. C-Squat is now in the process of becoming a low-income housing cooperative, and its residents are among those who helped build the
museum.

MoRUS will share the story of the East Village’s radical evolution through three main programs: walking tours of the neighborhood’s community gardens, squats, and sites of social change; photograph, video and article exhibits; and events featuring local artists, activists, and skill share workshops.

Previously.

[Flyer by Eric Drooker via the MoRUS Facebook page]

What's going on with the Yogurt Station?

Back in March, a reader wondered what was going on at the Yogurt Station on St. Mark's Place ... the place had been closed, and the widows had paper over them. Turns out that they were just remodeling.

Anyway. Trashbags now adorn the windows. For how long, I don't know. Do you? Closed for the FroYo season? More remodeling? Yesterday, we spotted someone sleeping on the couch left out front...

[Bobby Williams]

Monday, November 26, 2012

Tonight under the sidewalk bridge on 14th and A


In front of the former Stuyvesant Grocery on the southeast corner. Photo by Crazy Eddie.

The road to hell is paved


Avenue B near East 12th Street this afternoon. Headline and photo by Andrew Adam Newman on Ave C.