Tompkins Square Park holiday tree now lit for the holiday (and maybe through March)

A nice-sized crowd turned out late this afternoon for the 27th annual Tompkins Square Park tree lighting.

EVG contributor Stacie Joy was onhand for the festivities. We'll post (many) more photos tomorrow (updated: find more photos here).



Meanwhile, EVG contributor Susan Schiffman shared these videos... showing the Carolers of Olde New York from Theater for the New City ...



... and the countdown to the lighting...



And Lola Sáenz passed along this photo of freedom fighter Patricia Okoumou, who was in attendance...



Albert Fabozzi started the event in 1992. He planted the tree in memory of Park advocate Glenn Barnett, "and each of our neighbors whom we have lost to AIDS.”

Week in Grieview

[Photo on 9th Street by Derek Berg]

Stories posted on EVG this past week included...

Educator: Turning the former Church of the Nativity into luxury housing would be a 'sordid use' of the property (Wednesday)

St. Dymphna's eyeing a return engagement, this time at 117 Avenue A (Thursday)

A visit to C&B Cafe on 7th Street (Friday)

Where the gas stations were (Tuesday)

Dante and Diego's adoption is the feel-good story that we need right now (Wednesday)

This week's NY See (Saturday)

MaKiinNy is now open in the East Village Thai space on 7th Street (Monday)

Concern for China Wok, which has not been open lately on Avenue B (Wednesday)

The holiday lights on 9th Street (Wednesday)

Eliza's Local now open at 2 St. Mark's Place (Wednesday)

A look at the annual scourge of SantaCon (Saturday)

When is the fruit vendor on 1st Avenue and 6th Street closing down for the winter? (Friday)

Matthew Kenney expands his 2nd Avenue plant-based empire; eyes former Cucina Di Pesce space (Monday)

Wara bringing Japanese cuisine and Batsu theater to 1st Avenue (Tuesday)

Dim Sum Palace debuts on 2nd Avenue (Tuesday)

More details about the Tao Group's eating-drinking options at the Moxy East Village (Monday)

A new 2nd Avenue home for the NYPD's light tower (Monday)

On 2nd Avenue, 16 Handles is temporarily closed for the season (Tuesday)

Y7 Studio ready to debut its candlelit hip-hop yoga at 250 E. Houston (Thursday)

First sign of Madame Vo Barbecue on 2nd Avenue (Monday)

TabeTomo debuts on Avenue A (Wednesday)

That's a wrap for Five Tacos on St. Mark's Place (Thursday)

... and EVG reader KT shared this photo from last Sunday...



We asked Goggla for help ID-ing this one... after some consolation, "we've concluded this is a juvenile red-shouldered hawk — a relative rarity for the area!"

... and a reminder not to feed the pigeons and rats Fruit Loops in Tompkins Square Park...


[Photo this morning by Vinny & O]

---

Follow EVG on Instragram or Twitter

[Updated] 2 chances to hear updates on the East Side Coastal Resiliency Project this week

City officials are hosting two community meetings this coming week to discuss updated plans for storm-proofing East River Park.

Details emerged earlier this fall about the construction phase to protect the East Side against catastrophic flooding along the East River from Montgomery Street to 25th Street.

As reported in October, the city plans to "lift" East River Park by up to 10 feet when work starts in March 2020. However, to do this, the city will need to close East River Park for up to three and a half years, bulldozing all the current amenities, including the new running track and soccer field.

Monday's meeting is from 7-8:30 p.m. at the Gouverneur Health Auditorium, 227 Madison St. Tuesday's meeting is 6:30-8 p.m. in the Hunter-Brookdale Rotunda, 425 E. 25th St. (And the flyer notes dinner will be served!) The flyer notes that the same material will be presented each night (not sure if the same dinner will be served each night).

This link takes you to the website for the East Side Coastal Resiliency Project ... where you can find various background reports and presentations.

Updated 12/10

Ahead of tonight's first meeting, local City Councilmember Carlina Rivera released this statement:

“After being briefed last week on the new design for the East Side Coastal Resiliency Project, I am still seriously concerned that many important questions regarding this monumental project have not been sufficiently answered by the Mayor’s Office and that the community’s pain-staking work over four years is being completely pushed aside. This new plan represents a fundamental departure from anything the City had previously discussed, particularly with respect to East River Park, which would be closed for three years.

Moreover, the proposed changes would reportedly bring the projected cost of the project to $1.45 billion, which the Mayor’s Office has failed to provide detailed analyses for explaining why the cost increase is necessary. We want a resilient city, and this projects needs to demonstrate that that is possible in all Five Boroughs. If the Mayor can clearly show that the previous, community-led version of ESCR would not provide the sufficient coastal protections needed, the city needs to be forthcoming about that. If they are pursuing this version out of convenience for the drivers who use the FDR or because they are concerned about finishing the project on time, they should also detail that as well. But until these questions are answered, I cannot back the direction the Mayor’s Office has decided to take.”

Previously on EV Grieve:
Report: The reality of storm-proofing East River Park in 2020

Reminders: Tree lighting in Tompkins Square Park this afternoon

The 27th edition of the Tompkins Square Park tree lighting happens today from 4-5 p.m. featuring the Carolers of Olde New York from Theater for the New City and refreshments via Veselka and C&B Cafe.

In addition, several local businesses are taking part in a "Shop Hop" today in conjunction with the East Village Independent Merchants Association ... here are details via Instagram...

View this post on Instagram

East village #shophop this Sunday December 9th at the following merchants @shopexit9 @randomaccessoriesny @evvintagecollective @parlorhairstudio @lasirena_nyc #bonnieslotnickcookbooks it's the 27th annual Tompkins square park Xmas tree lighting. Join us! #vivaeastvillage #shoplocal #nyc

A post shared by EVIMA (@evimanyc) on Dec 7, 2018 at 2:37pm PST

SantaCon 2018

A few scenes from SantaCon today in the East Village... Derek Berg took these photos...



























-----

A reader shared this from Second Avenue at Ninth Street outside the Step (former 13th Step), which, as always, seemed to be the center for SantaCon (even if it wasn't on the list on SantaCon bars) ...



... and EVG reader Sonya shared this from the Santa Shack Shack at the DeathStar...



Updated 12/9

A reader shared this photo from yesterday on Second Avenue and 15th Street ... some Santas in an Uber headed to East Village bars, but not before making a pit stop...



Another sick Santa on Second Avenue near Ninth Street...


[Photo via @mishamc]

There are several reports of fights and assaults on the Citizen app from yesterday, though only one specifically mentioned Santas...



Not sure of the exact location of this street brawl...

IT’S THE MOST WONDERFUL TIME OF THE YEAR pic.twitter.com/9kzVBGQFC9

— Barstool Sports (@barstoolsports) December 9, 2018

Grant Shaffer's NY See

Here's this week's NY See, East Village-based illustrator Grant Shaffer's comic series — an observational sketch diary of things that he sees and hears around the neighborhood ... and NYC.

Mountain views

Thanks to @cecilscheib for sharing these views of Tompkins Square Park this morning... when the clouds looked like mountains to the west...

Today: Holiday Gift Fair at the LES Girls Club; ceramics sale at the Sirovich Senior Center

Via the EVG inbox...from the Lower Eastside Girls Club

Join us from 11 a.m. to 4 p.m. for our Fair Trade & Girl-Made Holiday Gift Fair

Items for everyone on your list: Featuring hand made products from the Lower Eastside Girls Club and our sister partners around the globe.

Potholders, aprons, handcrafted soaps, jewelry, ornaments, dog and cat beds, cards, art, baby gifts and more, more, more…shop with us! And all for a good cause: girls and women worldwide.

Address: 402 E. Eighth St. at Avenue D.

Meanwhile, a reader shared this... Day 2 of the ceramics sale over at the Sirovich Senior Center on 12th Street between First Avenue and Second Avenue...

Report of a roof fire at 40 Stuyvesant St.

MAN ALL HANDS 40 STUYVESANT ST, MULTIPLE DWELLING FIRE ON ROOF,

— FDNYalerts (@FDNYAlerts) December 8, 2018

Several EVG readers shared word of a large FDNY presence last night just before midnight at 40 Stuyvesant St. west of Second Avenue.

The FDNY reported a roof fire, which they had under control in 30 minutes, per the @FDNYALERTS feed.

EVG reader Mary Jane Glaser shared this video clip...



No word on cause or extent of damage. There isn't any visible damage to the building this morning ... at least from the street level..

Zoltar is — more than usual — increasing spiritual energy this morning

There's some sandalwood burning here outside Zoltar's residence at Gem Spa on Second Avenue and St. Mark's Place...

On such a Winter's day

UK shoegazers Swervedriver have a new record, Future Ruins, coming out on Jan. 25 via Dangerbird Records. The video here is for "Mary Winter."

EVG Etc.: Possible weather-related death on 9th and 3rd; honors for dogs-rescuing cop

[Tompkins Square Park the other night]

A homeless man found overnight on Ninth Street and Third Avenue dies; officials say he may be the first weather-related fatality of the season (Daily News)

ASPCA honors NYPD officer who helped rescue 33 Shih Tzus from a sweltering East Village apartment last summer (Daily News ... previously)

Some early history of the Nuyorican Poets Cafe on Third Street (The New York Times)

More on the Strand's objections to landmark designation (Curbed ... Gothamist)

That hunk Christo is in the 2019 Peregrine Fund "Birds of Prey" calendar (Laura Goggin Photography)

City Council quickly sues over the Two Bridges development (The Real Deal)

A preview of Thomas Lanigan-Schmidt’s "Tenemental (With Sighs Too Deep For Words)" at Howl! Happening (Hyperallergic)

Nathan Silver's latest, "The Great Pretender," making its U.S. theatrical debut (Anthology Film Archives)

Stanton Social is closing at the end of the year (The Post)

A tiny owl in Stuy Town (Town & Village ... previously)

Some NYC coffee history (Ephemeral New York)

... and here's the original Twitter footage of the man taking on a bus on East Houston at Forsyth on Wednesday night...

new york niggas don’t play pic.twitter.com/99YgNxkIsY

— TJANI (@TJANI) December 5, 2018

A visit to C&B Cafe on 7th Street

Text and photos by Stacie Joy

It's early evening when I arrive at C&B Cafe, 178 E. Seventh St. between Avenue A and Avenue B, for the start of dinner service. The interior is intimately lit, with the sounds of Isaac Hayes coming from the record player. (Yes, an actual turntable and stylus.)





Chef and owner Ali Sahin is cutting up chickens while prep chef Sayvon “Sam” Flemings is chopping eggplant into symmetrical cubes for tadig, an Iranian dish served here with tomato, asparagus and a poached egg over crispy Persian rice. The freshly prepared chicken will be made into several meals: breast meat for sandwiches, made with avocado and lemon juice, chicken legs for the chicken and eggs breakfast bowl as well as braising for the dish’s accompanying jus, and bones for making stock.




[Sam Flemings]

Bread is proofing gently on racks, about to be transferred overnight to the tiny and well-organized cold storage. C&B creates and serves two kinds of breads, a 4-pound sourdough loaf that takes three days to make, and the round bread rolls for sandwiches and burgers. Ali uses a bit of aged or “old” dough in each batch to add tang and flavor to the finished product.





Best sellers at the small restaurant include the sausage egg and cheese (with either merguez or chorizo) and one of Sahin's’s favorites, menemen, a Turkish breakfast. Sahin, who is Turkish, makes the dish with tomatoes, garlic and onion, oregano and spicy red peppers, finished with two scrambled eggs stirred into the cooked dish.

Barista Sade King selects a new album, “On the Radio: Greatest Hits (volume 1)” by Donna Summer and rings up the midweek burger-and-fries dinner special for a local repeat customer before making a cup of Callebaut-chocolate-based hot cocoa with steamed whole milk.





She reflects on the recent rise in popularity of oat milk, while Sahin uses a propane torch to flame-finish the cheese on the burger. “No lettuce today,” he informs the customer, due to the CDC’s temporary banning of romaine. Before he can even answer (he is fine with it!) Sahin has already turned his attention to his roasted red peppers, which will be used for the housemade (and available for sale) hot sauce, cooked down with roasted garlic and habaneros. He winces a bit as he tastes it: “Spicy!” he announces, satisfied.










[Ali Sahin]



C&B Cafe, 178 E. Seventh St. between Avenue A and Avenue B, is open Monday through Saturday from 8 a.m. to 10 p.m.; 9 a.m. to 8 p.m. on Sunday. You can keep up with C&B Cafe on Instagram here. The Cafe opened in January 2015.

Previously on EV Grieve:
A visit to the Tompkins Square Library branch on 10th Street

A visit to Bali Kitchen on 4th Street

A visit to Eat’s Khao Man Gai on 6th Street

A visit to Yoli Restaurant on 3rd Street

Preparing for Saturday's dinner at Il Posto Accanto on 2nd Street

A visit to the Streecha Ukrainian Kitchen on 7th Street

A trip to the recently expanded Lancelotti Housewares on Avenue A