Virginia's reopens after December fire next door

A late-night fire on Dec. 23 temporarily put two restaurants — Fiaschetteria Pistoia and Virginia's — out of commission here on 11th Street near Avenue C.

Vinny & O, who shared the photos on this post, reported that Virginia's reopened this past Friday night for the first time since the fire, which started next door at Fiaschetteria Pistoia.

Meanwhile, Fiaschetteria Pistoia remains closed (they were originally hoping to reopen last month).

More than 60 firefighters battled the blaze. (A cause has not been revealed.) There weren't any reports of injuries, though parts of the kitchen and dining room at Fiaschetteria Pistoia, which debuted in 2017, were damaged.



The sign on the door notes: "Unfortunately, because of a fire, we will be closed for renovations for a bit more time."



Fans of Fiaschetteria Pistoia's Tuscan-style food can still visit their new outpost at 114 Christopher St., near Bedford Street that opened in the beginning of January.

The 13th returns to the 13th Step

[Photo from October by Steven]

Back in October, workers removed the neon 13th Step signage from outside the sports bar/SantaCon favorite on Second Avenue between Ninth Street and 10th Street

The temp sign simply said The Step, prompting speculation that the bar had dropped the 13th...


[That one night it snowed in November]

However, this past Thursday, a new sign arrived ... with the return of the 13th...


[Photo by Steven]

Several readers/residents found the name to be in poor taste upon the bar's arrival nearly nine years ago. The term 13th Step is used as a euphemism for inappropriate sexual advances by a member to a newcomer in AA. It means other things too.

Previously on EV Grieve:
The 13th Step loses the 13th on 2nd Avenue

Your 'Russian Doll' reader

"Russian Doll" debuted on Nexflix on Feb. 1. The macabre, eight-episode series, created by Natasha Lyonne, Amy Poehler and Leslye Headland, is set in the East Village ... with many EV locales, including Ben's Deli on Avenue B, Vazac's/7B/Horseshoe Bar on Seventh Street and Avenue B, and Tompkins Square Park.

Lyonne (who has lived around here and and off through the years) plays the lead character who keeps dying and coming back to life at the same point during her 36th birthday party...



Anyway, I'd been meaning to write about the show — mostly for the use of the EV locales. However, I've only watched the first two episodes (I like it, though I'm not much of a binge watcher. I'm an episode-a-week person mostly). Meanwhile, there have been about 5 million articles written on "Russian Doll," with a few more million to arrive before I get through the next six episodes.

Here then instead, a selection of articles on the show...

• The Ultimate 'Russian Doll' Theory About Tompkins Square Park (Gothamist)

• The Key to 'Russian Doll' Might Be Tompkins Square Park (The New York Times)

• 'Russian Doll' Is Natasha Lyonne's 'Autobiography Wrapped in a Mind-Bending Concept' (The Hollywood Reporter)

• The 'Russian Doll' Map of the East Village (B+B)

• 'Russian Doll': The Story Behind the Song That’s Probably Stuck in Your Head Right Now (IndieWire)

• 'Russian Doll' May Be Perfect, But You Won't Be Satisfied (Wired)

• What Is 'Russian Doll' Actually About? (The Atlantic)

• Why Russian Doll's Co-Creator Would Rather Not Explain that Joyous Finale (Vanity Fair)

• How Natasha Lyonne’s 'Russian Doll' Stunt Double Filmed All Those Death Scenes (Vulture)

Speaking of death... here's flashback to an EVG post from Feb 28, 2018...



Crews were out today filming scenes for "Russian Doll," an eight-episode Netflix series from Natasha Lyonne, Leslye Headland and Amy Poehler.

The comedy series follows Lyonne (pictured above) "on her journey as the guest of honor at a seemingly inescapable party one night in New York," per Hollywood Reporter.

Derek Berg caught this scene outside Vazac's/7B/Horseshoe Bar on Avenue B and Seventh Street...



...as Lyonne's stunt double...

Week in Grieview

[Photo on 2nd Avenue by Derek Berg — see below for update]

Stories posted on EVG this past week included...

The Archdiocese of New York is shutting down the St. Brigid School on Avenue B and 7th Street (Tuesday)

Jimmy Carbone on the long recovery ahead: 'Starting each day is a challenge' (Wednesday)

East Village cyclist killed in early-morning hit-and-run near Times Square (Monday)

After 43 years in business, Raul Candy Store is closing on Avenue B (Thursday)

Evacuations on 10th Street as inspectors examine crack in the former P.S. 64 (Wednesday)

A visit to Dumpling Man on St. Mark's Place (Friday)

Super Bowl Sunday chaos at Atomic Wings; 'the new Fyre Festival' (Tuesday)

Where on earth? Here are details on the 2019 Ecological City (Tuesday)

Brodo debuts on Astor Place this week (Monday)

A look at the development coming to 14th and C, now the subject of a lawsuit (Tuesday)

169 and 171 1st Ave. (home to Momofuku) are for sale (Thursday)

Truck takes out tree on 6th Street (Wednesday)

The storefront that houses St. Mark's Comics is now for rent (Thursday)

Bad news at Spinner's? (Monday)

Marcha Cocina has closed on Avenue C (Wednesday)

16 Handles is back in FroYo action (Monday)

Sushi coming to the former 10Below Ice Cream space on St. Mark's Place (Thursday)

The Ramones, Velvet Underground and EVE (Friday)

... and just one of the tags/markings someone left Tuesday night/Wednesday morning along St. Mark's Place (thanks to Lola Sáenz for first telling me about it) ...


[Photo by Steven]

---

Derek rescued the (brand-new) mannequin heads on Second Avenue ... Julia at East Village Hats gladly accepted them...



---

Follow EVG on Instragram or Twitter

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.

In case the exterminator comes calling

An old #scam is returning to the #EastVillage involving exterminators. They say the landlord sent them & you allow them in. Only things leaving are your valuables.

If you did not call, check with the building management before allowing anyone inside. #NYPD #CrimePrevention pic.twitter.com/vZkPIgeq2C

— NYPD 9th Precinct (@NYPD9Pct) February 8, 2019

Report: What happened to the donated money earmarked for St. Brigid School?

As noted on Friday, students, parents and local residents will gather this morning — at a mass at 10 or afterwards at the school — to show "support and solidarity in saving our beloved school."

This past Monday, the Archdiocese of New York took the community by surprise in announcing the school will close here on Seventh Street and Avenue B at the end of this academic year. (St. Brigid is one of seven NYC Catholic schools marked for closure by the Archdiocese.)

Meanwhile, parents and residents are now questioning where the money is from the anonymous donation that spared St. Brigid Church from demolition. As reported at the time in 2008:

"The donor also has given $2 million to establish an endowment to help the parish meet the spiritual needs of community residents. A separate gift of $8 million will support Saint Brigid School, and other Catholic schools in need."

To the Post today:

"There still was a significant amount of money left," said Edwin Torres, who formed an organization to save the church.

He said the cash went to the Archdiocese and there should have been at least $2 million for the school.

"They really haven’t shown an accounting for that," he said.

And the response from the Archdiocese of New York:

Joseph Zwilling, an Archdiocese spokesman, told the Post the school did have money left in its endowment fund — about $1.5 million.

But he said the school is losing $850,000 a year, a loss the Archdiocese has been covering.

"It is a sad reality that it is nearly impossible to run a school with only 119 students in Grades K-8," Zwilling said.

And the response from a parent:

Matthew Daloisio, a St. Brigid parent working to save the school, said the $1.5 million was "absolutely a lot of money" and parents would work to boost enrollment if that would keep the doors open.

"Then with our help, there should be no reason the school can't stay open," he said.

There is also a petition in circulation (link here) to help save the school.

And here's a look at some of the homemade signs that line the school...

A thrift-store podcast with Maegan Hayward of the East Village Vintage Collective

Jason Charles asked me to guest-host an East Village-based session for his podcast network.

For this episode, I talked with Maegan Hayward, the proprietor of the East Village Vintage Collective at 545 E. 12th St. between Avenue A and Avenue B.

The place started as a pop-up shop in August 2015. Along the way, the East Village Vintage Collective became a full-time endeavor now entering its fourth year.

Launching the business is among the topics that we cover in the 27-minute podcast, which you can access here. We also discuss thrift-shop culture, what people look for these days (spoiler: jeans) and the challenges of running a small shop in NYC.

(Also, nothing to do with the podcast but everything is 25-percent off in the store today. They are open from noon to 8 p.m.)

And the landing page with the East Village Vintage Collection podcast includes a two-part podcast that Delphine Blue did with me last fall.

Today's free book selections

Subjects in the pile of discarded books at the St. Mark's Place entrance to Tompkins Square Park include Ralph Waldo Emerson, the San Francisco Earthquake and Leonardo DiCaprio Da Vinci.

Thanks to Vinny & O for the photo this morning.

Go it alone

The audio clip here is for "Onkel," a recently released single by the Swedish post-punk band Makthaverskan.

Eye wash

A graffiti scrub team paid a visit to this spot next to the Big Bar on Seventh Street between First Avenue and Second Avenue earlier today... and blasted that fish eye art that has been here for several years. (Four years? Three years? I know I did a post when it arrived.)

Not sure why someone decided to have this cleaned now... thanks to Derek Berg for these photos...





Updated 2/9

Despite the power-washing session yesterday...

EVG Etc.: CBD-infused food sales go up in smoke; L-train mystery smell revealed!

[Photo in Tompkins Square Park by Derek Berg]

Headlines and items of possible interest from the past few days...

Police kill knife-wielding man in Cherry Street apartment this morning (The Post)

Sabet Group buys 236 E. Fifth St. from Renaissance Properties (The Real Deal)

City is now cracking down on CBD-laced food and drink at cafes and restaurants (Eater) ... Fat Cat Kitchen on 14th Street is an early victim (Eater)

The LES is among the neighborhoods with small-street danger zones (Streetsblog)

The story behind the return of "Spaceman" at the Wild Project on Third Street (The New Yorker)

Fumes cause passengers to faint on the L (Gothamist) ... and here's the cause (Daily News)

Meanwhile! We're all still waiting on details regarding Gov. Cuomo's L fix (The Post)

The hawks wintering in the neighborhood (Laura Goggin Photography)

A film series that explores themes in Ivone Margulies's new book, "In Person: Reenactment in Postwar and Contemporary Cinema" (Anthology Film Archives)

Here are the Winter/Spring 2019 exhibitions opening today at the ICP Museum on the Bowery (Official site)

The new Essex Market names final four vendors (amNY)

Le Turtle, the self-proclaimed “French new wave” spot on Chrystie Street, has closed (The Lo-Down)

A feature on 787 Coffee's "farm to cup" approach in supporting their farm and roasters in Puerto Rico (Telemundo) The coffee shop opened on Seventh Street in October.

Gov. Cuomo announces the creation of a new portal, called NYS Rent Connect, that’s a one-stop shop for tenants of rent-regulated apartments (and their landlords) to deal with any potential issues that may arise with those apartments (Curbed)

And ahead of Valentine's Day, the Popup Florist is hosting a "Free Flower Friday event" this evening from 5-7 ... and in celebration of their one-year anniversary here at 63 Seventh St. between First Avenue and Second Avenue.



Left Bank Books is reopening in a new Village location at 41 Perry St. (Instagram)

Diversions: Previously unpublished interview with Lux Interior of the Cramps (Dangerous Minds)

... and on Jan. 29, Steven spotted these two men holding American flags on Second Avenue at Ninth Street.



The men, both retired firefighters and 9/11 first responders, said that someone had vandalized the American flag on an ambulance that was parked near this spot.

The men said they were here to show respect for the flag and talk about what happened.

Now ABC 7 reports that the NYPD has made an arrest in the case.

The incident happened Jan. 25 around 2:30 p.m. in the East Village and was caught on video.

When paramedics returned to the vehicle, they found the flag had been cut in two pieces and was thrown on the street.

FDNY officials announced Wednesday that 50-year-old Nicholas Leobold has been charged with criminal mischief in connection to the crime.

A visit to Dumpling Man on St. Mark's Place

Photos and interview by Stacie Joy

I recently stopped by Dumpling Man — the first of the boutique dumpling spots in the East Village when it opened in 2004 here at 100 St. Mark's Place between Avenue A and First Avenue.


[Co-owner and head chef Wu Feng Qun]

Dumpling Man changed hands two years ago from its original owner. Wu Yu Chou and Wu Feng Qun — who is the head chef — along with her husband and extended family run it as a family-owned and operated collective. Here, general manager Aaron Gallentine discusses the restaurant, its place in the neighborhood and what might be next for Dumpling Man.

What’s special to Dumpling Man about being in the East Village? How was this location chosen?

The original owner both worked and lived in the East Village so it only seemed natural to start in familiar territory. St. Mark's Place is the heart of the village and a good place for single-item restaurants to be highlighted.



How has the space changed since you opened?

We opened in 2004, and the space has not changed much. We used to have a refrigerator where the customer waiting bench is and our outdoor signage now lights up, and of course our customer database and popularity has grown but other than that ...

You were the first of the stylized dumpling places to open in the East Village. How have you persevered through the years with more and more competition?

Consistency! We have rarely made changes to our menu and recipes over the years — a couple of improvements but that’s it.

Also, by keeping our East Village attitude in place. People come to the village because it’s a unique place. We help to keep it that way.

And last but not least our lovely team who wraps and cooks the dumplings — Liang Ci Yan has been here since Day 1. Yan is the dumpling original and I am second in line to her. She is a widely recognized member of our team, many of the customers over the years come in for more than just dumplings, they come in to see the team, and we develop happy friendships with our fellow villagers.

Finally, the price has only changed twice over the years to keep up with inflation. Each time we renewed the lease, we try and keep it affordable.


[Dumpling makers Lin Bao Yu, left, and Yu]


[Wu Feng Hua]

What is the best-selling item?

The best seller is definitely the pork dumpling followed by veggie dumplings; pumpkin is the best-selling dessert.


[Seared pork dumplings]

How many of each dumpling do you make on a typical day?

We average about 2,000 dumplings per day counting all the flavors.



What is your personal favorite?

My personal favorites are the shrimp and the pork, but honestly, I love them all.

What’s next for the Dumpling Man?

Well, I can't speak for the owners, but I had a little plan in the making with the original owner to open a second location, perhaps in Brooklyn (this was only a plan in making). It’s something I still think about today and may bring up with the new owners soon, but other than that I think we are just gonna keep on making dumplings for at least eight more years — the remainder of this lease.

When that time is up well, we will find out then. Oh, and I have a new dumpling flavor in the making! We took a short break from the seasonal dumplings when the new owners took over so they could get a grasp on the place but it’s time to bring back our seasonal flavors.

---

You can visit Dumpling Man daily from 11:30 a.m. to 11:30 p.m., except on Friday and Saturday when they are open until 12:30 a.m. This shop is cash only, but there is an ATM on premises.





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

A visit to C&B Cafe on 7th Street

A visit to Rossy's Bakery & Café on 3rd Street

A visit to CAVAglass on 7th Street

A mass Sunday to show support for St. Brigid School

Flyers are up around the neighborhood about a mass Sunday morning at 10 at the Church of St. Brigid-St. Emeric on Avenue B at Eighth Street.

Per the sign: "Please join us as we gather to show the Church & School & Community our support and solidarity in saving our beloved school."

As first reported here, stunned students and parents learned Monday that the Archdiocese of New York will close the school on Seventh Street and Avenue B at the end of this academic year. (St. Brigid is one of seven NYC Catholic schools marked for closure by the Archdiocese.)

Parents were especially upset with how the Archdiocese relayed the news. Said one St. Brigid parent: "Receiving a letter home in a kid's backpack, like it was a field trip permission slip, is unacceptable. It gave no concrete reasons but claims that they did their best to keep the school open. It is not 'your best' if you did not include the community most affected."

After the mass on Sunday, interested parents will gather for a planning meeting.

Parents have already created a Twitter account — @BrigidSave ... and a Facebook group.



Thanks to Steven for the photos!

Breaking International news

Thanks to Eden for sharing the above photo yesterday on Twitter... showing that the International now opens at 10 a.m. each day... a change from its previous 8 a.m. start time here at 102 First Ave. near Sixth Street (and its previous iteration at 120 1/2 First Ave.) ...

All this breaking news led to a conversation about what bars in the area still open at 8 a.m. O'Hanlon's on 14th Street? Spring Lounge on Spring? (Milano's on East Houston opens at 9 a.m.) Where else?Anyone?

All tomorrow's rooftop parties

[EVE]

Hey! Ho! Let's Go ... look at this new marketing campaign for EVE, the 8-floor residential building at 433 E. 13th St. with a landscaped roof deck and BBQ pits (at the site of the former Peter Stuyvesant Post Office property here between Avenue A and First Avenue).

Multiple EVG readers shared EVE's new ad, which notes "First we had the Ramones... and then the Velvet Underground... And now there’s Eve East Village: Designer studio, one and two bedroom rental residencies."



[Whistling]

Gothamist and SPIN both took note of the Ramones/Velvet Underground campaign this week.

Per Andy Cush at SPIN:

The problem — besides the idea that the kind of gentrification that killed the East Village as a fertile arts community is somehow actually a happy continuation of that community’s legacy — is that the Velvet Underground came first, releasing their first album in 1967, nine years before the Ramones’ self-titled debut in ’76. This is common knowledge for anyone with even a passing interest in this music: the Velvets, with their loud noises, daring subject matter, and repeatedly slammed guitar chords, are often cited as an important predecessor to the punk rock scene that the Ramones exemplified in the following decade.

In the grand scheme of things, this is a petty but pretty hilarious mixup, especially coming from a place that claims close association with the culture of the neighborhood.

And here's Ben Yakas writing at Gothamist:

At a time when there are so many horrible things happening in the world that deserve to be called out, the questionable aesthetic choices of a new East Village condominium really shouldn't amount to a hill of beans. Having said that: there is gross, capitalistic artistic appropriation, like how Target coopted CBGB or how developers have exhumed and defiled the corpse of 5 Pointz and steam-pressed its branding onto a new building in Long Island City. And then there is gross, capitalistic artistic appropriation that gets everything embarrassingly wrong.

This is a variation of a campaign that dropped late last summer...

Got an email this morning for a new building opening in the EV. It reads:

First the East Village had The Velvet Underground

Then The Ramones

Coming Soon
EVE
Designer Studio, One and Two Bedroom Rental Residences

I'll just leave that there and cc: @evgrieve

— John Norris (@Jonnynono) September 1, 2018

And we can all remember when they played at TRGT just down 14th Street.

Anyway, EVE isn't the first luxury rental around here of late to cash in on any rock history to move units. Ben Shaoul's Bloom 62 on Avenue B featured framed photos of Joey Ramone, Grace Jones and Debbie Harry in its model homes in 2017. Then there was this copy from the Bloom website:

It sounds impossible: a fully-appointed luxury building has sprouted in the beating heart of the East Village. A 24-hour doorman greets you before work in the morning, after returning from a cafe in the evening and when heading out to Tompkins Square Park on the weekends. You'll have every modern convenience, from a gym to a roof deck to in-unit laundry, on the same streets where names like The Ramones, Warhol and Hendrix and [sic] paved the history of this neighborhood for years to come.

Shaoul sold the building last fall for $85 million.

Previously on EV Grieve:
All about EVE, the Peter Stuyvesant Post Office-replacing rentals on 14th Street

EVErything about the new luxury rentals at the former Peter Stuyvesant Post Office

Looks like there's a Trader Joe's coming to 432-438 E. 14th St. after all