Friday, May 29, 2020

EVG Etc.: 70 people arrested in Union Square protest over George Floyd's death


• Aggressive NYPD response cited during George Floyd protest yesterday in Union Square (Gothamist) Dozens arrested (NBC New York) Another protest planned today at 4 p.m. at Foley Square (CBS New York)

• The city's indie theaters hope for some rent relief (Broadway News)

• About Alessandro Simonetti’s “D Bulletin,” which chronicles the daily activity off Avenue D (HIGHSNOBIETY)

• NYC needs some guidance for bars and restaurants to reopen (Eater) City Council introduces legislation for outdoor dining (The Post)


[The vehicle-free Avenue B]

• Why David Wojnarowicz is the most essential punk artist of the last century (BoingBoing)

• Drone footage of Manhattan from the pandemic (Time Out)

• Outrage over the plan to demolish and rebuild 70 Mulberry St. (NBC News)

• More baby hawk action in Tompkins Square Park! (Laura Goggin Photography)

• CW Pencils on Orchard Street trying to make it through the COVID-19 crisis (BoweryBoogie)

The Wild Son is now open on 1st Avenue and St. Mark's Place



The Wild Son made its EV debut yesterday at 132 First Ave. at St. Mark's Place.

As previously reported, this was to be a second outpost of the cafe, which opened in 2016 on Little West 12th Street.

However, Robert Ceraso and Jason Mendenhall (The Wayland, Good Night Sonny, The Lost Lady) decided not to reopen the original location.

Here's a little more from the restaurant's reps:

The Wild Son’s kitchen is newly headed by Luigi Petrocelli, who previously cooked under Marco Canora at Hearth for eight-plus years, including overseeing its recent transition to a healthier focus. With its casual anytime fare, The Wild Son’s opening all-day menu features sandwiches, salads, bowls and shareable plates.

When the restaurant is able to expand their hours and launch a separate dinner service in the future, the nighttime menu will apply the same philosophy of creative seasonal cooking drawing on influences from around the world to more substantial dishes.

And the current menu...



I asked Ceraso why they decided to debut now, as the city remains on PAUSE and the restaurants that are open are relegated to takeout and delivery service.

"We were planning to open the week of the shut down. So the space has been done for a long time," Ceraso told me. "Assuming we won’t be allowed to have customers inside in even a limited capacity until at least the middle of July, we needed to do something. Like everyone else, we need to operate with a limited staff at the moment. This seemed like the best way to bring the food back that customers from the west side had been waiting for, as well as introduce the restaurant to the neighborhood."

The Wild Son is open Wednesday through Sunday from noon to 8 p.m. for pick-up and delivery (no alcohol right now). Find more details and place orders via the Wild Son website.

The corner space was most recently the Rolling Stones-themed Waiting on a Friend, which took over from Colibri and VBar before that. (And yes — St. Mark's Bar & Grill one day long ago.)

Academy Records is buying records again



Nice to see Mike Davis, owner of Academy Records, back inside the shop here at 415 E. 12th St. between Avenue A and First Avenue. (Thanks to Lola SaƩnz for the photos!)

While Academy is not open just yet, they are buying records again. You can call (212) 780-9166 to make an appointment...



They've also been selling records via their website and Instagram account...

Do you Desire another corner deli on 4th and B?



A new deli is opening next week on the southeast corner of Avenue B and Fourth Street... EVG contributor Stacie Joy spotted workers filling up the store with deli-ish items yesterday...





And the name of the store: Your Desire. Not sure at the moment if this might be a sibling to Your Desire in Food, the corner deli on Seventh and C.

East Side Gourmet Deli closed here in April 2019.

And this retail space is in 246 E. Fourth St. — one of the most colorful apartment buildings in the city.

Asshole steals bike that belongs to COVID-19 ICU nurse; neighbors offer to help; 'sad for humanity'



A conversation is evolving through several notes on this sidewalk bridge on 12th Street between Avenue A and Avenue B. (Thanks to Katherine Rusch for sharing the photo!)

The first note is addressed "to whomever stole my bike from this location."

It reads:

You stole it from a nurse who's been working in a COVID ICU for the past 2.5 months. This was my only way of getting to work without contaminating other people. PLEASE return it if you have a heart.

P.S. I hope you disinfected it...

A second note offers to help fundraise for a new bike for the nurse.

A third note arrived from someone else who had his-her bike stolen here.

I'm working from home and it was my only way of exercising. I can't believe these people are stealing from people who need their things right now.

It makes me sad for humanity but then I think about people like you. You risk your life daily for others. This is the biggest service to humanity. Thank you.

This letter writer also offers to chip in for a bike for the ICU nurse.

Thursday, May 28, 2020

When Camp Crystal Lake is closed



Second Avenue today via Derek Berg.

May 28



EVG reader Cajsa spotted this discarded beauty casually discarded alongside P.S. 64 Robert Simon on Sixth Street near Avenue B. No word if the Christmas tree had been decking the halls recently inside the school.

Grant Shaffer's NY See



Here's the latest NY See panel, East Village-based illustrator Grant Shaffer's observational sketch diary of things that he sees and hears around the neighborhood... this panel goes back to March, when the preventative measures against COVID-19 were in the early bonkers phase...

A Brazilian journalist searches for trends on St. Mark's Place in 1985



First, a thank you to our friend Alex at Flaming Pablum for uncovering this gem: A 13-minute clip in which a Brazilian journalist named Ernesto Varela does some reporter-on-the-street interviews to uncover the latest happenings along St. Mark's Place circa 1985 ("Desperately Seeking Susan" era!) ...











And it goes as expected at times...



The East Village portion commences near the 5-minute mark as Varela arrives in the East Village, "the most trendy place in New York nowadays." Look for excursions into Trash & Vaudeville and Astor Place Hairstylists. Other highlights include someone looking for a safety pin to pierce Varela's ear and the reporter asking people if they are capitalists...


Photo op! Luster has reopened on Avenue A



Luster Photo & Digital is back open after two-plus months here at 121 Avenue A between Seventh Street and St. Mark's Place ... they set up a contact-free system for dropping off or picking up any orders... in case you've been shooting on film here in recent weeks...



This video clip shows you how it works!

Reopenings: Muzzarella Pizza, 787 Coffee



The latest establishments back open for takeout and delivery: Muzzarella Pizza at 221 Avenue A between 13th Street and 14th Street with to-go service at the front door ... and 787 Coffee at 113 Seventh St. just west of Avenue A is back with take-out carry and pastries...



Other recent reopenings from the tipline: M & J Asian Cuisine at 600 E. 14th St. at Avenue B is available for takeout from 11 a.m. to 9 p.m. ... and the Starbucks at Astor Place returned back on Monday.

For more on what's open, including laundromats. check out this interactive East Village map.

Here's your Brooklyn Dumpling Shop signage



The signage arrived — as you can tell — for Brooklyn Dumpling Shop yesterday on the southwest corner of First Avenue and St. Mark's Place...



Owner Stratis Morfogen, the founder of Philippe Chow in Chinatown and Brooklyn Chop House in the Financial District, is taking an automat-type approach to the shop... as noted last week, patrons can choose from their 32 varieties of dumplings via an 11-foot-high wall of lockers.

And in this COVID-19 era, a single greeter wearing a face covering and gloves "will beckon customers through a device that’s able to scan body temperatures," as the Post reported.

BDS is expected to open in July here in the renovated space that was Foot Gear Plus for 40 years.

Thanks to Steven for the photos!

Wednesday, May 27, 2020

Wednesday's parting shot



Jackflashnyc shares this photo of the Slocum Memorial Fountain (circa 1906) in Tompkins Square Park... the water started flowing from the lionhead spout today for the first time this spring...

Noted



As a reminder, New Yorkers must separate recyclables into mixed paper or cardboard; and metal, glass, plastic, cartons or mannequin parts.

Photo on Seventh Street this afternoon by Derek Berg.