Storefront surprise! A new laundromat coming soon to 31 Avenue A

Well then. The paper covering the front windows over at 31 Avenue A between Second Street and Third Street came down the other day... revealing the useful new tenant coming soon — laundromat!



The space, owned by the NYCHA, had been vacant since Venus Body Arts moved out toward the end of 2017.

The original Juice Press has closed

The very first Juice Press, which debuted at 70 E. First St. between First Avenue and Second Avenue in 2010, is now for rent.

The plant-based food and beverage brand, with more than 80 locations in seven states now, had its humble beginnings in the East Village. Before opening the First Street shop in 2010, JP founder Marcus Antebi put up signs announcing a Robot Daycare and NY Academy of Mime, among other things, coming soon.

This location has been closed since someone broke in and looted the space in early June.

JP recently launched the JP Organic Market online in response to the COVID-19 pandemic.

Aug. 18

Spotted on Sixth Street between First Avenue and Second Avenue... hiding the Christmas tree with the recyclables ... thanks to Riian Kant-McCormick for the photo! (And thanks to everyone else who pointed this one out, including Sally Long Dog!)

'In The Realm Of Anansi From Assisi' continues on at Le Petit Versailles

"In The Realm Of Anansi From Assisi," an installation by longtime East Village resident Peter Cramer, continues through Sept. 13 at Le Petit Versailles, the community garden and arts space at 247 E. Second St. (aka 346 E. Houston St.) between Avenue B and Avenue C.

There is limited public access (three mask-wearing people at a time while keeping social distance) Tuesday, Wednesday and Thursday evenings from 8 to 10. Otherwise, there is viewing daily from outside the fences on Second Street.

Here's more about the installation via the EVG inbox:

In The Realm of Anansi From Assisi (ITROAFA) is an immersive environment of the storyteller Anasi, a mythical African spider god, a fantastical garden landscape of light and line — a place of pilgrimage and healing where visitors may wander finding solace and respite during this time of disease.

The sculpture, visual elements, moving images, and sounds created by the principal artists reconcile science with mythology; from the evocation of the creation of the universe to the emergence of hominid creatures and culminating with the emergence of language represented by Anansi.

On Thursday (Aug. 20) evening at 7:30, Le Petit Versailles is hosting a live concert by NYOBS, the alternative experimental free association "kitchen" band featuring Mike Cacciatore, Peter Cramer, John Michael Swartz and Jack Waters.

You may listen from the sidewalk outside the garden or enjoy the sounds via Zoom. Find more details at the events page on Facebook.

Friends and neighbors come together to help Chef Lek at Lui's Thai Food

[Photo from early August by Stacie Joy]

East Village resident Pimnapa "Lek" Sunthatkolkarn, the chef/owner of Lui's Thai Food on Fourth Street, was hospitalized late last week. She remains in the hospital in stable condition, per EVG contributor Stacie Joy.

Lek's friends and neighbors have come together and launched a crowdfunding campaign to help her and her family with expenses.

Per the campaign:

Lek, who grew up in Bangkok, has lived in the EV for more than 30 years and previously owned the much loved Thai restaurant, Holy Basil, before opening Lui's Thai Food. At 62 years old, Chef Lek is a powerhouse and a beloved neighbor in the community.

You may find the GoFundMe link here.

The restaurant at 128 E. Fourth St. between First Avenue and Second Avenue remains closed for now...



Previously on EV Grieve:
• A visit to Lui’s Thai Food on 4th Street


[Photo from March 2019]

Baked Cravings opening an outpost on St. Mark's Place

The neon signage arrived yesterday for Baked Cravings, coming soon to 102 St. Mark's Place between Avenue A and First Avenue.

This will be the second location for the bakery that specializes in fresh-baked nut- and peanut-free cupcakes, cakes, brownies and cookies. (Founder Craig Watson has a daughter with food allergies.) Baked Cravings opened in East Harlem on Lexington at 105th Street in 2017.

The bakery takes over the space from Dun-Well Doughnuts, which concluded its three-plus-year run here in February.

Thailand Cafe will not be reopening on 2nd Avenue

A for lease sign now hangs outside what is the former Thailand Cafe here on Second Avenue between Fifth Street and Sixth Street.

The inexpensive-eats spot, seemingly around for years under several different owners, had been dormant since the COVID-19-related PAUSE. The restaurant's phone and website are no longer in service.

And the rent for the 1,300-square-foot space is available upon request.

UPS delivering a retail outlet to 1st Avenue

A UPS Store is coming this fall to 108 First Ave. between Sixth Street and Seventh Street. (And good timing in case the U.S. Postal Service collapses.)

Until March 2018, this storefront next to the McDonald's had been a Subway (sandwich shop) for six foot-long years.

The last of the COVID-19 memorial has been removed from the corner of 10th and A

The last piece of the COVID-19 memorial that has been on the southeast corner of Avenue A and 10th Street since March 26 is gone.

In recent weeks, only the memorial — titled "Beacon of Hope" — atop the brick column remained. This was after someone vandalized the work once again a few weeks back. (This happened multiple times in the spring.)

It was originally erected in honor of Edd Conboy, a licensed therapist and director of social services at Broad Street Ministry in Philadelphia, who died on March 20 of a stroke. He was 69. His brother Jim, an East Village artist, created the memorial after his family was unable to hold a funeral in the midst of the COVID-19 outbreak.

The memorial continued to evolve this spring to honor those who died during the pandemic.

[April 13]


[June 11]

The former Gem Spa space is for lease

[Photo from Saturday]

The former Gem Spa storefront on Second Avenue at St. Mark's Place is now officially on the rental market, billed as "First time available."

The listing at RIPCO doesn't have much info, other than square footage, location, etc. Pricing is available by request.

And while Gem Spa's address was 131 Second Ave., the marketing materials list this as 36 St. Mark's Place.

Potentially concerning (and confusing) is that the listing includes Paul's Da Burger Joint next door. The listing notes that the two spaces are available separately or combined...



The fact that the space was on the market was news to the owners of Paul's, who have a few more years left on the lease.

"I’ll assume at the moment it’s a mistake, as I spoke to the landlord today about something unrelated and nothing was mentioned," Matt Wardrop, who has been running Paul's since 2007, told EVG contributor Stacie Joy on Friday.

He added this on Sunday: "It seems as if that listing was created like that to draw more potential tenants for the corner. Someone can express interest for the whole lot and then the broker can say that only the corner is available. We are still here, doing the best we can given the current state of events. We enjoy serving the community and our loyal customers. We look forward to staying open and continuing to do what we love the most — feeding our loyal friends!"

Stacie stopped by Paul's on Friday...



Here's Angel, who has been here nearly the entire time since the restaurant opened in 1989, with his daughter and co-worker Daniella...



Gem Spa officially closed on May 7 amid ongoing financial challenges worsened by the COVID-19 crisis. The corner has a long history as a candy store and newsstand.

Ravi DeRossi plans vegan Mexican restaurant for former Violet space on 5th Street

[Photo from July 30]

East Village restaurateur Ravi DeRossi has plans for a vegan Mexican restaurant at 511 E. Fifth St., the former Violet space between Avenue A and Avenue B.

DeRossi is on tonight's virtual CB3-SLA agenda for a new liquor license for the address. According to the questionnaire for public viewing at the CB3 website, the working name is Spider in the Garden. (The space has a garden in the back, which a previous tenant, GG's, would use to harvest several ingredients.)

The proposed hours are 5 p.m. to midnight Monday through Thursday, with a 1 a.m. close on Friday. Proposed weekend hours: Noon to 2 a.m. on Saturday and noon to midnight on Sunday.

Reps for DeRossi did not respond to an email seeking more information about this venture.

DeRossi's other EV establishments include Avant Garden, Ladybird and Amor y Amargo.

Violet, the restaurant by the Pizza Loves Emily Group and chef/owner Matt Hyland, did not reopen after the COVID-19 PAUSE.

The address has been home to several restaurants since Le Tableau closed in December 2007. Before Violet, there was Goat Town, Seymour Burton, Butcher Bay and GG's.

Sanshi Rice Noodle coming to 2nd Avenue and 7th Street

There's a new restaurant tenant for the northeast corner of Second Avenue and Seventh Street... signage arrived on Friday for Sanshi Rice Noodle...



We don't have any information about the restaurant at the moment.

This prime corner space has been vacant since Bar Virage closed in December 2018 after 20-plus years in business. Ravi DeRossi had designs on a vegan diner here, though those plans didn't get past the Community Board stage.

SLA temporarily suspends the liquor license at St. Dymphna's on Avenue A

[Photos by Stacie Joy]

Updated 10/14: St. Dymphna's has reopened.

St. Dymphna's is temporarily closed now on Avenue A between Seventh Street and St. Mark's Place.

According to the paperwork from the State Liquor Authority posted on the front windows, the Irish-style pub had previously been warned — on June 18 and Aug. 5 — for patrons "lingering and/or congregating" outside the establishment.

The paperwork also states that on Aug. 11, an SLA agent saw patrons drinking "without accompanying appropriate food orders" ... and that "the licensee was unable to produce any receipts for food to comply with the requirement that the licensee serve food with any alcoholic beverage purchase."







Co-owner Brendan McElroy addressed the closure in an Instagram post yesterday:

With a heavy heart, I have to announce to you all that St Dymphna’s will be closed, pending a hearing for our liquor license suspension. We were unfairly targeted by the state liquor authority, and issued baseless citations — similar to what has happened to several other bars in the neighborhood. Our attorney is on the case and we will fight this. Looking forward to the day we when we reopen and hang out in our new backyard space...

St. Dymphna's opened here last August, relocating from its home of 24 years on St. Mark's Place.

Several other East Village establishments, including Lucky, the Hairy Lemon, Maiden Lane and the Wayland, had had their liquor licenses temporarily suspended in recent weeks.

Lucky owner Abby Ehmann had started a petition calling for Gov. Cuomo to reverse the state's new mandate that bars must serve substantial amounts of food with any alcohol purchase.

Updated 5:30 p.m.

The SLA posted this about their actions at St. Dymphna's:

On August 11th, investigators with the state's multi-agency task force observed numerous patrons standing, drinking, and ignoring social distancing guidelines outside the premises, with multiple customers observed ordering beverages from a takeout window. Investigators checking sales receipts found that practically no food was purchased with orders that evening, in violation of the Governor's Executive Orders. This was the third strike for this business, a repeat offender that the SLA had charged for violating the Governor's Executive Orders on June 26th and on August 10th.

The Horsebox closes on Avenue A

A for lease sign is now draped across the front of 218 Avenue A here between 13th Street and 14th Street (the listing via Meridian Retail Leasing is not yet online).

The signage officially marks the end of the Horsebox, the sports bar that opened in the spring of 2010 ... and that celebrated its one-year anniversary with a toga party.

The bar had been closed since the PAUSE went into effect in March. This also makes the third consecutive storefront for lease on the east side of A between 13th Street and 14th Street...

Week in Grieview

[Avenue A at 9th Street]

Posts this past week included...

• Checking in with Chico (Monday)

• East Village Loves Queens expands: Meet East Village Loves NYC (Monday)

• GrowNYC opens a new greenmarket at Astor Place on Tuesdays through November (Tuesday)

• Masking the East Village (Wednesday)

• A visit to East Village Acupuncture & Massage (Friday)

• A visit to East Side Ink (Thursday)

• A hopeful sign at the future (and former) ABC No Rio on Rivington Street (Monday)

• Lhasa, the celebrated Tibetan restaurant in Queens, opens an East Village outpost (Monday)

• Renovations at the former Provident Loan Society building (Wednesday)

• Bleecker Street Bar closing on Aug. 30 (Friday)

• Man randomly damages front window at Azaleas on 2nd Avenue; 'Might be the last straw for me' (Wednesday)

• SLA suspends the liquor licenses at the Hairy Lemon, Cloister Cafe and the Wayland (Wednesday) SLA suspends Maiden Lane's liquor license (Monday)

• 'Public Art as Protest' debuts at Howl! Happening (Thursday ... Saturday)

• New barricade placement along the Open Streets of Avenue B (Wednesday)

• Petit Chou opens on 1st Avenue (Monday)

• This week's NY See (Thursday)

• Zero Irving getting closer to the top; first sign of the glassy exterior (Monday)

• The Athenian will not be reopening on 10th Street (Tuesday)

• ATM swiped from outside Yankee Deli on Avenue C at 11th Street (Friday)

• Good news if you're done with summer (Tuesday)

• Workers removing damaged Elm tree in Tompkins Square Park (Friday)


[Avenue B at 9th Street]

---

Follow EVG on Instragram or Twitter for more frequent updates and pics.

Minca Ramen Factory is back open on 5th Street

And a reopening from this past week to note: Minca Ramen Factory returned to service at 536 E. Fifth St. between Avenue A and Avenue B... they're offering takeout and delivery ... as well as curbside dining.

Minca, which has been here since 2004, was open briefly for takeout and delivery in the spring, then closed up again until Thursday. You may want to call ahead — (212) 505-8001 — for hours.

Compost collection returns to the Tompkins Square Park Greenmarket

The Lower East Side Ecology Center has returned — as of last Sunday — to accept kitchen scraps for composting at the Tompkins Square Park Greenmarket...





EVG reader Bobby G. also notes that they are selling potting soil ...



Find more info at the LES Ecology Center website.

Thanks to Steven for the top three photos!

Saturday's parting shot

Sunroof scene today on Second Avenue via Derek Berg...

More love from Webster Hall

There's a new message on the marquee at Webster Hall: "New York isn’t New York without you, love." (A St. Vincent lyric.)

This replaces the previous COVID-era message here on 11th Street between Third Avenue and Fourth Avenue...



Meanwhile, concert venues around the city remain shuttered during the pandemic, with no timeline for a return.

More than 100 independent music venues in the city have come together to lobby Congress for help as the COVID-19 crisis. (Webster Hall isn't in this category, as its owned by BSE Global and The Bowery Presents, AEG Presents’ regional partner, who acquired the operating rights and assets to Webster Hall in February 2017.)

As Gothamist recently reported:

The group is called New York Independent Venue Association (NYIVA), and is working in affiliation with the National Independent Venue Association (NIVA), which formed toward the beginning of the pandemic. They are trying to get politicians to vote for in favor of the Save Our Stages and Restart bills, which were introduced last month in the Senate. Those bills would provide much-needed support and sustain venues during this period when most are completely shut down.

"These entertainment hubs are critical to their local economies and tax bases as employers, tourism destinations, and revenue generators for neighboring businesses such as restaurants, hotels, and retail," the group said in a statement. "Independent venues exist in every state across the country; they were the first to be closed, they will be the last to open. The economic recovery process will extend past just reopening the front doors, requiring solutions unique to the industry."

Local music venues taking part include Berlin Under A, Bowery Ballroom, Bowery Electric, Drom, Lola, Mercury Lounge, Nublu and Nuyorican Poets Cafe. This link has more about the campaign, and what you can do to help.

A look at 'Bringing Back Bowery' at Howl! Happening

Howl! Happening reopened Thursday with a special exhibit titled "Bringing Back Bowery: Public Art as Protest."

The group show is an outgrowth of an effort organized by Bowery artist Sono Kuwayama in June. She received permission from store owners to paint on the plywood of the boarded-up businesses along the Bowery. She then reached out to some local artists to have them create murals.

These works have been preserved and are now on display at Howl! EVG contributor Stacie Joy stopped by Thursday for a look...






[Scooter LaForge's "People Have the Power"]


[Izhar Patkin's "Aria: After the Black Paintings"]


[Sono Kuwayama in front of her work "Look Up"]


["Little Boy Blue" by Catt Caulley, Grace H. Gutekanst & Robert Blodgett]


["Black Trans Lives Matter" by Maya Edelman, Scooter LaForge & Sono Kuwayama]


[Sono Kuwayama, Scooter LaForge, Hitomi Nakamura & James Rubio]

Howl! Happening, 6 E. First St. between Second Avenue and the Bowery, is open Thursday-Sunday from 11 a.m. to 6 p.m. The show ends on Aug. 23.

The gallery is limiting the number of visitors at any one time, and will require masks for everyone. Guests must also register upon entering and have their temperature taken. Find more details about the artists at this link.