6 posts from September

A mini month in review...

• Cults classic: East Village-based duo on the release of their fourth record Host (Sept. 24) 

• Native Bean wraps up 20 years on Avenue A (Sept. 21) 

 • Jules Bistro will not be reopening on St. Mark's Place (Sept. 17) 

• After 46 years, the Ukrainian Sports Club has left the East Village (Sept. 16)

• Scenes from Save Tompkins Day (Sept. 9) 

• An end-of-summer appreciation: Pinc Louds (Sept. 4)

Photo from outside the Gene Frankel Theatre on Bond Street

Late afternoon on 1st Street

A view this afternoon of Abetta Boiler & Welding Service at 66 First St. between First Avenue and Second Avenue... been here since 1949, and their sign still features an old NYC telephone exchange — GR 3-2390...

Sophie's, Josie's and Mona's will reopen this week

After sitting out the past six-and-a-half months, sister bars Sophie's, Josie's and Mona's will reopen later today with a 25-percent capacity.

The owners are renting small electric ovens and will be offering pizza (as well as a few smaller items) to meet Gov. Cuomo's meal-with-a-drink mandate.... and in keeping with the reopening guidelines, there is only table service. So no sitting at the bar. And masks are mandatory. 

The pool tables at the three bars, which closed at the start of PAUSE in mid-March, have also been removed to allow for more socially distant spacing for the handful of tables.

Of the three bars, only Mona's on Avenue B might have a few outdoor tables. (Owners said they thought outdoor seating on the side streets where Sophie's and Josie's are located might be too disruptive to nearby residents.)

The three are expected to be open from 3-11 p.m., though that is subject to change.

• Josie's (seen below yesterday), 520 E. Sixth St. between Avenue A and Avenue B. (646) 590-0044
• Mona's, 224 Avenue B between 13th Street and 14th Street (212) 353-3780
• Sophie's (seen above last night), 507 E. Fifth St. between Avenue A and Avenue B. (212) 228-5680

Black & White is closing, with plans to relocate in 2021

After more than 20 years at 86 E. 10th St. between Third Avenue and Fourth Avenue, Black & White is moving on at the end of October.

Management (Johnny T of Niagara and Bowery Electric is an owner) says they will eventually relocate. Per an Instagram post last evening: 

Hey everyone, we’re moving locations. We will be at 86 East 10th Street until the end of October so come get your last drinks here while you can and we’ll see you in our new location in 2021! We will be doing very limited indoor seating for the next month so dm us here if you want to make a reservation. Hope to see you all! Cheers!

Black & White reopened in early May for take-home drinks then limited curbside seating later. 

EVG file photo

2nd Avenue closings: Spiritea, Dia and Atlas Cafe

Some more permanent closings on Second Avenue to note (joining Thailand Cafe and Mermaid Inn along here)...

• Spiritea, 300 E. Fifth St. at Second Avenue

The fruit-and-milk tea shop, which debuted here in May 2019, will not be reopening. Management confirmed the closing. Their locations in Vancouver and Irvine, Calif., remain open.

The space went under a drastic renovation early last year ... it had been vacant since 100% Healthy  Blend (or maybe just Healthy Blend) closed after three months in November 2016. Previous tenants include the Mexican restaurants Dahlia's and Mary Ann's.

• Dia, 58 Second Ave. between Third Street and Fourth Street

The restaurant specializing in Roman-style pizza and coastal Italian seafood has closed. The Did website is offline and their phone has been disconnected. Open Table lists them as permanently closed.

The restaurant debuted in the fall of 2018.

• Atlas Cafe, 73 Second Ave. between Fourth Street and Fifth Street.

After a renovation earlier in the summer, Atlas briefly reopened in late August... only to go dark again in September. Multiple sources confirmed that they will not return. (H/T Derek Berg!) 

The restaurant, which served reliable vegan (and non-vegan) menu items with a Moroccan vibe, first opened in 1999. 

Multiple readers have pointed out that the block here on the west side of the Avenue between Fourth and Fifth has become quite seedy... mounds of discarded items have been stacked up outside 75 Second Ave. — home of the now-closed Nostro Italian restaurant... 

Someone moved the pile to the vacant storefront to the north, but it always seems to return... an owner of a store nearby describes it as a "drunken junkyard" ... and so far, calls to the city (311) haven't yielded any results ... the store owner says all this has been bad for business...

A few details about tomorrow's video shoot on Avenue A

Back on Saturday we noted the arrival of the neighborhood's first film shoot notices in six-plus months... Now here's some reader intel about the video production taking place along Avenue A between Houston and Second Street.

The newly posted sign (above!) shows that Freenjoy, the Los Angeles-based production company, is behind this shoot... company founder Nathan Scherrer has worked with an A-list group of performers, including Lizzo, Drake, Kendrick Lamar, Harry Styles, Justin Timberlake, Katy Perry, Ariana Grande and the Weeknd, among many others.

And it appears the shoot will be taking place tomorrow at the currently (since mid-March) closed Double Down Saloon ... signage says they are working on a video titled "CLJ" ... we'll see who shows up tomorrow... 

New hours for the city's free meal pick up

With the start of in-person elementary school classes today, the city has changed the hours for its community meals pick up. Those hours are now 3-5 p.m. Monday through Friday.

Local schools offering grab-and-go meals include:

• P.S. 19 Asher Levy, 185 First Ave. between 11th Street and 12th Street

• P.S. 64/Tompkins Square Middle School 600 E. Sixth St. at Avenue B

Visit GetFoodNYC to find locations that offer free food (food pantries and Grab & Go meals at NYC schools).

The meal features an assortment of sandwiches or wraps, a vegetable, a piece of fruit and milk. (There's a daily menu here.) Multiple meals can be picked up at once. There is no need to prove residency or bring any other form of ID.

The city launched the community-meal program back in April while schools were closed.

Previously on EV Grieve:

Where residents can get a free meal during the week

Photo from April by Stacie Joy

Construction watch: 11 Avenue C

After nearly four years of construction ... here's a look at how the 10-story 11 Avenue C (aka 350 E. Houston St.) is shaping up...

BLDG Management is the developer behind the project, which will feature 46 residential units and ground-floor retail. No word on pricing yet.

Foundation work began in December 2016 here on this lot that housed the neighborhood's last gas station. 

The well-worn plywood rendering lists a March 2018 completion date...

Architect of record Rotwein+Blake previously stated that "the narrow triangular site presented numerous challenges from its odd shape to zoning constraints."

Previously on EV Grieve:
• Workers officially reach the top at 11 Avenue C, where a 10-floor building sits on the neighborhood's last gas station

A return for Tokio7?

We've fielded a few questions about Tokio7, the longtime consignment shop on Seventh Street between First Avenue and Second Avenue. Back in late July, the store was only open for people to pick up items that they had been trying to sell. By Aug. 22, the shop had closed.

However, the closing seems to be temporary. Tokio7's last Instagram post mentions "starting a new leaf."

They also recently left a comment stating they'd (hopefully) be back later this fall...

In early June, Tokio7 was one of the many East Village businesses that was broken into and looted. (The  8-foot, 900-pound Predator statue out front did nothing to thwart the break in.) 

Tokio7, which sold second-hand designer and vintage clothing, shoes and accessories, debuted on the other side of Seventh Street in 1996 ... before moving to this location in 2010.

Photo from Steven in August.

Today in freebies on 6th Street

As seen on Sixth Street between Avenue A and Avenue B... and hurry! Someone already took the Boys II Men CD!

Thanks to Cara Alwill for the photo!

A belated happy birthday to Pedro A. Campos

ICYMI: There's a new mural (as of mid-September) on the southwest corner of Avenue C at 12th Street ... Marthalicia Matarrita created this work of Pedro Albizu Campos (1891-1965),  father of the Puerto Rican Independence Movement. 

The mural helped mark the birthday (Sept. 12) of Campos, after whom Campos Plaza across the street is named. 

Thanks to the reader for the above photo... and here's another angle that includes the Puerto Rican flag...

View this post on Instagram

A post shared by Galinsky (@galinskyplace) on Sep 13, 2020 at 4:27pm PDT

[Updated] New York Sports Clubs is reopening today on Avenue A

Updated 10/1: That was fast: NYSC announced that this location was permanently closed as of 9/30.

The New York Sports Clubs outpost reopens today on Avenue A between Second Street and Third Street...

This reopening comes less than two weeks since owner Town Sports International Holdings Inc. said in a bankruptcy-court hearing on Sept. 16 that it is working out a deal with a group of lenders and private-equity firm Tacit Capital LLC for them to serve as the lead bidder for the assets. 

Some background via The Wall Street Journal:

Town Sports filed for chapter 11 bankruptcy [on Sept. 14] after facing debt coming due this fall as well as reduced cash flow and liquidity due to coronavirus-related closures.

Company executives need access to capital “so they can reopen the gyms with appropriate health and safety improvements, and comply with relevant consumer protection laws and obligations,” said Nicole Greenblatt, a lawyer representing Town Sports, during the court hearing.

And!

After its bankruptcy filing, Town Sports sought to reassure its roughly 600,000 members that it wasn’t going out of business through postings on its gym brands’ websites. 

The company has requested to give back 22 location leases to its landlords and potentially reject 13 more locations, depending on lease negotiations. 

This past spring, NYSC members were angry that the club was still charging them membership fees despite the COVID-19 closure. Town Sports did eventually offer refunds. 

Gov. Cuomo allowed gyms to reopen with limited capacity in the city on Aug. 24.

Meanwhile, the ground-floor retail space here at 28 Avenue A has been vacant since Gracefully closed in November 2014. No word on the rent ask. What is wrong with this storefront? 

P.S.

In other local gym news, Ludlow Fitness on Delancey will not be reopening.