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 and NYC...
Thursday, November 19, 2020
A visit to Van Da on 4th Street
Text and photos by Stacie Joy
There is something magical watching a close-knit team work together to create something.
In that light, I was pleased to arrive early enough at the elegant and modern Vietnamese restaurant Van Da, 234 E. Fourth St. between Avenue A and Avenue B, to watch the chefs prepare, taste, and perfect the day’s special, tôm rim shrimp. It’s a seafood dish cooked over high heat with caramelized fish sauce, peppers and toasted cashews, all served over broken rice, which executive chef Mary Celine Bui calls “tortured rice” due to the process that it undergoes to become “broken.”
The dish is tasted by all staff members and discussed (chef Jay Bui, Mary’s husband and partner in the kitchen, offers to add some green onions), and notes are jotted down to inform diners about the special, before the chefs make a new batch with modifications under the watchful eye of owner Yen Ngo.
Yen, Mary and Jay go through several iterations of the plate before Yen is satisfied that it is ready for her customers.
Away from the kitchen, bartender Andrew Pisano gets his station in order and begins to prep the cocktail specialty ingredients (Thai basil, bird-chili–infused mezcal, passionfruit) necessary to complement the food menu.
Your restaurant opened last year to critical acclaim (per the Times and Eater), yet you consider the space an approachable neighborhood local. What has the neighborhood’s response been?
We feel so fortunate to have such amazing writeups and to be recognized by the Michelin. It’s such an honor. Restaurant businesses are so hard, we love this kind of recognition plus the reviews of our guests.
I live in the East Village so I understand both what the neighborhood offers and lacks in term of restaurants. There is definitely a lack of Vietnamese restaurants that offer an interesting and authentic menu, but which also offer beautiful aesthetic atmosphere and great service.
With that said, we keep our prices very competitive with other neighborhood restaurants. Our appetizers start at $7 and noodle entree at $15. Our neighbors love us and have been back regularly. Many have told us that we are their hidden gem.
What has been the biggest challenge for you since the city approved outdoor dining back in the summer?
There are so many challenges…including creating and spending money on a completely new type of setting. It’s hard to spend the money, not knowing if you can get it back. We are at the mercy of the weather. When it rains, you’ve suddenly lost 50 percent of your reservations.
It’s extremely hard to break even on the small numbers of tables that we have for outdoor seating. Our food is so complicated that we still need the same number of kitchen staff if we do 90 guests or if we do 20 guests. There is no way to cut them, so therefore out labor cost is 50 percent of sale.
What is your biggest concern as we head into winter? Is 25 percent indoor dining along with some outdoor space sustainable?
This is definitely the biggest challenge. It’s hard for people to eat outside in the cold. However, I agree that we need to keep everyone safe.
As a business owner, I want to be able to survive but I also want what best for everyone, so it’s tough to navigate the steps on indoor dinning.
Your dining hours are limited, with the restaurant closed on Sundays and Mondays, and not open for lunch. What prompted these decisions?
We are located on a charming but very quiet street. It’s impossible for us to open for lunch and break even with the food and staff cost. If we were on Avenue B, that might work, but I am not sure if that is true either. We have tried to open Sundays but it was not successful. People love to eat Sunday brunch and comfort food, rather than exotic food. The truth is labor cost is so high that you can lose much more if you open on quiet days.
You always have a good soundtrack playing in the background. What do you think is the key to a pleasing restaurant ambiance?
We are in a dense neighborhood, it’s so important for us to make sure the people who live nearby are not constantly bother by loud music and worse — bad music. As a diner, I also am completely turned off by terrible and loud music so that you have to scream to be heard.
We are in a dense neighborhood, it’s so important for us to make sure the people who live nearby are not constantly bother by loud music and worse — bad music. As a diner, I also am completely turned off by terrible and loud music so that you have to scream to be heard.
Normally, I ask business owners about what’s next for them, what their plans are going forward. Knowing that we don’t know a lot about how the pandemic and its surrounding issues will play out, what are your thoughts on the restaurant industry as we look toward next year?
Wow, this is a tough one to answer. I am very worried about the restaurant industry altogether. There are already so many closures and will be many more the next few months. In January and February of 2020, we were doing extremely well and thought that we are going to make it and become a neighborhood destination.
But, of course, with the pandemic and now winter coming, it’s very scary. Our landlord is really nice, though, and has reached out to see how he can help us hang in there for the next four or five months. So, if we can keep the losses to a minimum and make it until April 2021, we might be OK.
In the meantime, we can work on increasing our carry-out business, as that will be the only safe way for guest to enjoy our food without worrying too much about eating inside.
Two-plus years after devastating fire, Yakiniku West reopens next week on 9th Street
The restaurant, which offers Japanese barbecue, will reopen next Wednesday (Nov. 25), according to its Instagram account.
And here's a quick look inside the door...
AO Bowl softly opens on St. Mark's Place
The Japanese health-food cafe AO Bowl is expected to (softly) open today at 82 St. Mark's Place on the southwest corner of First Avenue.
A rep for the quick-serve establishment says that this is the "first-ever cafe in the U.S. to use vacuum blenders to create vacuum-pressed smoothies and juice on premise."
And more via the EVG inbox...
Using Blendtec technology, which prevents the oxidation of fruits and vegetables, AO Bowl juices retain over 90 percent juice compared to about 60-70 percent in standard juicing. Vacuum blending removes the air from ingredients within the blender, allowing juices to retain the majority of their original vitamin and mineral content.A fully plant-based menu with keto and paleo-friendly options features locally sourced or homegrown items including oat milk, bean sprouts, acai, granola, and market bowls like Adzuki Rice with Kombu and Grilled Pineapple Yams.
Workers gutted this single-level structure on the corner ... dividing the storefront into several spaces. The other new tenant here will be the Brooklyn Dumpling Shop one of these days.
The previous single occupant, Foot Gear Plus, closed in July 2018 after 40 years in business.
Smoothie images via AO Bowl
Former Mace space for rent on 12th Street
Mace relocated from Ninth Street to this larger space in early 2019.
Double Wide closed at No. 503-505 in March 2018 (much to the relief of some neighbors). Noise issues have been persistent here dating back to the Mundial and Totem days.
Wednesday, November 18, 2020
Gallery Watch: Cotton Mouth by Tschabalala Self
Text and photos by Clare Gemima
Cotton Mouth by Tschabalala Self
Eva Presenhuber, 39 Great Jones St.
Cotton Mouth presents as a formal critique on projected viewings (or constructions) of Black bodies in America. This show is physically and figuratively in your face, hitting the nail on the head with what needs to be addressed socially and artistically right now.
The demand of this politically charged work is potent with its use of scale and installation method especially. Cotton Mouth is striking, hard-hitting and an exciting insight into the trajectory of young artist Tschabalala Self (1990, Harlem). This is her first solo show at the gallery.
As you walk into the beautiful space that is Eva Presenhuber on the historically rich Great Jones, you will quickly find yourself surrounded by mixed-media paintings made out of materials such as fabric, thread, charmeuse, silk, velvet, paper, pigment, acrylic and canvas that completely dominate the space.
Cotton Mouth also features sculptures, drawings and an audio work spread across the two gallery floors.
The title of the show and Self’s making process simultaneously speak to slavery, and the mutually exclusive relationship that cotton has with the African-American experience.
The title of the show and Self’s making process simultaneously speak to slavery, and the mutually exclusive relationship that cotton has with the African-American experience.
The act of these characters stitched and painted into the canvas by hand carry an emotional and personal significance to Self, while also speaking to the historical devastations of Black slave labor in America. Each constructed character holds power over their self-presentation and external perception unapologetically, an act of power that Black people in America are denied daily.
The work is so hard not to touch based on the array of different fabrics used and sewn together. What was hard for me to believe is that through stitching and constructing, Self has made characters that undeniably hold their own presence and somehow even look different in age and personified life experience.
The work is so hard not to touch based on the array of different fabrics used and sewn together. What was hard for me to believe is that through stitching and constructing, Self has made characters that undeniably hold their own presence and somehow even look different in age and personified life experience.
Self has impeccably built each and everyone of these characters from scratch whether it be Lil Mama 2 with her plaid and tulle fringed pants or the two lovers in Sprewell that kiss in front of an incredible photo transferred TV. One of the characters even wears the artist’s actual jeans.
Self’s practice marries her interests in the psychological and emotional effects of projected fantasy with her sustained articulation of Black life and embodiment. Seeing every hand stitch in Self’s work shows the viewer how painstaking and timely it is to create. The labor in each stitch holds affection, memory and protection according to the artist, and I feel as though the painted hands directly applied to the gallery’s walls touch on this too.
Self’s practice marries her interests in the psychological and emotional effects of projected fantasy with her sustained articulation of Black life and embodiment. Seeing every hand stitch in Self’s work shows the viewer how painstaking and timely it is to create. The labor in each stitch holds affection, memory and protection according to the artist, and I feel as though the painted hands directly applied to the gallery’s walls touch on this too.
Cotton Mouth by Tschabalala Self is showing at Eva Presenhuber until Dec. 19
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Clare Gemima is a visual artist from New Zealand. New-ish to the East Village, she spends her time as an artist assistant and gallery go-er, hungry to explore what's happening in her local art world. You can find her work here: claregemima.com
EVG Etc.: The MTA's financial crisis; the latest essays from Luc Sante
• MTA leaders mull a COVID-19-related financial crisis that could potentially see a 40-percent cut in weekday subway service and layoffs of more than 9,000 transit workers (Daily News) ... MTA looks to borrow $3 billion from the Feds (Streetsblog)
• NYC restaurants restaurants report a drop in sales with the new 10 p.m. curfew (The Post)
• Anti-nuclear pacifists, seen on Saturdays in Tompkins Square Park protesting the war in Yemen, are headed to federal prison (The Intercept)
• Q&A with East Village artist-musician Kembra Pfahler: "Being creative and sharing is a benevolent human trajectory that's difficult to irradiate even under the most heinous conditions. It lifts the spirits." (Whitehot Magazine)
• Thoughts on Luc Sante's new collection of essays, which includes remembrances of the East Village music scene from his youth (The New York Times)
• Complaints increase about the sight-seeing helicopter excursions over Manhattan (The City)
• Singer-songwriter Jill Fiore on her fire escape performances on Essex Street (NY1)
• Yellow Rose is a taco hit on Third Avenue (Eater ... previously on EVG)
• Introducing "The Encyclopedia of New York" (New York)
The Bowery Mission's 141st Thanksgiving
While there won't be any indoor dining, the Bowery Mission will be serving nearly 450 turkeys and 2,000 pounds of potatoes to those in need.
Per the organization's website: "Special Thanksgiving to-go meals will be served outdoors during a four-hour period between 12 p.m. and 4 p.m. We welcome anyone who would like to enjoy their hot meal onsite to do so as our limited outdoor seating allows. We will have partially open tents following mandated health and safety requirements, along with adequate social distancing and PPE."
In another change, there isn't any call for volunteers to serve the meals: "Due to social distancing and safety regulations in New York City in response to COVID-19, we will not open Thanksgiving Week volunteer opportunities to the public."
However, there are other times to volunteer, which you can find here.
And there is also a need for donated goods, including non-perishable food, pre-packaged snacks and water, travel-size toiletries, hats, gloves and scarves. Find out how to donate at this link. (And no drop-offs on Thanksgiving day!)
The Bowery Mission is at 227 Bowery between Stanton and Rivington.
Image via the Bowery Mission website
Reader reports: E. 10th St. Finest Deli will close next month
Per our tipster: "The landlord wouldn't work out a rent deal with them."
While there isn't an exact closing date made public, there are 2-for-1 signs posted on a variety of items in the store to help thin the stock.
This will be the second corner deli on this stretch of First Avenue to close this fall. Best Price Deli & Grocery on the southeast corner of 12th Street closed in late October.
A full reveal at 639 E. 9th St.
This space was, for years, a parking lot. Development talk here dated to 2010 (the photo below is from 2012)...
The excavation work started in March 2018. And neighbors are happy that the sidewalk bridge has been carted off... No word yet on rental information from the developer, who also owns the building next door at No. 641.
Tuesday, November 17, 2020
While we're 'Younger': Filming in Tompkins Square Park today
A reader said that cast-and crew had a COVID-19 testing location inside the former St. Brigid School on Avenue B.
Thanks to Derek Berg for the photos ... and H/T Steven...
Street appeal: East Village resident David Godlis has a new book of photographs
On Thursday at 5 p.m., there's a virtual book launch and conversation with Godlis along with special guests Luc Sante and Chris Stein. (The two contributed the book's foreword and afterword.) Find the info to tune in right here.
His previous book, "History Is Made at Night" (from 2016), chronicles the heyday of the scene at CBGB between 1976 and 1979.
His previous book, "History Is Made at Night" (from 2016), chronicles the heyday of the scene at CBGB between 1976 and 1979.
A visit to Raul's Barber Shop
Text and photos by Stacie Joy
Like most local businesses, Raul’s Barber Shop at 11 Avenue B (between Houston and Second Street) is struggling during the pandemic.
Raul Velez Sr., 78, has been at the head of his eponymous barber shop on Avenue B for 59 years, and he and his son Junior show me around space.
I meet barber Cesar Barros, 63, who has been cutting hair here for 32 years, and learn more about the space, which was separated into individual sections for increased COVID precautions. Business has been slower recently and the shop is working to adjust.
Eagle-eyed readers may have noticed that the barber shop no longer bears Raul’s name on the awning, nor the phone number, and the mural of Puerto Rican fighter and entertainer Hector “Macho” Camacho that used to grace the gate is also missing.
The building (in a package deal along with its neighbor at 9 Avenue B), which was previously owned by Michael Chang now belongs to notorious landlord Steve Croman, and the shop was told to paint over everything. Junior tells me there has been no rent increase yet but they are concerned about changes might be forthcoming.
The Bean ready to make its 2nd Avenue return
Updated 11/18
The Bean is now open! Hours: 7 a.m. to 9 p.m.
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The Bean reopens today in its former home on Second Avenue at Third Street... almost a year to the date that it closed at this very location.
As you may recall, the Bean shut down two EV locations in November 2019 — here on Second Avenue and on First Avenue at Ninth Street. At the time, owner Ike Escava blamed rising costs on the closures. The outposts on Third Avenue at Stuyvesant and Broadway at Ninth Street remained in operation.
The Bean first debuted in December 2011 here on Second Avenue. The retail space has been vacant since the Bean's departure.
Will update the post when we get the new hours for this Bean branch.
Previously on EV Grieve:
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