After closing nearly one year ago on East Houston Street, the new shop and takeout location for Gaia Italian Café has been revealed.
EVG reader Jonathan Calvenna shared this photo of Gaia Bagnasacco's new outpost here at 119 Essex St. between Rivington and Delancey.
Per Jonathan:
Stopped by to check it out yesterday just as Gaia was walking up the block. She invited me in for a look and said it would likely be a smaller operation than her previous spot on Houston Street, focusing on takeout at first. However, that could change. Ideas are in the works. She anticipated being open by August. Google currently shows her as open at that address, but that's not the case just yet.
So no indoor dining in the new space.
Bagnasacco closed her popular business on July 26, 2020, at 251 E. Houston St. between Norfolk and Suffolk after nine years.
At the time, Bagnasacco recommended following her social media accounts for updates on a possible encore for the cafe. She teased the new space in the late spring without revealing the address.
In the interim, she has been selling her pasta, meal kits and sauces via an online shop — and all available for local delivery.
Throughout the pandemic-fueled PAUSE in NYC, East Village-based visual designer and illustrator Robin Muccari documented his experiences while taking walks at night and during breaks from working in his small apartment.
He shared those illustrations and observances in a recent post on Medium.
What follows is a small selection of his work... visit the site for more... (with a thank you to Loren DeVito) ...
Then the hoarding crisis quickly came into play. People left Trader Joe’s and Target on 14th Street and Avenue A with many bags of toilet paper, sanitizer, bread, and more.
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Those who took it seriously, though, kept at least a six-foot distance and some were uncomfortable helping others.
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But despite the panic, there were still people who thought they either didn’t need a mask or didn’t wear it at all times. They were oblivious to others who coughed or sneezed near them. This happened enough that people screamed at them in the neighborhood.
Yubu recently debuted in the sliver of a storefront at 86 E. Seventh St. just west of First Avenue. (First sighting here.)
The quick-serve shop offers a variety of Korean snacks and beverages ... and specializing in tofu pockets filled with items ranging from avocado to beef bulgogi. You can find their menu here
For now, they are open Wednesday through Sunday from 11 a.m. to 8 p.m. (with a 9 p.m. close on Friday and Saturday).
As previously noted, this spot has been a launching pad for businesses that grew and expanded into larger spaces elsewhere.
Evil Katsu is now in its opening week at 435 E. Ninth St. between Avenue A and First Avenue.
This is the first permanent space for the quick-serve restaurant that offers various katsu sets, sandos (aka Japanese sandwiches) and sides.
Three East Village residents — Asher Sendyk, Chris Wagenlander and Hai Oliveira — are behind Evil Katsu, which got its start late last year as a pop-up ghost kitchen providing takeout and delivery on the Lower East Side.
The three hospitality veterans found themselves out of work during the pandemic last year and decided to start their own business on a month-to-month lease with the hopes that it would catch on. (It did.)
You can read our interview with Sendyk from December right here. Find their website and menu here. Listed hours are noon to 9 p.m., and closed on Mondays.
Sushi By M, which offered an omakase experience from a compact space on Fourth Street between Second Avenue and the Bowery, has moved into a larger space nearby.
Chef Tim is now operating from 300 E. Fifth St. on the southeast corner at Second Avenue. (He applied for a beer-wine license here back in April.)
The new location serves lunch from noon to 3 p.m. and dinner from 5 to 11 p.m. You can visit their website for menus, reservations, etc.
As for 300 E. Fifth St., the last tenant was Spiritea, afruit-and-milk tea shop, which debuted here in May 2019 and never reopened during the pandemic. The storefront had been vacant since 100% Healthy Blend (or maybe just Healthy Blend) closed after three months in November 2016. More memorable previous tenants include Dahlia's and Mary Ann's.
A look at Midtown late this afternoon from the East Village via EV Weather.
Some background on what's happening from AccuWeather:
After a smoky sunset Monday evening, heavy smoke continued to hang over the Northeast on Tuesday, as a result of more than 100 wildfires burning in the western U.S. and more in Canada. Air quality advisories were in effect for much of Canada and had been issued for Pittsburgh, Philadelphia and New York City as the smoke descended from the upper levels of the atmosphere.
The AQI reading in New York City Tuesday afternoon was an unhealthy 122, the highest this year so far. At this elevated number, health effects can be immediately felt by sensitive groups. Healthy individuals may experience difficulty breathing and throat irritation with prolonged exposure, and should limit outdoor activity.
The smoke will likely clear out overnight as a cold front moves into the area, AccuWeather notes.
🚨WANTED for QUESTIONING in regard to a HOMICIDE: Do you know this guy? On 7/14/21 at approx 6:00 AM, at 1 Ave and East 6 St in Manhattan, a 37-year-old male was found deceased with a puncture wound to his chest. Any info? DM @NYPDTips, or anonymously call them at 800-577-TIPS. pic.twitter.com/JK03h6gAea
The @NYPDnews account today released these images of a person of interest wanted for questioning in connection to the homicide of a 37-year-old man found on First Avenue early last Wednesday morning...
According to published reports, 37-year-old Marvin Bellamy, who lived in the Frederick Douglass Houses on the Upper West Side, was found with a puncture wound to his chest on First Avenue near the McDonald's between Sixth Street and Seventh Street. He reportedly died later at Mount Sinai Beth Israel.
A week into the ongoing investigation, police did not disclose a possible motive for the stabbing, or the circumstances leading up to the deadly attack.
Police sources also did not known of any possible connection between Bellamy and the person of interest, whose image was captured by a nearby security camera on the day of the incident.
A big ridge in the jet stream is transporting western wildfire smoke our way next couple of days.
Most of the smoke is in the upper atmosphere and won't dramatically impact air quality, but the sky may look a little milky and the sunrise and sunset may be enhanced.
But why the red/orange?
As we cut-n-paste from another TV station: "The smoke filters out shorter wavelengths of light, leaving mostly red and orange wavelengths to shine through and be seen by the naked human eye."
Several readers have shared the sad news that Joe Ariyav, the longtime proprietor of Joe's Custom Tailors on 14th Street, has passed away. We hope to get some more details soon.
The sign about Ariyav's death arrived last week on the storefront here between First Avenue and Second Avenue (H/T @brohattan). The notice instructs customers to call a number to retrieve any items that may be inside.
We knew that Joe's had been around for years, but was surprised to read via Manhattan Sideways that the shop dates to 1965.
Back on June 23, we reported that restaurateurs Roni Mazumdar and Chintan Pandya of the Masalawala fame were opening a quick-serve establishment at 149 First Ave. between Ninth Street and 10th Street.
The restaurateurs, who also operate Adda and Dhamaka, apparently have big designs on fast-casual Indian food.
As the Timesreports, Mazumdar and Pandya are opening two spots in the East Village.
The first of the team's fast-casual restaurants, the fried chicken-centric Rowdy Rooster, opens in August on First Avenue and Ninth Street. Mr. Pandya is studying the numerous Indian iterations of fried chicken, from pakoras to Chicken 65, a spicy snack that supposedly originated in a hotel in Chennai.
A month later comes Kebabwala, on Second Avenue and Fifth Street, which will focus on classic kebab preparations like chicken tikka and seekh kebabs.
Kebabwala will be going into 82 Second Ave., which has seen several restaurants come and go through the years, including 7 Spices and Reyna Exotic Turkish Cuisine. The owners are expecting a fall opening.
As for 149 First Avenue, which will house Rowdy Rooster, the storefront has been vacant since Afandi Grill closed after 13 months in October 2019. And several years earlier, This Little Piggy Had Roast Beef roamed the space until March 2014.
In April, Mazumdar and Pandya decided not to renew the lease for the Masalawala, bringing an end to its 10-year run just below Houston at 179 Essex St., as Eater first reported.
The 51-year-old NYC institution on Second Avenue and Second Street is returning with a very Anthology-like screening...
Anthology Film Archives marks its long-awaited post-pandemic reopening with a program that could only take place "in real life," projected theatrically and on film: our brand-new restoration of Paul Sharits's rarely screened early masterpiece, Razor Blades (1965-68).
The latest in our ongoing series of restorations of Sharits's films, Razor Blades is a typically mind-bending, consciousness-expanding experiment in perception and a classic among "expanded cinema" works.
By means of color combinations, the strobe-like flickering of the dueling projectors, a high-volume stereo soundscape, and single-frame imagery, it demonstrates the cinema's capacity for exploring the mysterious interaction between light, color, rhythm, eye, and mind. The double projection piece never exhibits precisely the same way, rendering every screening a unique experience.
From the not breaking news department... the retail space at 310 E. Houston St. at Avenue B is for rent.
The for-lease signs have been up since the spring, but the corresponding listing only just arrived online.
This was the Banco Popular branch, which, per trends, shuttered in late January.
According to the RIPCO listing, there are two available here — totaling nearly 4,000 square feet.
Comments per the listing:
• Space will be delivered in white-box condition
• No food uses considered
• Divisions considered
And pricing is available upon request.
What would you like to see here? Record store? Zine shop? Or we could bring back the Gaseteria, which closed here in 2005 when the lot was going condo...
A for-rent sign arrived last week in the window at 110 Third Ave. between 13th Street and 14th Street, marking the official end of One Zo.
The bubble tea brand from Taiwan debuted here last fall... and had been open as recently as late June.
While One Zo decided to close, several other bubble tea brands continue to try the neighborhood, including the April arrival of Gong Cha on St. Mark's Place... with Xing Fu Tang coming soon to the northwest corner of Second Avenue and St. Mark's Place.
New signage (as of yesterday) on the northwest corner of Second Avenue and St. Mark's Place for New York City Gun Club (as seen around various rolldown gates in recent months).
An outpost of Cutlets Sandwich Co. is coming soon to 99 Third Ave. between 12th Street and 13th Street.
The signage arrived here last week for the quick-serve sandwich maker specializing in chicken and eggplant cutlets ... this will be the third outpost for the growing company launched by Richard Zaro of Zaro's Family Bakery. (H/T Eater.)
Cutlets started as a delivery-only service, with the first shop arriving on Broadway near 20th Street this past December. However, they closed that spot to open in a larger space on West 35th Street ... there's also a Cutlets by McCarren Park.
So what makes Cutlets stand out? The deli is committed to serving a better-for-you sandwich, meaning they exclusively serve unprocessed proteins, free from antibiotics, hormones and added sugars. Sandwiches are topped with seasonal vegetables and built between meticulously sourced breads and spreads. For full transparency, a full sourcing list of local producers and farms is listed on Cutlets' website.
The new home of Via Della Pace looks to be shaping up at 87 E. Fourth St. between Second Avenue and the Bowery. (You can see the VDP-branded awning here, for starters.)
As we noted in January, the owners were on the CB3-SLA docket for a new liquor license for this space.
The 17-year-old Italian restaurant lost its home during the devastating fireon the southeast corner of Second Avenue and Seventh Street in December 2020.
The Lazy Llama Coffee Bar debuted an outpost in the First Park kiosk late last week.
Llama@thePark is open daily from 7 a.m. to 9 p.m. ... (and directly across the street from its coffee shop at 72 E. First St. between First Avenue and Second Avenue).
Aside from coffee drinks, the kiosk here outside the F stop is serving a variety of sandwiches, wraps, burgers, fried chicken, salads and more...
Meanwhile, several applicants are no longer on tonight's docket... including two of particular interest.
One is Spiegel ... multiple tipsters told us at the start of the summer that the cafe is returning to its former home at 26 First Ave. at Second Street ...
Expect to see them another month as they apply for a new liquor license for the corner space. (They previously had a full liquor license until they closed at some point during the pandemic.)
Also no longer on tonight's agenda — Roberta's Pizza.
As previously reported, 15 Avenue A between Houston and Second Street is undergoing a vertical expansion.
The new retail tenant was expected to be a wine bar from Bushwick-based pizzeria Roberta's.
Chef-owner Carlo Mirarchi told Grub Street in September 2019 that they were going to open what he called Roberta's Wine Bar.
However, nothing more was ever mentioned about the project, and it was unknown if those plans were moving forward. Obviously so with the application for a new liquor license. (The retail space at 15 Avenue A was previously the Family Dental Center, which moved down to Essex Street in 2017.)
Roberta's got its start in Bushwick in 2008. As Eater noted, Roberta's had been on an expansion kick, with openings in several food halls, and adding two locations in Los Angeles and one in Williamsburg ... not to mention its frozen pizza business ... and burger joint.
Tonight's CB3-SLA committee meeting includes an applicant vying for 197 Second Ave. between 12th Street and 13th Street.
According to the public documents on the CB3 website, applicant Michael Dollaway is proposing an establishment called Aces Fine Food and Spirits. The configuration for the cocktail lounge-restaurant features 12 tables for 36 guests as well as a 22-seat bar.
Dollaway's bio posted with the questionnaire shows a background in management/ownership at several now-closed upscale spots, including Provocateur in the Meatpacking District and Lily Pond in East Hampton.
CB3's SLA committee meets tonight at the Public Hotel, 17th Floor, Sophia Room, 215 Chrystie St. between Houston and Stanton. The festivities start at 6:30.
It's one of those kinda-seems-like-yesterday moments. I recall Goggla emailing me with the news...
The place was closing anyway to make way for the 12-story apartment building on the lot... But people thought that they had the rest of the summer of 2011 to enjoy the bar... or at least go to it.
However, a DOH visit did them in on July 18, 2011 — 54 violation points and mentions of every known type of fly. (Filth flies! Flesh flies!) And apparently, owner Hank Penza said the hell with it. And closed.
For a time, the place was the greatest, strangest, dirtiest bar around the neighborhood.
Here's what the Timeshad to say about Mars Bar once ...
[I]n its prime it was perhaps the epitome of an East Village bar: menacing, dark and covered inside and out by graffiti, stickers and impromptu spray-painted artworks. Its forbidding restroom was an urban legend in and of itself.
It wasn't always that way ... per a different feature at the Times:
When the bar opened in 1984 ... the facade was gleaming. "We thought, 'Oh no, another sushi bar; there goes the neighborhood,'" said Jim Sizelove, who was part of the rowdy art scene called the Rivington School.
We can relive the bar here for a moment... in 2016, East Village-based filmmaker Jenny Woodward released an entertaining video short titled "Last Days of the Mars Bar," featuring interviews with Penza in the days leading up to the bar's closure.
Penza shares some colorful anecdotes (and perhaps tall tales), such as how the bar got its name and how the first art appeared on the bar's walls.
And Penza doesn't seem all that broken up about the end of days here.
"Fuck the bar. What am I, crazy? There's a beginning and an end. You hear? The Mars Bar will live forever and I'll die... I feel like there's a beginning and an end, and this is the end to another chapter in my life."
Here's a rather serene slice-of-Mars-Bar life showing a few people quietly sitting while David Bowie's "China Girl" plays on the jukebox. (Thanks Alex!) The video isn't dated ... it was uploaded in April 2012. It's aptly titled in part "Sweet Memories."
The corner storefronts where Mars Bar stood were eventually demolished in late 2011/early 2012 to make way for the residential building called Jupiter 21. The corner space now houses a TD Bank and Kollectiv, "an urban retreat center" that features an herbal pharmacy and spa.
A Ferrari gets a ticket on Seventh Street at Second Avenue... and the traffic enforcement agent told EVG contributor Derek Berg that this was his first time ticketing a Ferrari...
• Pre-sale tix are available for the 50th-anniversary screening of "Willy
Wonka & Chocolate Factory" at the Regal Union Square on Aug. 15 (Official site)
Avenue B between 13th Street and 14th Street will be the place to be tomorrow for a community event to highlight the work of local artists.
The No_B Fest will offer up an array of live music, art, poetry and theater on the Avenue from 4 to 8 p.m.
Participating businesses including the Roost, Revision Lounge and Mona's, whose bartender (and photographer extraordinaire) Aidan Grant helped organize this event.
And some info via the EVG inbox...
From street art to photography the block will be part gallery, part stage and part dance.
A raffle and auction will allow anyone to win the artwork. All proceeds will go directly into the pockets of the participating musicians.
Overall it's a desire to once again light up the foundation these artists built careers on and inspire the power of community collaboration.
The UK-based post-punk trio Desperate Journalist released a new record earlier this month... the video here (flash warning!) is for the first single — "Fault."
The transaction was a joint negotiation among Transformco, Vornado and the new tenant, sources said. The regional grocer that will be taking over the NoHo location has not been disclosed.
However, those sources said the new tenant will be a "first-class regional grocer."
A few EVG readers already have the space fitted for a Wegmans, which opened its first NYC space in October 2019 on Flushing Avenue in Brooklyn's Admiral's Row development.
On Wednesday afternoon, I was visiting with Nancy Preston, owner of Milk Money Kitchens at 50 Avenue A. (Read more about Milk Money, which provides commercial kitchen rentals and consulting services for food businesses, right here.)
Preston was prepping her space between Third Street and Fourth Street for an HBO shoot for the "Sex and The City" revival titled "And Just Like That." (You probably noticed the production trucks along Avenue A!)
Featured in the spread for the assembled cast and crew: cupcakes named after the show's main characters. Today's scene involved cast members Kristin Davis and Mario Cantone (no Cynthia Nixon or Sarah Jessica Parker here). Executive producer Michael Patrick King was also on hand and took a moment to take a photo with Preston.
And thanks to Nancy for letting me stick around to watch the setup...
