Rather random Avenue A fruit stand randomly gone

The fruit stand that arrived in mid-April on Avenue A near Sixth Street has apparently packed up and left. They seemed to operate on an honor system, leaving the stand wrapped in a blue tarp and unattended overnight.

Any comments about their produce? 

Today in photos of severed stuffed zebra heads on 5th Avenue and 9th Street

Why it's good to leave the neighborhood every so often! Morning! (And I have no idea how long that has been up there. Hopefully for months!)

Report: Superiority Burger moving into the former Odessa space on Avenue A

Photo yesterday by Stacie Joy

The former Odessa space at 119 Avenue A has a new tenant. 

Rob Patronite and Robin Raisfeld at Grub Street report that Superiority Burger has signed a lease for the former diner between Seventh Street and St. Mark's Place.

For starters, Brooks Headley, owner of the all-vegetarian quick-serve spot, tells the outlet that he's not changing a thing:

"Odessa has always kinda been my dream space," he says. What's so dreamy about it is that besides being big, it comes completely furnished and ready to go. "It's not old and dusty and gross and needing upgrades," he says. "I find it completely beautiful — the soda counter, the satellite bar, the cash register station. I don't plan to change it at all."

Superiority will be making the short move around the corner from Ninth Street in the months ahead: 

Headley says that he'll need to order some new kitchen equipment and anticipates that it will take at least five months — probably more, what with supply-chain issues — until the new Superiority opens its doors. The plan is to launch dinner service first and then open for lunch and breakfast (yes, breakfast!). He will likely surrender the ancillary kitchen space he leases on 9th Street but keep the original store for purposes yet to be determined. 

In July 2020, longtime manager Dennis Vassilatos said that Odessa was shutting down after a prolonged slump in business due to the pandemic. (Odessa Restaurant opened in this space in April 1995. The original Odessa, the longtime favorite that dated to the mid-1960s, closed next door in August 2013.)

However, closer to the last day, co-owner Steve Helios told Gothamist that Odessa was only closing temporarily, that the space would be renovated. (The building's landlord is Odessa partner Mike Skulikidis.) 

The space has sat untouched since then. 

Earlier in the summer, Louis Skibar, whose Toloache Restaurant Group revived the classic UWS diner Old John's Luncheonette, which dates to the 1950s, was said to be eyeing Odessa.

Superiority opened in the East Village in June 2015. 

Last weekend for Tea Drunk on 7th Street

After eight years at 123 E. Seventh St. between Avenue A and First Avenue, Tea Drunk is closing up shop. This is the last weekend.

Per the tea shop's Instagram account:

With our current lease expiring ... August 21-22, will be the last days for Tea Drunk’s East Village location. Please hold that tear; this is not an end but a new beginning.⁠ ⁠Despite the highly challenging year due to COVID, Tea Drunk quickly pivoted and continued to stay connected with our tea community through our Educational Tea Club and an array of other online endeavors...

Tea Drunk will continue on with a variety of collaborations here and elsewhere. 

Meanwhile, if you need any fixtures...

 

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Express yourself: A look at the new FedEx space on Houston

As mentioned the other day, the FedEx Office Print & Ship Center is moving into a newly renovated space a few doors away along East Houston between Avenue A and Avenue B.

EVG correspondent Stacie Joy shared these photos yesterday of the FedExers' more modern-looking storefront... 

Thursday's parting shot

Partial sunset tonight ...

On the CB3-SLA docket tonight: Ixta for the former DBGB space on the Bowery

Tonight is the second of the two CB3 SLA committee meetings for August.

Here's a look at a few of the applications on the agenda: 

• Ixta (LLC to be formed by Mike Himani), 299 Bowery (op) 

This looks to be tonight's big-ticket item. Restaurateur Akbarali Himani is seeking a full liquor license for Ixta, a Mexican restaurant proposed for the former DBGB space at 299 Bowery between First Street and East Houston (top pic).

According the the public documents on the CB3 website, Ixta would be open Sunday to Wednesday from 11 a.m. to 11 p.m., with hours of 11:30 a.m. to 2 a.m. Thursday through Saturday. The space in the Avalon Bowery complex is quite large, with a capacity of 194 patrons, who would be treated to "live Mariachi performers." 

Himani has been running a variety of restaurants in NYC and Long Island the past 30 years. His current credits include a Chickpea in Penn Station and NISI Mediterranean in Times Square. 

Daniel Boulud closed DBGB here in August 2017 after an eight-year run. 

• The York, 186 Ave B (op) 

Hospitality vets James Hurst and Hayden Tobin are looking to open The York here at 186 Avenue B between 11th Street and 12th Street. 

The York would be open daily from 2 p.m. to 2 a.m. and serve a menu featuring "American comfort food," per the questionnaire at the CB3 website. The sample menu items include several burgers, sandwiches and brunch entrees. 

This address was most recently Very Thai, which had a nearly three-year run until late 2019 ... after taking over from Barbone. 

• ACES (Fine Food and Spirits Inc), 197 2nd Ave. (op) 

This is a carry-over from the July meeting for the former Black Emperor space between 12th Street and 13th Street. You can read about it here. The Aces questionnaire is at this link. 

Tonight's meeting starts at 6:30 in the CB3 office, 59 E. Fourth St. between Second Avenue and the Bowery. There's also a Zoom option via this link.

Spellbound: Spooksvilla + Friends moving to 309 E. 9th St.

Artist-illustrator Shahrzad Ghadjar is moving her gift shop Spooksvilla + Friends to 309 E. Ninth St. between First Avenue and Second Avenue. (Right next to Mud!) 

Spooksvilla is the name of her brand of "witchy female-focused stoner art." She's been selling her wares, including bath salts, candles and cards, from two storefronts away at No. 305 since earlier this summer. 

You can follow along on Instagram. 

Meanwhile, the tenant on the other side of the stairs at No. 309, Dejavu Boutique & Tailoring, moved out yesterday after 13 years in business. The shop's UES location remains open. 

All photos by Steven

Where are they now? Catching up with Gem Spa's former Zoltar in Bushwick

Archival photo from the vast EVG Zoltar collection

In May 2019, local card-carrying members (hi!) of the Zoltar Fan Club were heartbroken to learn that their favorite Animatronic Fortune Telling Machine had been removed from outside Gem Spa on Second Avenue at St. Mark's Place.

As we learned in June 2019, Zoltar's owner found a new home for his words of wisdom outside OMG Pizza in Bushwick.

And that's the last we heard about the situation... until now. 

At the Times, Alex Vadukul has an update on Zoltar ... as well as a conversation with local businessman and arcade owner Carlo Muraco, who seems to have a lock on the NYC Zoltar market.

First, Vadukul speaks with some passersby outside the pizzeria in Bushwick about this Zoltar's past.

"I definitely put a few bucks into that thing when I was drunk," said Patrick Reid, 30. "After skating in Tompkins we'd meet up on St. Marks and pull up to it, maybe hang out a bit in front of it before heading off to the next adventure. He told me once I could walk a path to greatness, but I think he's bad juju."

"It's bizarre this remnant of Gem Spa has ended up here in nowhere Bushwick," said Amrit Dhillon, 26. "It's interesting to see how New York eats itself up and spits itself out again, like a living organism."

Saddam Alsaidi, 27, who works at the pizzeria, knew of Zoltar's past life across the river. "I know he used to be famous in the East Village," he said. "He was a big deal."

The article also gets into the disagreement that led to Zoltar's Gem Spa ouster... as well as comments from Parul Patel, who had been running the corner shop for her father until the official closing in May 2020.

"I'd only heard he’s out there in Bushwick," Ms. Patel said. "It's nice to know there's a piece of us still out there in the city. Even though he's not in the East Village anymore, he is a real living artifact of Gem Spa."

You can read the article, which includes several links to EVG's deep reservoir of Zoltar posts, right here.

Zoltar first arrived at Gem Spa on Sept. 23, 2012.

Meanwhile, there is a new Zoltar outside the March Hare on Ninth Street.

Wednesday's parting shot

Thanks to Grant Shaffer for the late-night (last night!) view of the East Village...

Late-afternoon mannequin break

As seen on Ninth Street between First Avenue and Second Avenue. 

They belonged to Dejavu Boutique & Tailoring, which has closed at No. 309 after 13 years in business. The shop's UES location remains open. 

Photo by Steven

ICYMI: Proof of vaccination now required for restaurants, bars, theaters and more

As you likely know, starting yesterday, people age 12 and older need to show proof of a COVID-19 vaccination — at least one dose — to dine or drink inside NYC restaurants, cafes, bars ... or go to movie theaters, museums, concert halls, gyms, art galleries and other venues such as bowling alleys and pool halls. 

In addition, employees of those businesses must also be vaccinated, "with holdouts facing the possibility of being fired if they refuse," per The Associated Press. 

Mayor de Blasio announced the vaccination mandate — aka Key to NYC — two weeks ago as a way to persuade more people to get vaccinated as the Delta variant has prompted a resurgence of the pandemic in some areas. (Since his announcement, the mayors of San Francisco and New Orleans have announced similar mandates, Bloomberg reports.) 

According to the city, proof of vaccination may include:

• NYC COVID Safe App 

• Excelsior Pass 

• CDC Vaccination Card (or photo) 

• NYC Vaccination Record 

• An official immunization record from outside NYC or the U.S.

Find more details at the city site here. 

Businesses have until Sept. 13 to comply with the mandate ... before city agencies will start conducting inspections and issuing fines up to $5,000 for repeat violations. Gothamist has a nice explainer here. (And yes, if you're dining outside, you can use the restrooms.)

Meanwhile, the Associated Press and the Post both had articles on the complications of the measures, "as restaurant servers, bartenders and ticket agents become the frontline enforcers for vaccination rules."

Patrons who either aren't vaccinated or don't have their proof may dine outdoors at restaurants.

Several East Village restaurants started requiring proof of vaccination earlier this month. The owners of Ruffian, the wine bar at 125 E. Seventh St. between Avenue A and First Avenue, and Kindred, 342 E. Sixth St. just west of First Avenue, suspended indoor dining until further notice. Their outdoor spaces remain in service.

According to city data, 56 percent of all adult New Yorkers have been fully vaccinated; the number is 68 percent in Manhattan — and even higher in the 10002, 10003 and 10009 zip codes.