Photo by Steven
A visiting juvenile red-tailed hawk enjoys a squab lunch at St. Mark's Church in-the-Bowery on Second Avenue and 10th Street today...
Friday, March 3, 2023
'Bass' master
Legendary post-punk musician, artist and filmmaker Gina Birch has released her debut solo record, "I Play My Bass Loud."
Birch was a founding member of The Raincoats (🙌).
The video is for the title track, "I Play My Bass Loud." Birch has said, "The song is a celebration of the bass guitar as a voice, simple or layered, pounding or dancing or everything at once."
A look at 'Vital Impetus' at Azure Arts
Photos by Stacie Joy
Azure Arts is now showing "Vital Impetus," a group exhibition of photographic and mixed media works by local artists via curator Elizabeth Chatham.
From left to right: Alice Garik ... Gina Kropf ... Elizabeth Chatham ... and jdx...
... Garik
... Kropf
... Chatham
... and jdx
Here's the official explanation of the show:
The exhibition derives its title and curatorial theme from a concept élan vital (vital impetus), a term coined by French philosopher Henri Bergson. Rather than simply adhering to a set of mechanistic laws, Bergson contended that life has an inherent drive or impulse toward creativity, growth, and innovation.
While his philosophy emphasizes the role of individual experience, i.e. consciousness, and creativity in this process, it also sees the 'self' as fundamentally connected to others. The 'self,' for Bergson, stands in dynamic relation to others. It is not static and unchanging but evolving constantly through its interactions with others.Moving within and between photographic genres, "Vital Impetus" explores this relationship between the creative self and its dynamic relationship with others. The works featured in this exhibition indicate some of the near infinite ways to communicate who one is and how we seek to connect — or not connect — with others.
The show closes on March 13. is now extended through the end of March!
The return of B-Side
Photos by Stacie Joy
B-Side returned to service this past Saturday night.
The neighborhood bar, 204 Avenue B between 12th Street and 13th Street, closed for a deep clean at the start of 2023. The work took longer than expected, and ownership ended up putting in a new ceiling...
Stacie Joy stopped by to meet co-owner Sabina...
... and Bubs the bartender...
The bar debuted in 2003 ... with the new owners taking over in January 2021.
B-Side is open from noon to 4 a.m. daily.
Thursday, March 2, 2023
Thursday's parting shot
Photo by Steven
A memorial Saturday in Tompkins Square Park for Travis 'Grim' Durkin
Photo by Stacie Joy
On Saturday afternoon, friends and family will gather in Tompkins Square Park for a memorial for Travis "Grim" Durkin.
The longtime park regular died on Feb. 9 several weeks after being taken into police custody for shoplifting. He was 47.
As EVG contributor Stacie joy wrote: "Travis especially loved the New York hardcore scene, concerts in the park and dancing, so it's a fitting spot to pay respects."
As Stacie reported on Feb. 14:
Travis' family doesn't have a lot of answers and is left with questions after being notified that he was found unconscious in his cell after an arrest for shoplifting on Jan. 18. There was speculation that he suffered a cardiac event and was placed in a medically induced coma.
Durkin's family is demanding answers from the NYPD. The Daily News has a follow-up on his death here.
D.A. announces indictment in assault outside Ray's Candy Store
Luis Peroza, 39, and Gerald Barth, 55, were charged in a New York State Supreme Court indictment (see below for specific charges).
Said Bragg in a statement: "Ray's Candy Store is a beloved staple in the East Village community, and the attack on its owner is deeply upsetting to everyone who has ever visited this local institution. In addition to this alleged assault, these defendants are also charged with attacking two other strangers on the street within mere hours."
As we first reported, Ray and his employee Gabe Thorne were attacked outside Ray's Candy Store around 3 a.m. on Jan. 31 when the pair went outside for some fresh air. A man, who police later identified as Peroza, struck Ray with a belt with a rock attached, causing a black eye and gash on Ray's temple. Gabe was hit across the chest.
The suspect threatened to kill Ray, per the police report. All this apparently happened because Ray and Gabe declined an offer to buy seltzer water from Peroza and his accomplice, later named as Barth.
According to the NYPD and media reports, after the assault at Ray's, Peroza and Barth showed up outside a deli on Avenue C, where they allegedly attacked a second victim. Per the Post:
They blocked their second victim's path and demanded, "Give me your money!" authorities said.That's when Peroza hit the victim with "an unknown object, causing a deep, bleeding laceration" to his head and "a broken orbital bone, and substantial pain," according to the complaint filed by Manhattan prosecutors ...
Later on Jan. 31, Barth allegedly struck a 51-year-old in the head on Avenue B with an unknown object after the man declined his request for a cigarette. Barth reportedly then left with the victim's smartphone. The victim suffered several fractured facial bones and had a tooth knocked out.
This EVG post has a timeline of the events leading up to the suspects' arrest.
Both defendants remain in custody at Rikers. Peroza is due back in court on May 10; Barth on March 6, according to public records.
Luis Peroza, charged:
- Assault in the First Degree, a class B felony, three counts
- Robbery in the First Degree, a class B felony, two counts
- Attempted Robbery in the First Degree, a class C felony, two counts
- Robbery in the Second Degree, a class C felony, one count
- Attempted Robbery in the Second Degree, a class D felony, one count
- Assault in the Second Degree, a class D felony, one count
Gerald Barth, charged:
- Assault in the First Degree, a class B felony, three counts
- Robbery in the First Degree, a class B felony, two counts
- Attempted Robbery in the First Degree, a class C felony, two counts
- Robbery in the Second Degree, a class C felony, one count
- Attempted Robbery in the Second Degree, a class D felony, one count
- Assault in the Second Degree, a class D felony, one count
A community art project honors the resilience of Ukrainians; will be on display at Veselka
Top photo by Mike Krautter for Citizens
This past Saturday afternoon, the Citizens branch on the SW corner of Second Avenue and Ninth Street hosted a neighborhood art event ... where residents participated in the creation of a large-scale art piece and wrote personal messages of support to Ukrainians abroad.
Citizens collaborated with Ukrainian-born, New York-based artist Misha Tyutyunik to create a canvas with members of the neighborhood that will be installed tomorrow (March 3 at noon) at Veselka, which became a hub of community-led relief efforts for Ukraine since the Russian invasion on Feb. 24, 2022.
The event raised funds for World Central Kitchen to aid Ukrainians impacted by the war.
Here's more via the EVG inbox...
Citizens also began collecting postcards with messages of support from New Yorkers to be sent to Ukrainians displaced by the war. The postcards feature the mural Citizens installed in Little Ukraine in 2022, and were available at the event and will continue to be available for the next month at the Citizens branch in the East Village. New Yorkers can fill them out with their own messages of hope, resilience and love... The aim is to collect 365 postcards to mark each day of the war.
Tyutyunik's new work for Veselka is titled "An Evening in Kyiv 2023."
Seasoned Vegan coming to the East Village
Seasoned Vegan will debut later this spring as a mostly take-out spot at 128 Second Ave. between Seventh Street and St. Mark's Place, EVG contributor Steven reports.
Here's more about the business:
Seasoned Vegan is ... owned and operated by mother and son, Brenda and Aaron Beener. We pride ourselves on being loyal to our vegan/vegetarian customers by maintaining an organic, 100% vegan menu while creating meals that are delicious enough to satisfy the most skeptical omnivore.Our restaurant specializes in preparing a very unique type of cuisine: gourmet vegan soul food. We use the term "soul food" loosely because we are not referring exclusively to the typical cuisine of the Southern region of the United States.For us, soul food is any meal prepared by a chef who not only includes flavorful ingredients but also infuses tender love and care. With that as a founding theme, Seasoned Vegan gives typical Italian, Asian, Middle Eastern, Caribbean and American dishes a vegan, home-cooked, soulful twist.
You can find a menu here.
The previous tenant, Tony's Pizza, went dark in recent weeks after a June 2021 debut.
Night market concept looks to be the life of the Partea on 14th Street
Photo by Steven
This will be the second location for Partea, which started in Flushing. The concept: "Street eats, bubble tea and games in an energetic restaurant inspired by Taiwanese night markets."
The renovated storefront here previously housed Kent's Dumpling House, which went dark last summer.
Wednesday, March 1, 2023
Wednesday's parting shot
At the last night of Anyway Cafe
Photos by Stacie Joy
On a snowy Monday night, Anyway Cafe ended its 28-year tenure at 34 E. Second St. near Second Avenue.
As we first reported on Monday, several now-former employees are hopeful to work out a new lease for the space with the building's landlords. If that doesn't happen, the employees aspire to open a like-minded business — live music! vodka! — elsewhere. However, the new establishment will not be going by Anyway Cafe — that name remains with the original owners.
EVG contributor Stacie Joy stopped by for some of the closing-night festivities, which included live music from JOff WilsOn (left) and Joe Sztabnik ...
After the fire at 136 Avenue C; A&C Kitchen damaged
Photos yesterday by Stacie Joy
According to sources at the scene, someone tossed a lit cigarette from a residence in the rear of the building between Eighth Street and Ninth Street. The cigarette landed in a pile of recyclables and ignited something combustible in the interior courtyard, causing an explosion that shattered several windows. The fire traveled up the A&C Kitchen shaft to the roof.
The FDNY issued an "under control" roughly 38 minutes after the first report on Monday.
Several ground-floor businesses were damaged, including flooding at the A&C Kitchen, the affordable and reliable quick-serve Chinese restaurant. They will be closed for the foreseeable future.
On the corner, the Wayland will reopen on Thursday, per an Instagram announcement ... there was a cleanup crew inside the cocktail lounge, which looked intact ...
Around the corner, Ninth Street Espresso was open...
On Avenue C, Lovewild Design, the sustainable gifts and stationery shop, was also spared from fire-related damage...
... EVG contributor Stacie Joy spotted owner Sierra Zamarripa, her daughter Cecilia and mother Thea Boyer on duty...
As for apartments, a unit on the first floor near the blaze was scorched. Aside from some broken windows, we didn't hear of any other damage to residences. A tenant on the third floor said his unit was fine.
Serenity Spa remains open on corner rumored for new development
Photos by Stacie Joy
Yesterday, we noted that the NW corner of First Avenue at Second Street is looking more and more like fodder for new development. (There is nothing about demolition or a new building in public records.)
New Double Dragon is expected to close in the weeks ahead at 37 First Ave., though staff hopes to return to business.
Meanwhile, above the currently closed First Avenue Laundry Center, the lights still burn brightly at Serenity Spa... where EVG contributor Stacie Joy ventured up the stairs... 
The spa remains open for business... and the front-desk attendant was unaware of any pending closure or development on this corner...
Closing the book for now at Short Stories on the Bowery
Per the door signage...
"We know how much Short Stories means to you, so we are taking the necessary steps to ensure our guests feel comfortable when they step through the door. We are excited to come back to you, better than ever, in Spring 2023."
Short Stories was on the February CB3-SLA docket for a new liquor license ... the current license expired in late January, though neighbors said the bar continued to serve booze until last week under the previous ownership.
According to the questionnaire on file at the CB3 website, this is a sale of assets, with new owners from Something Good Hospitality Group taking over. (While the partners have food-hospitality experience, they have yet to own a restaurant.)
During the meeting on Feb. 21, a handful of residents who live in this building and nearby spoke out against Short Stories (the now-closed version anyway that morphed from a cafe to a club) ... calling out "bad, irresponsible behavior" (drug use, crowded sidewalks, etc.) ... there were numerous complaints about the music (via DJs) going until 4 a.m. (One resident called the volume of the music "horrifying.")
The new owners quickly distanced themselves from the previous regime, promising a more high-end dining experience (adding a full kitchen)... and bringing in a new staff.
CB3-SLA committee members were looking to stipulate against a nightclub atmosphere. The owners agreed not to have DJs on the premises. However, they wouldn't compromise on an earlier close and insisted on a 2 a.m. time daily for the sake of their late-night food menu that paired with the new cocktail program. (The committee suggested midnight, with a 2 a.m. close on Friday and Saturday. Without stipulations, the committee was concerned that the applicants would go to the State Liquor Authority and get the OK for a 4 a.m. close.)
You can watch a video of the meeting. This applicant starts at the 3:15 mark.
There are also complaints about the curbside dining space ...
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)