Pat Ivers and Emily Armstrong continue sorting through their archives of punk-era concert footage as it’s digitized for the Downtown Collection at N.Y.U.’s Fales Library.
Pat IversLounge Lizards
We finally shot the Lounge Lizards at CBGBs in the spring of 1979, just a few months before we bought our first color camera. Good thing, too. They just looked better in black and white.
Some called what they played fake jazz but we loved their sinuous stew of no wave, be-bop and cinematic soundscape that Robert Palmer of The New York Times famously described as “somewhere west of Charles Mingus and east of Bernard Hermann.”
And they looked like they sounded: natty, a bit louche and darkly captivating. You just wanted to light up a cigarette and enjoy. Founded by saxophonist John Lurie and his brother, pianist Evan Lurie, the band roster read like a Who’s Who of downtown: new music royalty, with more than 35 members cycling in and out over 20-odd years. Read more…
Williamsburg Fashion Weekend starts tonight, and with an aim to merge clothing design with art and activism, it promises to be an event well suited for the dedicated trendsetter as well as the fashion indifferent. Unlike official New York Fashion Week events (which ended yesterday), Brooklyn’s more welcoming counterpart is open to the public and serves as a platform for emerging designers, especially ones who are looking to expand the notion of what a fashion show can be. We sat down with five of this year’s ten presenters, including one who’s based in the East Village, to see what we can expect from their shows and why it’s worth a hop across the river. We also asked them where in Williamsburg they’d spend $500.
Maggie CraigUta Bekaia with one of his pieces
at Ideal Glass
Uta Bekaia Showing Saturday at 10 p.m.
Uta Bekaia, a fashion vet who works out of Ideal Glass on East Second Street, is looking to explore what he calls “art wear”—fashion that’s intended to be performance art rather than functional clothing. He’ll be showing a “funky and dark” Medieval-themed collection called “Purple Jester,” which will be shown along to live music. Favorite thing about WFW: “It’s more chill and relaxed than New York Fashion Week. I like it because it’s 100 percent underground, it stands for the anti-corporate idea of manufacturing — everything’s handmade by the designer —it has an ideal of some sort. And it’s funky and more open to crazier stuff.” $500 shopping spree:Urban Jungle Vintage Read more…
Yaffa Cafe, the late-night standby on St. Marks Place, has been closed by the Department of Health.
A sign on the door says the restaurant is closed for “minor renovations” and redirects customers to Simone Martini Bar, a sister establishment.
Health department records indicate the semi-vegetarian institution was hit with 64 demerit points during a Jan. 25 inspection. (That’s the same number Maharlika racked up before it was closed.) Violations included evidence of rats and mice, and incorrect food temperatures.
“Muji is something that is going to help transform the area,” says a broker involved in the deal we broke news of nine days ago. [The Real Deal]
A penthouse unit at 250 Bowery has sold for around $3.9 million. “Douglas Elliman’s Fredrik Eklund, who is handling sales at the building with his colleague John Gomes, uploaded an Instagram photo of the apartment yesterday, noting that the contract price is a price-per-square-foot record “for the area,” meaning the Bowery.” [The Real Deal]
Clayton Patterson on today’s Lower East Side: “Gone are the days of political outrage, mass political gatherings, inspired firebrand speeches. Today if a youth gets murdered, the most we can hope for is an hour of speeches and maybe a six-block memorial walk.” [The Villager] Read more…
While one Monday-night open mic is just beginning, another is celebrating two decades.
Sidewalk Cafe’s Winter Antifolk Festival returns Feb. 19, and this one promises to be special: it was just about 20 years ago that singer-songwriter Lach, who had established the first Antifolk Festival back in 1983, brought his weekly Antihoot to the back room of Sidewalk. Since then, the open-mic series — a showcase for the genre-bending musicianship that Lach dubbed “antifolk” — has featured the likes of Regina Spektor, the Moldy Peaches, and the Avett Brothers. Lach moved on in 2008 (he now lives in Scotland), but not before tapping musician Ben Krieger to continue booking shows at Sidewalk.
As you can see from the lineup below, this year’s 10-day festival will bring back some recognizable names: Jeffrey Lewis will perform with the great Peter Stampfel of the Fugs, Jason Trachtenburg will play with his big band, and Seth Faergolzia of Dufus will be there with John Ludington.
To celebrate 20 years of antifolk, Sidewalk has sent us a sheaf of show flyers from years gone by. Click through the slideshow for a trip down memory lane. Read more…
For every East Village business that’s opening or closing, dozens are quietly making it. Here’s one of them: Cafecito.
Samantha Balaban
Loisaida was a very different place when Cafecito opened on Avenue C in 2003. “I remember people thought we were crazy, because back then we were the only ones on the block,” said owner Manny Garcia, who celebrated the restaurant’s tenth anniversary last week. “Well, we did it anyway.” A decade later, the Cuban joint is still going strong, and selling about forty slow-roasted pork shanks per week. We spoke with Mr. Garcia about life on C.
Q.
Why did you choose the location you are in? Ten years ago Avenue C was such a remarkably different place for a small business.
A.
It was the only avenue that was still reasonably priced to get a location we could afford to rent. We saw that the neighborhood was rapidly changing. It was a Latin-based neighborhood of families and it was getting gentrified pretty quickly so that is good for a new business – all these new people coming in and exploring. Read more…
He already owns a restaurant on East Eighth Street in Manhattan; now John Seymour is opening a spot at North Eighth Street in Brooklyn.
Next Tuesday, Mr. Seymour will open Sweet Chick, named for the restaurant’s signature dish: fried chicken and your choice of bacon and cheddar, or rosemary and mushroom waffles. (See the dinner, dessert and cocktail menus below.)
Mr. Seymour opened Pop’s of Brooklyn a year ago, on East Eighth Street, between Greene Street and University Place. He met his partner in Sweet Chick, Sam Saleh, after Mr. Saleh opened Organic Planet around the corner from the original Pop’s, in Williamsburg. (Mr. Saleh also owns Swallow Coffee).
Born and bred in Brooklyn, Mr. Seymour and Mr. Saleh say they are committed to friendly, family-run businesses, especially as chain pharmacies and banks take over retail space in the East Village and Williamsburg. “This neighborhood is cool,” said Mr. Saleh. “But it’s about to be ruined by franchises.” Read more…
Earlier this week, Patagonia Surf was cleared for a permit to install a 19-square-foot sign displaying its trademark fish-and-trident logo on the former home of CBGB Gallery.
Will it be as iconic as the CBs awning, or will it be a fish out of water?
We went fishing for information and a representative for the surfwear brand told us the store’s opening at 313 Bowery had been delayed due to Hurricane Sandy and various construction issues. No opening date was available.
Though the construction permit application calls for an illuminated sign and puts the cost of installation at $3,750, this won’t be a flashy fish: the project’s architect says the sign will be made of oxidized steel and backlit, so as to emit a warm glow.
“For more than a decade now, Manhattan performance artist and former Warhol starlet Penny Arcade has been doing her part to preserve the legacy of fellow downtown artists—a legacy that continues to be gradually erased as the East Village and the Lower East Side march toward total gentrification.” [Capital NY]
A Valentine’s chat with Pilar and Walter La Rosa of Pilar Jewelry Repair on East Seventh Street: “This adorably cute couple hail from Lima, Peru, and have been coworkers for the past 20 years at this East Village storefront, which is an accomplishment in itself. What is even more astonishing is that they’ve been married for the past five decades!” [Runnin’ Scared] Read more…
Maharlika, the popular Filipino restaurant on First Avenue, has been temporarily shuttered by the health department. Signs posted on its windows indicate the closing is due to a gas leak.
The restaurant was cited for eight sanitary violations (for a total of 64 demerit points) during a Jan. 29 inspection, including food temperature violations, a lack of hand washing facilities, and evidence of mice, roaches, or other vermin.
Nicole Ponseca, owner of Maharlika, was unavailable for comment but a host who asked not to be named assured us that the staff was cleaning up. He had no knowledge of when the eatery would reopen.
If you’re a fan of the restaurant, you may want to head six blocks up to its sister location, Jeepney, instead: it just launched a new lunch menu.
Update | 8 p.m. Maharlika e-mails The Local with official comment: “We are very disappointed to be closed. However, we look forward to reopening in the next couple of days. We currently have a shared basement, part of which we don’t use. This portion of the basement was not up to code, and so we had to shut down to make this space doh compliant. We are also fixing a mechanical issue in the kitchen. Hope to feed you soon.”
Racing heart? Sweaty palms? Dizziness? Either you’re in love or you’re having a panic attack over the fact that Valentine’s Day is right around the corner. Or maybe both. Either way, you should climb back off the window ledge because we’ve got just what you need this year. Regardless of whether you are madly in love or just plain mad, there’s Valentine’s Day fun to be had in the East Village.
TRULY, MADLY, DEEPLY IN LOVE
Merchant’s House Museum
Love in the Parlors: A Valentine’s Concert Merchant’s House Museum, 29 East Fourth Street, (212) 777-1089; 7 p.m. to 8:15 p.m.
Woo your date with a romantic evening of classical music, as the Bond Street Euterpean Singing Society performs the works of 19th-century composers like Rossini, Schubert, Liszt, Brahms, Stephen Foster, Amy Beach and more in the Greek revival double parlor of the Merchant’s House Museum. Reservations required: $30 general admission, $20 seniors and students, $15 members.
“Aphrodisiacs & Music at Jimmy’s No. 43” Jimmy’s No. 43, 43 East Seventh Street, (212) 982-3006; noon to 2 a.m.
Skip all the pre-fixe meals and head to Jimmy’s No. 43 for a la carte dishes featuring aphrodisiacs like oysters and chocolate. Plus there will be plenty of craft beer, cider and sparkling wine. If the booze and food don’t get to your lover’s heart, then hopefully the music will. SisterMonk is performing in the back room at 9 p.m. No cover, but reservations are recommended.
“Pancake Special at Clinton Street Baking Company” Clinton St. Baking Company, 4 Clinton Street, (646) 602-6263; 6 p.m. to 11 p.m.
Indulge in breakfast for dinner with your sweetheart. Sharing will help stave off the sugar coma from the chocolate chunks, fresh raspberries, and raspberry caramel sauce that the special pancakes are drowning in. Read more…
This might be the quirkiest song about the neighborhood since the Magnetic Fields penned “The Luckiest Guy on the Lower East Side”: an Italian band, Honeybird and the Birdies, just posted this video for their song, “East Village.” It was actually filmed in Italy (presumably in their hometown of Rome) but it’s pretty clear they’re singing about the East Village of New York, not the ones in Vancouver or Chicago. After all, the lyrics go “Have you ever been to the East Village? … I have only been to Brooklyn… How long is the subway ride from Brooklyn to the Lower East Side,” and then the song breaks into a balalaika-backed rap about rabbis and bagels and cream cheese. (The band has songs in English, Italian, Mapudugun, Catanese, German and Macedonian, by the way.)
But so anyway, the fun part comes at the end, when an East Village institution makes an appearance. We won’t spoil the surprise: just give it a watch.
“A report released by the National Hurricane Center on Tuesday charged that downgrading Hurricane Sandy to a post-tropical cyclone limited the warnings that weather forecasters could issue.” [NY Times]
“With Mayor Michael R. Bloomberg to leave office at year’s end, there is concern that the city’s next leader will end a period of bike-friendly programs and policies.” [NY Times]
Lucien Bahaj explains the closing of the Pink Pony: “I serve high quality food at lower prices and that market is not there anymore. My prices cannot be maintained with that kind of rent and I don’t want to raise my prices,” he says. “It’s not a tragedy. It belonged to an era and the era changed and I changed with it. All my customers have left or changed. The neighborhood used to be full of creative types — painters, writers, filmmakers. We don’t have that anymore.” [NY Daily News] Read more…
The garbage-bag covering has come down at 308 East Sixth Street but a city marshal’s notice has gone up indicating that the space that briefly housed Litro and then 308 Lounge has been seized by its landlord.
Still can’t decide how to spend Fat Tuesday? One thing’s for sure: with New Orleans spots a’plenty, you needn’t leave the East Village to “laissez les bon temps roulez.” Here’s our last-minute guide to local bars and eateries celebrating the holiday.
Scott Lynch
Coyote Ugly 153 1st Avenue, between East 9th and 10th Streets
In addition to the dive’s usual Bourbon Street-worthy antics, Hurricane Maya drinks and $3 whiskey sours will be served.
Back Forty 190 Avenue B, between East 11th and 12th Streets
The southern-inflected comfort-food spot is hosting a three-day festival to celebrate Mardi-Valentino, which chef Michael Laarhoven describes as “a new holiday between Mardi Gras and Valentine’s Day.” Reserve online (the ticket price goes toward your meal) for a special menu of smoked Andouille sausage, gumbo, blackened snapper, BBQ shrimp, and crawdads. There’ll be Delta blues, Dixieland jazz, and zydeco music.
Billy Hurricane’s 25 Avenue B, between Second and Third Streets
Every day is Mardi Gras at one of the city’s best bars for hurricanes, but tonight it’s “Padi’ Gras,” according to the Facebook page. The bar promises to keep it “rockin’ all night” with drink specials. Read more…
The Master: David Joffy, who has lived in the same East Village apartment for over 35 years, likes to take his dog to the park two to three times a day, snow or shine.
The Dog: Cookie, a nine-year-old Collie-Shepherd mix. Nickname: Cookarino. Cookie can be found there most days, even when the dog run is a sheet of ice. “If there was a nuclear explosion, she’d still want to be outside,” Mr. Joffy said.
Favorite Food: Chopped liver. Mr. Joffy often tops Cookie’s dry food off with it.
Favorite Hobby: Frequenting The Bean. Mr. Joffy takes her a few times a week and the people there love her. “I drop her leash while inside” he said, “and she walks over to people and they will pet her.”
Claim to Fame: Guarding the park. Cookie will guard the fence, barking at signs of trouble — even if to her that means anyone on skates.
Lila SelimStanding, left to right: Mark Birnbaum, Robert
Bookman and Eugene Remm
Mark Birnbaum and Eugene Remm — owners of buzzy new nightspots The General, Bow, and Finale at 199 Bowery — faced the music last night at a meeting of Community Board 3’s liquor license committee. Alexandra Militano, the committee’s chair, introduced the dapper duo by announcing that Finale had received no less than twenty-seven 311 complaints in November and December between the hours of 3:30 a.m. and 4:30 a.m., and that leading up to the meeting, the committee had received about a half dozen letters of opposition from residents or groups of community members. The one letter of support was from the NYC Hospitality Alliance, of which EMM’s attorney Robert Bookman is a founding member. That produced a cynical chuckle from the audience.
Mr. Birnbaum and Mr. Remm (together EMM Group) were seeking the board’s approval to move the location of their dance floor from the basement to the ground floor, where they would be able to install proper soundproofing. Though by their own admission, they were asking for retroactive approval: the upstairs club has been operational since November.
Of the eleven speakers to comment, Danielle Schwob, an upstairs neighbor, spoke first, saying that the music from the club doesn’t end until 5:30 a.m., construction starts at 7 a.m., and the incessant noise has “seriously derailed my life.” The work-at-home composer said she hadn’t been able to work since the club opened. Other residents had similar complaints about noise, and said that Finale’s management was uncooperative. Read more…
Ludlow Street fixture the Pink Pony has closed. “The owner, Lucien Bahaj, a Moroccan-born Frenchman who took over the Pink Pony in 2001, said he closed it partly because of his health – he is 68 and diabetic – but primarily because the landlord wanted $20,000 a month in rent, up from the current $14,000.” [NY Times]
And another Lower East Side longtimer, Motor City, will follow it. The owner says the lease is up at the end of the month. [The Lo-Down]
“Tom Cruise is in contract to sell his condominium unit at the American Felt Building in the East Village for $3 million.” [The Real Deal] Read more…
Opening of Unplugged Mondays at Bareburger’s Second Floor lounge
The founder of the popular spoken-word series, The Inspired Word, is up to something new. Last week, Mike Geffner launched an open-mic night for up-and-coming musicians at Bareburger’s East Village location.
So how will Unplugged Mondays hold its own against the well established Monday-night open mics at Sidewalk Café and Nuyorican Poets Café? First off, by cultivating a sense of camaraderie. “Other series you get up, get off, and go home,” said Mr. Geffner. “At my series you get up, get off, and hang out. We’re a real family, a community,” he said.
During the launch of the series last Monday, a total of nine artists performed in front of the second-floor picture window that looks out over the corner of Fifth Street and Second Avenue. (Those signing up for the open mic pay a $10 cover and featured artists get a cut of the amount charged at the door.) One of them, Formerly Fone, transcended the boundaries between spoken word and hip-hop: she delivered symbolic, heart-felt euphemisms enveloped in old-school r&b beats. Another artist sang a 15th-century a capella piece, “O Death!” Read more…
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Pat Ivers Lounge Lizards
