Croissanteria, the café and bakery whose owner David Simon we spoke to last month, will open tomorrow at 7 a.m. Mr. Simon’s partner in the venture is Selmo Ribeiro, 31, who also owns a burger joint in Lagos, Portugal.
As you can see from the menus below, the café will offer a variety of croissants, mini croissants, and croissant sandwiches – plus a loyalty program in which every tenth coffee is free, with funds from the tenth coffee going to a neighborhood charity. The tiled space is decorated with a large wall clock from an antique shop on East Ninth Street and benches with red cushions from a synagogue.
A little over a week after musicians sang out against the “Purple People Eater” at a benefit show, a “Purple Monster” will take to the streets during a march (complete with marching band!) against N.Y.U.’s expansion plan. The organizer of the protest – All in the Red, a group advocating debt-free education for all – has released a series of posters that play up the whole Godzilla thing.
If you want to see the guy in a Barney costume Purple Monster for yourself, the march will start at 1 p.m. Saturday (the school’s Alumni Day), at Washington Square Park’s Garibaldi Plaza. In the meantime, watch our video to hear Andrew Berman of the Greenwich Village Society for Historic Preservation (which has endorsed the march along with Save WSV Sasaki Garden Committee and other groups) discuss his concerns about N.Y.U. 2031’s effect on green space in Greenwich Village, and in particular the already memorialized Sasaki Garden.
Just a couple of weeks after “Golden Boy” filmed around the East Village, another crime drama is in the neighborhood: we spotted signs on East Sixth and Seventh Streets, near Cooper Square, indicating that NBC’s “Infamous” is shooting today. And another development on Sixth Street: the tiny space at 208 East Sixth is up for rent after briefly housing Cooper Convenience Store.
Rock band The Virgins isn’t too popular with its neighbors, according to The Post and DNA Info: the band practices daily in an apartment on Second Avenue, between Seventh and Eighth Streets. “‘I think they’re full of themselves. They leave the window open,’ one neighbor griped to cops last night at a community meeting. ‘It’s like clockwork, every day between 4 and 7.'”
Off the Grid posts the Landmarks Perservation Commission’s designation report about the East Village/Lower East Side Historic district, along with some pointers about what to look for in the 300-plus-page document.
Grub Street hears that EMM Group’s project at 199 Bowery will be called The General. According to a statement, “The massive 300-seat project from partners Eugene Remm, Mark Birnbaum, and Michael Hirtenstein will have a casual café and more upscale dining room, with a red-and-gold color scheme and decor inspired by ‘urban excavation.'” Read more…
N.Y.P.D.The suspect in a Sept. 20 punch-and- grab.
Last Tuesday’s gunpoint robbery wasn’t just an isolated occurrence. The early-morning incident in which three men in bandanas held up a woman at gunpoint was part of an emerging pattern, said Deputy Inspector John Cappelmann at a meeting of the Ninth Precinct Community Council last night.
The robbery on East 12th Street, between First Avenue and Avenue A, followed a similar incident two days earlier, on Sunday, Oct. 7. The earlier victim, also robbed at gunpoint by three men, didn’t report it until Tuesday morning, according to the precinct’s commanding officer.
Deputy Inspector Cappelmann assured meeting attendees that police are investigating and a dedicated patrol force would be in the area on Friday and Saturday. Read more…
Annie FairmanAida Salgado (front, center) lit candles with friends and family in rememberance of her late son.
At a memorial service Sunday, Aida Salgado recalled the early morning, on Oct. 16, that her son was shot in the courtyard of the Campos Plaza housing development, and the year that has followed. “My world came crashing down, and I was engulfed in a wrenching pain that only can be felt by another parent who has lost a child,” she told friends and family members gathered at Firemen’s Memorial Garden on Eighth Street.
Stephanie Federico, who wore a t-shirt depicting Donovan “Keith” Salgado, said she had expected the 17-year-old’s tragic death to put a damper on youth violence in the neighborhood. “People felt as though maybe it was gonna be over after he passed,” she told the gathering of about a couple dozen people. “But a lot of things didn’t end. It actually made things a lot worse.”
Another attendee left little doubt about the matter: Maizie Arroyo, a longtime resident of the East Village who recently moved to the Bronx, said that on the subway ride to the memorial, a group of young men tried to “jump” one of her teenage companions because he was wearing a laminated photo of Mr. Salgado around his neck. Read more…
Local nightlife impresario Ravi DeRossi and the team behind Proletariat beer bar got a “civic lashing” at Monday’s S.L.A. Licensing Committee meeting, reports Grub Street. The committee was perturbed that they didn’t get a 30-day notice before Mr. DeRossi converted the now-shuttered Jane’s Sweet Buns into the bar. Committee chair Alexandra Militano called it a “ruse” and the board voted unanimously to deny the team’s request to lengthen its bar. The foodie site writes that committee member David McWater told the crowd, “I wouldn’t vote for this alteration if Baby Jesus came down here.” Grub also notes that Paulaner Brauhaus, the Bowery beer hall that has faced its share of construction and community board woes, was granted approval for a liquor license. And Mighty Quinn’s, taking over the old Vandaag space, was approved for a liquor license transfer and will open next month.
Castmembers of “All-Star Celebrity Apprentice,” including Bret Michaels, La Toya Jackson, Lil Jon, and Dennis Rodman took over The Meatball Shop on Stanton Street yesterday for filming, reports Bowery Boogie, which has a pic of the crew in action. Bowery Boogie also has details for filmmakers on submissions to the third annual LES Film Festival, which will be held June 13-23, 2013.
Finding a hotel room in Manhattan that won’t break your budget is possible, assures The New York Times. Case in point: East Village Bed & Coffee. Single rooms go for $120 and doubles, $145, and each one has a different theme, like the Dutch and Afghani rooms, as well as common, well-equipped kitchens and free bikes for borrowing. The Times also notes that Italian restaurant L’Apicio on East First Street is opening tomorrow in an area that it says “is becoming quite a restaurant hub.” The restaurant has a substantial list of pastas and various polentas, as well as a roast-pig entrée served family-style. Read more…
Theatre in Asylum’s piece “Revolution in 1” opens with the “Cast of Revolutionaries” turning in place on the tiny stage. Rest assured, this is not just a ham-fisted leftist play, but a smart, oftentimes funny look at historical revolution through a hybrid of drama, performance art, and dance.
The work’s major strength is its restlessness – the six women on stage embody historical views which constantly collide: The democrat is dismissed by the oligarch, who is one-upped by the aristocrat, who is questioned by the plutocrat, and they are all repressed by the dictator. And this cycle continues. The cast is cautious not to let their own politics show strongly, often poking fun at both sides of a conflict; a farce of the first presidential debate regressing into a thumb-wrestling match is a particularly sobering view of absurdity.
In presenting revolutionary figures, the piece sometimes swings away from neutrality, but one can hardly fault the writers for sympathizing with the jailed members of Pussy Riot, or with the pepper-spray victims at UC Davis. Using extensive quotation and minimal props, these reenactments echo the portrayal of events in the media eerily, and, calling upon the collective memory of the audience, tap into the fundamental power of theater; the sterile, distanced view of TV news has no place here. Read more…
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Time for some more fun at the run. Here’s this week’s dog-run duo.
Nicole Guzzardi
Nicole Guzzardi
The Master: Jimmy Tom, 56, enjoys taking his dog to the park where they can get a little exercise. The East Village resident spent a recent afternoon doing pushups off a bench in the dog run while his pooch lounged just below it.
The Dog: Wally, a 7-year-old German Spitz. He’s more a “people’s” dog than a dog’s dog, preferring to mingle with humans (and especially his owner). “He doesn’t do much socializing,” Mr. Tom said.
Favorite Past-Time: What else? Fetch, with his favorite ball. And wading in the pool.
Favorite Food: Pepperoni. But Wally will eat just about anything. “That’s why he’s so fat,” said Mr. Tom with a laugh.
Police have arrested Brooklyn resident Joshua Nunez, 21, in connection with a fatal shooting on Oct. 6 outside of the Jose Beauty Salon and Barber Shop on Forsyth Street, reports the Daily News. He was apprehended in the death of NoLIta resident Charles Fernandez, 29, and charged with murder and criminal possession of a weapon, police said. Mr. Fernandez, a father of three and sometime construction worker, was shot in the torso and taken by private means to Bellevue Hospital, where he was pronounced dead on arrival.
EV Grieve reports that Gimme Gimme Records on East Fifth Street is closing after Sunday. The shop, which just celebrated its 18th year, is the fourth East Village record store to shutter this year, writes EV. This past summer, landlord Steven Croman bought the building and a huge rent hike followed. EV also points to more construction at the Standard East Village and a malleable man performing “vertical planking on the plywood.”
If you fancy some risqué entertainment, Horse Trade Theater Group is putting on “Revealed Burlesque,” a one-night show on Nov. 14, 8 p.m., at the Kraine Theater that promises “the most beloved burlesque performers in New York City and beyond.” The show stars producer and performer GiGi La Femme. Tickets are $30 and sold at www.horseTRADE.info.
And if you happened to spot some burly bikers descending on Bowery last Sunday, Bowery Boogie has photos of Hells Angels gathering for their annual biker bash at the Bowery Electric. Angels collided with fashionistas, including one leather-clad biker who volunteered to pose with a little pooch. Aww.
The Rev. Winnie Varghese will be installed as the first rector in 23 years at St. Mark’s Church-in-the-Bowery at a special service there this Saturday. She will also become the church’s first, female rector.
In the Episcopal Church, a rector has charge of the parish. St. Mark’s Church-in-the-Bowery has credited Ms. Varghese, 40, who is openly gay, as increasing attendance since she joined in 2009 as the pastor and priest in charge. “I’m honored to be installed as the Rector of this historic, welcoming, progressive, diverse and high-energy church,” she said in a press release sent out by the church. “I look forward to continuing to grow with St. Mark’s by embracing its tradition of supporting diversity, arts and social justice and by providing members a welcoming environment to grow spiritually.”
Ms. Varghese has served as the Episcopal chaplain at Columbia University and the University of California, Los Angeles. She graduated from Southern Methodist University and holds a Master of Divinity from the Union Theological Seminary in New York. The service will be held at 11 a.m.
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.
Pylon’s debut album.
A few years ago, a woman took her 14-year-old daughter to a Sleater/Kinney concert. After the show, a band member approached the mom and breathlessly asked, “Are you Vanessa from Pylon? We love you!” Score one for the parental unit.
Pylon is the greatest group from the new wave scene that you probably never heard of. When Rolling Stone saluted R.E.M. as the best band in America in 1987, their drummer Bill Berry disagreed. “We’re not the best rock ‘n roll band in America.” He thought Pylon was.
In 1978, they were four art students from Athens, Georgia, a southern college town where bands like the B-52s were establishing a beachhead for alternative rock. Lead singer Vanessa Briscoe Hay recalls that their path to forming a band was “as unlikely as it seemed preordained.” Guitarist Randall Bewley and bass player Michael Lachowski began writing music and practicing in a studio. Their penchant for playing the same riff over and over earned the attention of their exasperated upstairs neighbor, Curtis Crowe, who finally knocked on their door and offered to be their drummer. Read more…
For every East Village business that’s opening or closing, dozens are quietly making it. Here’s one of them: Inkstop Tattoo.
Shira Levine
In 1997, when tattoo shops were again legalized in New York City, Eric Rignall was one of the first artists to legitimately sketch on skin in the East Village. His shop, Inkstop Tattoo, at 209 Avenue A wasn’t easy to establish because most landlords refused to house his needlework. “They figured tattoo shops meant trouble, bikers and gangs,” said Rignall. An established tattoo artist from New Jersey, where inking was legal, helped vouch for him. “I also put down a pretty large deposit to really show I was serious and could be trusted. I’m sure at first they kept a pretty watchful eye on me, but they quickly saw that all I was about was doing high-quality tattoos,” he said. Almost 16 years later, Mr. Rignall gave The Local a glimpse into what makes his ink flow.
In the latest “Mystery Lot” news, EV Grieve has photos of new construction at 211 13th Street, where there are plans to erect an 83-unit building. No sign yet of the rooftop cabana terraces. EV also points us to a couple of closings, including Pinisi Café & Bakery on East Fourth Street, where workers were clearing out the space on Saturday, and Walid Menswear on East 14th Street, which opened about two-and-a-half years ago.
Bowery Boogie reports that the owners of Sunshine Cinema have pulled out of a Community Board 3 meeting tonight where they planned on discussing their new “dinner-and-movie” concept, and are instead focusing on “grassroots outreach.” Flyers posted around the neighborhood invite locals to stop by the theater and chat about plans for “two restaurants with full bars, four floors of table seating and a grand revamping of the interior of our theatres and lobby areas.” Remodeling will start early next year. Bowery Boogie also notes that EMM Group has launched the website for 199 Bowery, touted as “a new nightlife experience” that will open this fall.
DNA Info interviews the creator of “The Elephant in my Closet,” a one-man play about how to “break the news to your conservative father of your defection to the Democrats.” The play, focused on standup comedian David Lee Nelson’s own experience with his dad, opened last night at the Kraine Theater on East Fourth Street. As for the future of his relationship with his father, he said, it “depends on who wins the election, so check back with me in November.”
And with Halloween around the corner, the Daily News, in a roundup of costume contests for pets, mentions the annual Tompkins Square Halloween Dog Parade, taking place this Saturday from noon to 3 p.m. at the Tompkins Square Dog Run, along Ninth Street between Avenues A and B.
It’s supposed to be nice and sunny tomorrow, so why not while away your afternoon at a local community garden? East Villagers did just that last weekend, during the Harvest Arts Festival put on by the folks at Loisada United Neighborhood Gardens. Watch our video to see what some of the 24 participating gardens organized in the way of music, dance, visual arts, poetry, and more.
The Local was a journalistic collaboration designed to reflect the richness of the East Village, report on its issues and concerns, give voice to its people and create a space for our neighbors to tell stories about themselves. It was operated by the students and faculty of the Arthur L. Carter Journalism Institute at New York University, in collaboration with The New York Times, which provides supervision to ensure that the blog remains impartial, reporting-based, thorough and rooted in Times standards.
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Suzanne Rozdeba Croissanteria
