Scott Lynch

Good morning, East Village.

The Observer notes that Bret Easton Ellis’s apartment in the American Felt Building on East 12th Street (which has also been known to play host to Katie Holmes) is for rent. If you’ve got five grand a month to spare, there’s an open house Friday and Sunday.

DNA Info reports that Odetta Hartman, the daughter of Two Boots founder Phil Hartman, has recorded songs influenced in part by her time growing up with the pizza parlor, which she describes as “a gathering place where everyone could listen to music and eat funky food.” Ms. Hartman recently filmed a music video outside of her family home in the East Village, but admitted of the neighborhood, “It is not feasible for me to be here financially.”

East Village Arts raves about East Village Dance Project’s annual concert, featuring 10 performances by dancers ranging in age from four to 18. One ocean-inspired dance was set to the Talking Heads’ “Same As It Ever Was.”

Joonbug rounds up some cheap eats around St. Marks Place, including Mamouns and X’ian Famous Foods.

Chekmark Eats likes what it tastes at macrobiotic standby Souen: “You could eat here every night probably get something different with all the different combinations and still love it. Souen is your girl when you want reliable, feel-good ingredients.”

And a couple of religious moments: City by Cell posts a photo of some wooden Jesuses, and East Village Corner snaps a photo of a “Madonna” in Tompkins Square Park.

Melvin Felix

After opening in September, Krust Pizzeria has reduced the price of its slices from $2.50 to $1 for the next month, and likely for good.

“Pizzerias are getting competitive in New York,” explained Pemba Sherpa, the owner of the pizzeria at 226 East 14th Street, between Second and Third Avenues, just a block from Artichoke. “Even if you have a good pizza it doesn’t guarantee you’re going to do good.”

Mr. Sherpa said that on Monday, he began selling a “little bit of a smaller pizza” with “somewhat modified” ingredients in order to appeal to the N.Y.U. crowd. The new business model, mastered by 2 Bros. on St. Marks Place, has paid off: Mr. Sherpa said he was already doing four times the business as he was before.

Photos: Suzanne Rozdeba

Local nightlife impresario Ravi DeRossi’s latest venture is a Victorian and Steampunk-themed bar, and it’s set to open at 6 p.m. tonight.

“It’s a fusion of sci-fi, fantasy, and Victorian times,” said Mr. DeRossi, who also owns nearby Death & Co. and The Bourgeois Pig. “We wanted to give it a grittier edge.”

Patrons enter the bar through a door decorated with golden wings; inside the dark space, there’s a ceiling mural by artist David Nordine, who also painted the bar’s exterior. A metal cage stands in the middle of the front room, mosaic murals tile the floors, and clocks, museum replica pieces, and clock parts cover the back room’s walls. Around the bar hang handmade sconces by Steampunk artist Art Donovan. Read more…

After asking local food maven Kim Davis to suss out the neighborhood’s tastiest biscuits, porchetta, and smoked meat, we sent him to find out how a pork bun newbie stacks up against a couple of heavyweights.

Noah Fecks Pork buns at Jum Mum

There’s a pork bun bonanza in the East Village this summer, with Baohaus now located on East 14th Street, and newcomer Jum Mum joining the gua bao stakes on St Marks Place. I set out to compare these aspirants with Momofuku’s gold standard product, and ended up satisfied, sticky-fingered, and not too much lighter in the wallet.

Eddie Huang’s Baohaus built a wildly enthusiastic following for Taiwanese pork buns, in a basement space on Rivington, now home to Pok Pok Wing, before opening on 14th Street last year. Baohaus dresses its “Chairman Bao” with traditional Taiwanese garnishes – pickled mustard greens, fresh coriander, crushed peanuts and red sugar. It’s a sweetish snack, and also embraces Taiwanese tradition by preserving the jelly-like cap of fat on each slice of belly.  If you’re averse to pork fat, get the crunchy fried chicken bun instead. $3.50 apiece. Read more…

If our look back at the Jewish Rialto made you long for the days of Yiddish music on Second Avenue, rest assured that on Thursday at 12:30 p.m. Metropolitan Klezmer will play a free concert at Abe Lebewohl Park, in front of St. Mark’s Church (right across from the Yiddish Walk of Fame at East 10th Street and Second Avenue). Consider the hour-long rain-or-shine event, co-sponsored by Third Street Music School Settlement, a tribute to the city’s booming Jewish population: The Times reported Monday that it has grown to nearly 1.1 million after decades of decline.

If you thought the lost episode of “Fear Factor” that Gawker recently excerpted was Too Much Donkey Information, you may want to steer clear of this week’s installment of the New Filmmakers’ Fest at Anthology Film Archives. At 6 p.m., the program kicks off with “Donkey Love,” about men in northern Colombia who have sex with donkeys. (Seems those secret service agents didn’t see the half of it.) The film’s premise (and trailer, above) left us with more than a few questions. So we spoke with the film’s director, Daryl Stoneage, to find out – among other things – if he wasn’t just making it all up.

Is this real?

This is 100 percent real. Some days when I Google search my name or talk to my girlfriend’s parents, I wish it wasn’t, but it truly is. Read more…

Melvin Felix

Good morning, East Village.

As you can see above, the construction team at 74-84 Third Avenue has fenced off the sidewalk on the corner of 12th Street and Third Avenue and construction on the nine-story apartment building designed by Karl Fischer is set to begin. Update | 11:25 a.m. We’ve updated our photo: a digger was on the scene this morning. Looks like construction has commenced.

A sign on the window of The Bean’s forthcoming location at 147 First Avenue and East Ninth Street indicates that it opens Thursday, and you can score a free coffee by downloading the Level Up app.

The Daily News endorses Nydia Velazquez for reelection, since “she has represented her district,” which includes part of the East Village, “as a reliable Democratic foot soldier while rising through the ranks in seniority — the most important attribute she now offers the city.” Read more…

Nice Guy Eddie’s just announced on Facebook that after 16 years it will close on Sunday. News that the Avenue A sports bar owned by Community Board 3 member David McWater would shut down broke in April when it was revealed that the owner of Ella and Gallery Bar, Darin Rubell was taking over the space. Meanwhile, the staff of the bar popular among football fans tells customers, “We’re throwing a huge party Sunday, so stop by and wish us farewell!” Still no word on whether the Kiss mural by Chico will remain.

Suzanne Rozdeba Billy Leroy with Jim Jarmusch at his goodbye bash.

“Baggage Battles” has been renewed for 14 episodes, Billy Leroy told The Local. The second season will start filming July 11 at a customs auction in Newark.

The eccentric antiques dealer, who buried his tent on the Bowery in March, said he was looking forward to working on the Travel Channel’s reality show again. “The director Yon Motskin really has a great sense of humor and I love when he puts me in humorous situations,” he wrote in an e-mail. “Nothing is more rewarding than people coming up to me on the street and saying they laughed at some of the comic stunts we pulled.” Read more…

Summer is a time for garden parties, rooftop views, and cocktails. If you can enjoy all that while supporting local non-profits, so much the better. Here are a few chances this week to do just that.

“COCKTAILS FOR CAMP”
Who: Lower Eastside Girls Club
What: Cocktails, food, and open wine and beer bar.
When: June 13, 6 p.m. to 8 p.m.
Where: Veselka Bowery, 9 East First Street, between Second Avenue and Bowery.
Tickets: $25 at the door. More info here.

“GARDEN PARTY”
Who: Good Old Lower East Side
What: Plant summer vegetables and enjoy food and entertainment.
When: Friday, June 15, 3 p.m. to 7 p.m.
Where: Campos Garden, 628 East 12th Street, between Avenues B and C.
Tickets: Free, but you can make a donation. More info here.

“SKYLINE: A COCKTAIL PARTY”
Who: Fourth Arts Block
What: Cocktail party with live music, DJ, drinks, and raffle.
When: Tuesday, June 19, 7 p.m. to 10 p.m.
Where: The Standard East Village, 25 Cooper Square, between East Fifth and Sixth Streets.
Tickets: $45, $85, $150. More info here.

Last week, Sandy Berger began documenting every scent and stench that wafted from the IHOP underneath her apartment as she waited for the International House of Putrid Odors, as she called it, to install a $40,000 ventilation unit. An IHOP representative has now told The Local that delivery of the bacon buster has been delayed, and it’s unknown when it’ll arrive. And Louis, a manager at the 14th Street location who would only give his first name, said the swine swatter is being custom built. “It’s in the hands of the exhaust company that is making it,” he said. In the meantime, let’s continue following Ms. Berger’s nose.

Sandy Berger’s Bacon Dairy, Page Two

Monday, June 4
No smells today. Maybe everyone took a three-day weekend!

Tuesday, June 5
At 4:13 p.m. there were no smells, but then again there weren’t a lot of garbage bags visible either. Around 7 p.m. I began to feel hungry and realized that I was getting a whiff of bacon grease. It wasn’t as strong as it has been but after about 30 minutes I decided I’d rather smell the food I was going to eat. It’s 11:16 p.m. and I’m back in my bedroom but I guess it’s still dinnertime at IHOP because there are wafts of the usual you-know-what smells.

Daniel Maurer

Wednesday, June 6
Nothing much in the way of smells today. I’m wondering whether this ventilation unit has been installed inside and we’re beginning to see the benefit, or did every customer order salads today?

Friday, June 8
At noon, a new smell was introduced – burnt toast! No way as awful as bacon grease, but anything burnt isn’t welcome, even in my own kitchen. At 9:30 p.m. the smell switched to hamburger fat dripping into stove flames: annoying but so far not overwhelming.

Saturday, June 9
At 8:30 a.m., even before I got out of bed, that familiar smell of bacon grease was there which sort of surprised me since I was hoping I wasn’t going to ever smell it again unless I was cooking it. It lasted most of the day, letting up around 7:30 p.m. What a disappointment.

Editor’s Note: An earlier version of this post referred to the ventilation unit as a “smog-hog.” That reference has been deleted since the term is a brand name and Smog Hog says that it did not manufacture the unit in question.

Photos: Lauren Carol Smith.

The old CBGB is ready for its close-up, and The Local was on hand as a section of the bar, the phone booth, a urinal, pieces of wall and founder Hilly Kristal’s desk hit the road yesterday for Savannah, Georgia, where they will be used in the upcoming CBGB movie.

The assorted items still have hints of the glory days at 315 Bowery. The beat-up old desk has a list taped to it of phone numbers for old staffers at the club that closed in 2006. The toilets are still filthy and showed no signs of scrubbing (a latrine and a urinal from the women’s room are shown in our slideshow). Most surfaces are covered in band stickers, and the cash register still has a cut-out image of Mr. Kristal alongside a photo of Shakira.

Yesterday it had all been packaged with care in storage near the Brooklyn Navy Yard and loaded into a moving van bound for south of the Mason-Dixon Line. Read more…

Melvin Felix Robin Manning glides down a zip line at Union Square Park.

Some lucky pedestrians around Union Square got to zing down a 160-foot-long zip line before going off to work this morning.

Melvin Felix A group waits in line to ride the zip line.

“It was so fun,” said Robin Manning, 48, who lives in Hanover Square and said she was late on her way to therapy.

The zip line is one of several free activities associated with Summer Streets this year. For three Saturdays in August, the city will clear traffic on nearly seven miles of streets and turn them over to pedestrians. This year’s events, which will take place from 7 a.m. to 1 p.m. during the first three Saturdays of August, will include a 25-foot climbing wall, sports-themed activities such as dance and yoga classes and, of course, the zip line.

“You don’t need a cup of coffee,” said Department of Transportation Commissioner Janette Sadik-Khan, who glided down the long cable at Union Square twice this morning. “You can start your morning off with the zip line.”

Melvin Felix Department of Transportation Commissioner
Janette Sadik-Khan.

Ms. Sadik-Khan, who spoke with a bike helmet at her side (they were given out at the event) said community groups would also offer family-friendly activities, dubbed Weekend Walks. Fourth Arts Block will host the East Village’s Weekend Walks on August 18, 19, 25 and 26, from 1 p.m. to 8 p.m. at East Fourth Street between Second Avenue and Bowery.

Rebecca Prusinowski Stella McCartney (fifth from right) and models.

Last night at the New York Marble Cemetery, fashion designer Stella McCartney (daughter of Sir Paul) presented her 2012 Resort collection to a crowd of revelers that included Anne Hathaway, Jim Carrey, Amy Poehler, Emily Mortimer, Solange Knowles, and Lauren Hutton, among other Stella-heeled models and children.

“It’s an incredible space and a lot of people have no idea about it,” Ms. McCartney said of the lush lawn hidden away from the bustle of Second Avenue. “I had no idea about it until my friend who works with me came across it himself and told me about it. Read more…

Scott Lynch

Good morning, East Village.

Brad Hoylman has announced that he’ll run for Tom Duane’s state senate seat. His announcement, reprinted on Politicker, touts his record as chair of Community Board 2 and a Democratic District Leader: “I have helped secure two new public schools; won concessions from developers to scale back and mitigate inappropriate proposals; advanced landmarking and rezoning efforts that preserved historic buildings and neighborhoods; created an innovative legal defense fund for rent stabilized tenants; and brokered a deal that allowed for the long-stalled renovation of Washington Square Park.”

The Lo-Down reports that the LES Business Improvement District is planning a spin-off group called the Lower East Side Development Corp, a non-profit entity that would focus on “initiatives that involve capital expenditures.” A small business incubator is one idea and the East Village may be included in its coverage area.

Fourth Arts Block tells The Local it’s holding a fundraiser raffle at The Standard East Village on June 19. $45 gets you entry into the penthouse party, $85 gets you four drink tickets and a chance to win a Pennsylvania farmhouse stay, and $150 gets you perks like an open bar and more. You can purchase tickets here. Read more…

Melvin Felix Corey Capers’s nephew Freezy at the memorial earlier today.

Earlier today, friends and family gathered to remember Corey Capers, a 31-year-old resident of Baruch Houses who was fatally stabbed early Saturday morning. They stood, some weeping, at a memorial full of loving messages set up paces away from where his body was found with a knife wound in the chest, under scaffolding on East Fifth Street, between Avenues C and D.

“I remember him always being a strong person, a laughing person,” said Jonathan Winston, the victim’s brother. “I’m really hurt, but at the end of the day, my little brother, he was a soldier. He went out like a soldier. He went out like a man, and I’m proud of him and I will always be proud of him.”

“I am too,” said Denise Alexander, the victim’s older sister. “You’re my hero, Corey Capers.” Read more…