1. Marston Station quietly fades away

    Marston Station

    While one store opens, another closes… Marston Station, a relatively-​new addition to W 53rd St, looks to have closed its doors, with a large “for rent” sign covering the doors:

    The exterior of the closed Marston Station

    Marston Station only opened at the start of this year, after a long wait. The place always seemed pretty nice, and had good reviews online, but was never really able to take off. It also spent a good portion of its time hidden under scaffolding, which didn’t help things.

    Meanwhile, just a few stores down, new arrival Room 53 seems to be doing rather well, so all hope isn’t lost for that section of 53rd St. Still, it’s sad to see Marston’s go – they were one of the first places we covered back in the day, so held some significance there.

  2. Melt Shop coming soon to 8th Ave

    Melt Shop

    Grilled cheese-​lovers will have something new to look forward to with an outpost of Melt Shop coming soon to 8th Ave. Crews have been in and out of the place over the past few weeks, and now signage is up at the incoming store:

    View Image

    The exterior is basically ready to go, so hopefully not long to go inside…

    View Image

    Previously, the spot was home to Rino Trattoria, which closed for renovations around this time last year from which they never reopened. Melt Shop have several locations around the city – including one just a few blocks away around 50th & 7th – so should have some luck in that spot.

    Thanks Stanley Conrad for the heads up!

  3. Be prepared: “Go Topless Day” is on tomorrow

    Columbus Circle

    A quick note: Tuesday next week is Women’s Equality Day, and every year GoTopless hold protests/​celebrations to mark the day. On Sunday, the New York City march will be held, starting from Columbus Circle, moving down Broadway to Times Square, before finishing at Bryant Park, where various shows, etc will be happening. You can expect to see a group of topless people heading down Broadway around 1pm. Now you know.

  4. Today’s events

    Lots of events on today, making the most of the last few weekends of summer. We’ll get straight into them:

    • On right now over at Pier 84 (next to the Intrepid) the 15th annual Hudson River Park’s Blues BBQ Festival is happening. The event has a number of top American blues and roots musicians performing alongside three top BBQ restaurants from around the city. It’ll be on all afternoon, with the last performer taking the stage at 7:30pm.

    • Once you’ve had enough BBQ and music, right next door on the deck of the Intrepid the first of three Astronomy Nights at the Intrepid Museum is on. Running from 7:30pm to 10:30pm, the night will feature a number of local astronomers with high-​powered telescopes showing the night, as well as talks and demonstrations throughout the museum. Tonight is significant because Saturn and Mars will apparently be very close together in the sky, so should be an interesting sight. The night is free, requiring online registration to attend, but the site still says “registration coming soon”, so your guess is as good as ours… It’ll also be on again in two weeks, and again another two weeks after that.

    • Alternatively if astronomy isn’t your thing, there’s another food-​related festival on tonight. If there’s one thing 9th Ave is known for (other than roadwork) it’s Thai food, so tonight’s Thaithentic Food & Culture Festival should be popular, bringing together over 30 Thai restaurants, as well as other Thai brands and vendors. It’s $45 for admission at 8pm, which gets you samplings of food from the range of vendors there, as well as access to the open bar. Alternatively, $70 buys a VIP ticket, which gives you early access at 7pm, as well as access to the VIP lounge. It’s all happening inside the Atelier building on W 42nd St, between 10th & 11th Aves, so not to far from the other things on over by the river.

    Lots to do!

  5. An apology

    A quick update from the author…thanks everyone for reading this far. Sorry again for the silence lately. For a number of personal reasons, I haven’t been able to keep up to date on everything with the site, but I’ll be “doubling down” on it and bringing things back to their former glory over the coming days/​weeks. Thanks for sticking with us throughout the past few months, and thanks to everyone who’s sent in messages and tips. We’ll try harder!

Monday, Aug 11th

  1. “Plays in the Park” tonight at Mathews Palmer Park

    A quick last-​minute note that tonight the 45th & 46th St Block Associations and the Irish Arts Center have “Plays in the Park” on tonight. Here’s the details:

    TONIGHT, 7pm — A theatrical smörgåsbord from Lather Rinse Repeat: A Playwrights Collective

    Readings of the the following short plays:

    • Spirit Dust by Natalie Wilson
    • The Ferryman by Isaac Rathbone
    • Pity the Fools by Mila Golubov
    • Love is a Blind Squirrel by Jen Browne

    You can find out the full information on the Facebook event. It’s on in half an hour, so if you’d better hurry!

    There’ll be a few more plays on in the park throughout the month, so we’ll have more as they get closer!

Thursday, Jul 31st

  1. Avenue Q celebrating 11th anniversary with $11 tickets tonight

    New World Stages

    Avenue Q, the Tony Award-​winning musical currently at New World Stages on W 50th St, is celebrating their 11th anniversary, and are having a special, discounted show tonight for it.

    View Image
    Source: Avenue Q

    The show tonight will be a “special interactive social media performance” named The Internet is for Q!, and the audience is encouraged to live-​tweet throughout the show. That may or may not sound like your kind of thing, but if it is, you can get in for just $11 (plus fees, of course…) Tickets are normally $75-$115, so it’s a pretty good deal.

    You can get the $11 tickets from Broad​way​Of​fers​.com, or by phone or at the box office, with the discount code AQTWEET40.

  2. Summer Movies at the Intrepid continues tonight with The Hunt for Red October

    Intrepid Air & Space Museum

    This year’s Summer Movie Series at the Intrepid are reaching the halfway point, with tonight screening the fourth of the series of seven movies. Tonight’s movie is The Hunt for Red October, so you can spread out on the deck of the Intrepid and watch Sean Connery and a young Alec Baldwin, just a few yards from a real submarine (authentic!)

    View Image

    As always, doors open a 7:30pm, but you’ll probably want to get there early to get a spot in the line. And the weather’s looking fine for tonight, so you shouldn’t have to worry about it being cancelled.

    View Image

    Next Thursday is Spaceballs, followed by Captain Phillips, leading up to the finale of Top Gun.

Saturday, Jul 26th

  1. Free Jazz/​Swing Moon Dance tomorrow night at Pier 84

    Tomorrow night Dance Manhattan – a Chelsea-​based dance studio – are holding a free Jazz/​Swing Moon Dance over on Pier 84, next to the Intrepid. Turns out it’s been on for the past two Sunday nights as well and just slipped by us. It’ll also be on for two more weeks after tomorrow so we’re not too late.

    Here’s what you can look forward to tomorrow:

    • 6:30 – 7:10: Free Charleston Lesson with Joe Palmer & Suzanne Temple
    • 7:15-10pm: Live Music with Vince Giordano & the Nighthawks
    • 8pm: Performances by Joe & Suzanne (Peabody), Paolo Lanna & friends (20s Charleston)

    Unfortunately, since it’s being held outdoors, if it’s raining it’ll be cancelled. And wouldn’t you know it, the forecast for tomorrow is rain. Fingers crossed?

    The event has been held annually for a number of years. To give you a taste of what to expect, here’s a video of the event in 2011.

Tuesday, Jul 22nd

  1. The Jolly Monk brings Belgian beers to 9th Ave

    The Jolly Monk

    The newest addition to the 9th Ave bar scene has arrived, with The Jolly Monk bringing Belgian beers and meals to the area. We first heard of the place back in April, so it’s been a quick process getting the place together.

    View Image

    We haven’t had a chance to stop by while it’s open yet, but here’s a glimpse inside:

    View Image
    Source: The Jolly Monk/​Facebook
    View Image
    Source: The Jolly Monk/​Facebook

    While the place has been up and running for about a week, their official grand opening celebrations are happening next Friday, August 1st, where they’ll have discounts, free appetizers and tastings of their range of craft beers, including nine imported from Belgium:

    View Image
    Source: The Jolly Monk/​Facebook

    The place is from the New York Beer Company on W 44th St, who also are behind the two House of Brews in the area, so they know the neighborhood well. After all the dramas with Traffic here before, it’s good to have someone who’s a little more invested in the community in that prominent spot. We’ll see you at the opening party.

Monday, Jul 21st

  1. Zuni closed by the marshals

    Zuni

    A little bit behind on this one, but the American restaurant Zuni on 9th Ave was repossessed by the marshals last month, and is now up for rent:

    View Image
    View Image

    Their website has a heartfelt farewell message:

    We here at Zuni just wanted you to know that we truly enjoyed serving you for all these years. Your business was much appreciated, and for that, we are most grateful. Due to the economy we regretfully inform you that we have to closed our doors.

    Thank you from all of us here at Zuni!

    A slightly different version of events, but still well-​meaning.

    Zuni has been around since 2006, and the impression seemed to be the place was okay. Still, never good seeing places get hit by the marshals. Anyway, with the for-​lease sign up in the window it’s only a matter of time before someone else takes the place over.

  2. Froyo’s slow death continues with Wonder Berry’s closure

    Wonder Berry

    The city hit “peak froyo” a few years ago, and ever since it’s been on the slow decline. Now, Wonder Berry on 9th Ave has succumbed to the decline, and closed its doors:

    View Image

    The place is being taken over by Urban Deli, sister-​store to the semi-​new Urban Market literally just around the corner on W 47th St. While Urban Market is more-​or-​less your standard bodega/​groceries store, Urban Deli should have a lot more pre-​prepared food to go. Here’s their announcement on the window:

    View Image

    Meanwhile, back to the present, the gutting of the store has begun, and the froyo machines are already cleared out (much to my disappointment):

    View Image

    From happier times:

    View Image
    November 2012 Source: Chachy S/​Foursquare

    If you still need your froyo fix, don’t worry, there’s still Pinkberry a few streets down, and Tutti Frutti a few streets up on 8th Ave. You can never escape froyo.

Saturday, Jul 19th

  1. Last day of the Space & Science Festival at the Intrepid tomorrow

    Intrepid Air & Space Museum

    The annual Space & Science Festival at the Intrepid Museum has been running for the past few days, and wraps up after its final day tomorrow. The festival has a whole range of displays and events covering everything space, with plenty of NASA gear throughout the museum, as well as astronauts available to meet/​get an autograph “selfie” with.

    View Image
    Source: Intrepid Museum/​Facebook

    Buzz Aldrin was even there on Friday as part of a talk celebrating the 45th anniversary of the moon landing, along side astronaut Mike Massimino:

    View Image
    Source: NASA Kennedy/​Twitter

    Tomorrow has a number of activities on, as well as the last chance for the festival to meet a real astronaut. You can see the full schedule for tomorrow on the Intrepid’s site.

Friday, Jul 18th

  1. Room 53 bringing a piano bar to the area

    Room 53

    Room 53, a new café and bar on W 53rd St, has just opened this week. The new place – in between the comedy club and recent addition Marston Station – looks like it’ll have a pretty casual atmosphere, and in addition to the not-​yet-​online food menu will be serving “speciality” coffee, wines and beer.

    View Image
    Source: Stanley Conrad

    They’ve also stated that “Hell’s Kitchen has a piano bar at last”, having received their new piano just a few weeks before opening:

    View Image
    Source: Room 53/​Facebook

    Room 53 is open all day for breakfast, brunch, lunch and dinner, so there’s plenty of opportunities to stop by and try it out, or even just to check out the piano.

    Thanks Stanley for the info!