1. Vynl spinoff B-​Side incoming next door

    B-Side

    We’ve been watching the now-​former home of Go Sushi for over half a year now, when we first heard whispers next-​door neighbor Vynl was planning to take the space over. Initially, we’d thought they’d just be moving into the bigger, better corner location, but applications filed for this month’s community board meetings reveal they’re actually opening a whole new place.

    B-​Side will be a “coffee bar/​pizza bar” according to plans filed, and is being opened by John Dempsey, the same man behind Vynl (obviously), and El Centro a few streets up 9th Ave, along with a number of other spots across the city.

    Here’s the place at the moment. Plywood everywhere.

    The exterior of the future site of B-Side

    It’s been a very long process for this new place. The first signs came back in June, then after months of silence Go Sushi abruptly closed in October. The construction paper went up on the windows almost immediately, then a month later the plywood came up. Now, with the dazzling green paint job on the plywood, we’ve got the next chapter. We’ll look forward to the big reveal in the coming months.

  2. Report: Slashing at Port Authority on NYE

    The New York Times reports that two men were injured at the Port Authority Bus Terminal just before 9pm on New Year’s Eve by a man wielding a knife of some kind.

    The attacks took place around 8:50 p.m. in an area near the ticketing counter in the main concourse of the station, officials said. Two men, ages 47 and 61, were being treated at Roosevelt Hospital with wounds that did not appear to be life-​threatening.

    The police were searching for a male suspect who fled the station, but no arrest had been made by about 11 p.m., said Joseph Pentangelo, a spokesman for the Port Authority of New York and New Jersey. He said the weapon had not been recovered, but described the injuries as “lacerations rather than stabs.”

    The attacker and the victims apparently knew each other, so it wasn’t just random violence, and the terminal reopened a few hours later with everything quickly going back to normal. It still doesn’t look like the suspect has been apprehended though, which is reassuring… A great way to wrap up 2013.

Wednesday, Jan 1st

  1. Get set for Clubhouse BBQ on W 53rd

    Clubhouse BBQ

    The January business applications to the community board are out, so expect to see the telltale notices appearing on empty stores for this month’s round in the coming days. First up is Clubhouse BBQ. Not really anything online about the place, so here’s basically all we have to go off:

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    The place used to be La Silhouette, a French restaurant that was evicted in October of last year. The spot has sat dormant since then, but now, life.

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    October 2013

    We’ll have more once details emerge about the place, but hopefully they can at least handle the rent better than the last tenants…

    Clubhouse BBQ

    362 W 53rd St

    Groups

Tuesday, Dec 31st

  1. The year in review

    Well, here’s the obligatory end-​of-​year review post. We only launched halfway through this year, and now here we are, 377 posts later. We’ve covered a whole heap of openings & closures, sights around the streets, street fairs, and other day to day events.

    Here’s a quick rundown of the year:

    Most Popular Posts

    1. Totto Ramen II is here, get in before there’s a line

    2. BarBacon is coming, try not to cringe

    3. Ñaño bar & restaurant construction watch

    4. More filming going on tomorrow

    5. A genuine Banksy

    Top Links Back

    1. Totto Ramen’s New Location is Open, Not Yet Mobbed (Eater)

    2. Extell’s Glassy Tower of Tenth Avenue Rentals Revealed (Curbed)

    3. Another Pie Face Is Open In Midtown (Midtown Lunch)

    Exciting times. But really, thank you very much for reading. We wouldn’t be doing this without you guys (and girls). The next year can only be better. Or so we hope. If you’ve enjoyed the site so far, you might like following us on Twitter or liking us on Facebook. We’re all over the social medias.

    And don’t forget we’re always happy to hear from you. If you see anything interesting around the area, or have something to share, send us an email or let us know on Twitter or Facebook! As just one person I sometimes miss things, so “the more the merrier”, as they say.

    Anyway, Happy New Year! See you next year tomorrow.

Monday, Dec 30th

  1. Fairytail Lounge saga comes to a close for now

    Fairytail Lounge

    It’s been a long month at Fairytail Lounge, with them making a lot of residents angry by showing adult movies visible from the street, amongst other complaints. They ended up ignoring these complaints, and even went on to operate without a liquor license, resulting in the NYPD shutting the place down for a few days.

    Obviously none of that phased them though, and last week their liquor license renewal – which had been pending for weeks while this all happened – was approved, as reported by DNAinfo, so they’re back in action. The renewal went against Community Board 4 and the local residents’ pleas, so the State Liquor Authority is clearly out winning friends.

    All this brings an end to this little saga, though judging by the attitude the place has, I’m sure this isn’t the last we’ll hear about the place…

  2. Curry puffs ready for the taking at Puff Cha

    Puff Cha

    Christmas day brought a different kind of present, with Puff Cha celebrating its opening at its home at the corner of W 50th St & 10th Ave. The spot has its signature curry puffs, along with the usual tea, coffee, and pastries.

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    Source: Tiffany T/​Yelp

    The goods:

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    Source: Tiffany T/​Yelp

    By the time we stopped by there tonight they were closing up for the day (hence the Yelp photos above), so imagine this but without shutters:

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    To compare, here’s what the exterior was originally planned to look like. No word on if they’re still planning to bring the circles all the way out to the street.

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    Source: Puff Cha/​Facebook

    If your New Years Resolution is to eat more food, here you go.

  3. It begins

    Expect to find yourself walking past more and more of these in the coming weeks:

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Sunday, Dec 29th

  1. The end of year wrap-​ups are coming in

    Only a few days left of the year, so a couple of organizations around the area have put out their reflections on 2013.

    CHEKPEDS have their summary, covering a number of the pedestrian– and bike-​transit events and accomplishments across the year, including adding a number of new bike lanes and several crossing improvements, new pedestrial plazas, as well as the new Hudson Yards/Hell’s Kitchen Alliance business improvement district. Lots going on in the world of transit.

    Meanwhile, the W 45th St Block Association released their annual report, covering things like the expanded tree beds around the street, as well as some bus zone changes (tying in nicely with the above summary).

    To get in on the action, of course we’ll have a end-​of-​year review in the coming days. Peer pressure or something.

Saturday, Dec 28th

  1. Clearing out Citibikes on Broadway

    W 51st St & Broadway

    Workers were out today loading the Citibike docks along Broadway north of Times Square onto trucks, leaving a outlines along the bike lanes where they used to be. It looks like this is the start of preparations for the big New Years Eve celebrations…I guess having thousands of people swarming isn’t good for the bikes, who would’ve thought…

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    Here’s the affected docks from the map. They’re just marked as “out of service”, so it’s pretty safe to assume they’ll be back in the new year:

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    Source: Citibike

    In other Citibike-​New-​Years news, they installed a few of the bikes in Times Square today hooked up to a generator, so you can contribute a tiny, tiny fraction of the electricity the ball will use on the night. There was also the whole Good Riddance Day thing going on, but that’s something else entirely…

Friday, Dec 27th

  1. Abbey Road Wine & Spirits open on 57th

    Abbey Road Wine & Spirits

    Presumably channelling The Beatles, a new liquor store has opened up just west of 10th Ave on W 57th St. Today they had their “Grand Opening” banner out, and put flyers up all around the surrounding few blocks.

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    You may come across these scattered all over the place:

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    The place used to be Sarah Café, which opened in 2009, but didn’t seem to take off with customers (lots of negative reviews), and closed after a few years, making way for today. Abbey Road has been gearing up for a few months now…here’s the place back in August:

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    August 2013

    The most impressive part is that all that space above it hasn’t been developed yet.

    Abbey Road Wine & Spirits

    501 W 57th St

Thursday, Dec 26th

  1. Tehuitzingo taqueria expanding to 9th Ave

    Tehuitzingo

    “The best tacos in the city” are coming soon on 9th Ave between 41st & 42nd. Tehuitzingo, a taqueria and “hidden jem” on 10th Ave opposite Hell’s Kitchen Park looks like it’s expanding, with a banner going up inside the former home of Veggietopia:

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    They’re taking over from Veggietopia, who have had for rent signs up for the past few months since closing:

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    The current location on 10th Ave isn’t really much to look at, and seems like just an average deli from the street…

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    Source: (Corcoran/​Foursquare]

    …with a tiny, hidden eating space out the back:

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    Source: (JP K/​Foursquare]

    No word on whether the new place will have the same deli-​up-​front, dining-​out-​back format as the original, but as long as they bring their $3 tacos across we’ll be happy.