Any pedestrian who has crossed Delancey Street at Essex Street knows that hustling to beat the all-too-short light can be a harrowing experience. The Daily News calls the intersection "among the deadliest in New York," and the evidence bears this out: between 1998 and 2010, pedestrians and cyclists were involved in 134 out of 523 accidents, including 3 fatalities, according to the the state's Department of Transportation records. more ›

A tipster writes that at around 11:45 a.m. "what looks to be an elderly Asian man was run over by a Lucky Star bus at the intersection of Canal and Essex streets." We heard that the man, who is around 80 years old, was trapped under the bus and was taken to Bellevue with multiple trauma. Related: Yesterday, three pedestrians were injured at 90th and Park Avenue on the Upper East Side when a driver lost control, jumped a curb and crashed through scaffolding (some of the scaffolding fell down). more ›

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Roses or chocolate or, credit card be damned, both? Since time immemorial, men have spent February 14th scrambling to buy the right things without paying through the nose. But now there's a way to get both classic gifts in one package, and have some of the proceeds go to a good cause, thanks to Rhonda Kave of Roni-Sue’s Chocolates. more ›

We interviewed hundreds of people this year, from long-time rockers to the designer of New York’s subway map. Here are a few conversations you may have missed:

• On the day Radiohead’s In Rainbows was released exclusively online, musician Jonny Greenwood talked about the “experiment.” more ›

After a video of a man being harassed and beaten by a group of teens was publicized by The Smoking Gun, some wonder if the tape is real. The main reason why most people suspect it could be staged is because the teen who filmed the incident is an aspiring filmmaker. Seventeen-year-old Kadejra Holmes told The Smoking Gun she didn't have anything to do with the attack and then took the video off YouTube. Her... more ›

Upon the opening of the space last week we asked the artist a few questions about the experience and stopped by to get a sneak peak. The exhibition, located at 117 Delancey Street, runs through October 28th (Friday through Sunday, noon-6pm). All photos by Sam Horine. more ›

NY Mag's Best of New York is out. Want to know what's good in your hood? Here's a handy little chart that will direct you to just that. Here's a glance at some of the more fun categories: more ›

After much speculation on Gridskipper and Eater, Shopsin's, the infamously cult-like diner in Greenwich Village, has definitely closed for good. NYC Nosh got an email from Kenny Shopsin:

Yes we are closed for good. You should read this sentence with emphasis on the last word. My family and I have a strong sense that there is an art to staying small, and humble. Our departure is a happy event meant to continue the success we have shared with you and our other friends. See you at Essex. Ken

The New York Times takes a close look at the Essex Street Market, a Lower East Side institution that's been doing business since 1940. Although the market was only 60 percent full five years ago, its low rent and the steadily increasing income stream of many in the neighborhood have led to a rejuvenation. But not everyone who walks in the door is a LES trust fund hipster with extra cash to spare. Saxelby Cheesemongers is one of several merchants who advertises their acceptance of E.B.T. cards -- the electronic replacement for food stamps. The market is a shopping mecca for all in the community, and has not become unwelcome to those who have been shopping there for decades just to cater to the influx of wealthier residents:

While the market has welcomed purveyors like Ms. Saxelby, it has not given itself over entirely to epicurean gentrification. The indoor stalls are a good place to encounter yautia, a root vegetable that looks like the love child of a soup can and a coconut. One morning last week Maria Maldonado was buying some to make spicy fried cakes. The 40 pounds of banana leaves in her cart would wrap pasteles, a sort of Puerto Rican tamale filled with pork shoulder and olives and popular at Christmastime. more ›

Calling J. Jonah Jamison! Animal points out some rubbery impediments to people's daily lives: Artist Jasmine Zimmerman's rubber band installations. There are photographs of the Essex Street subway station entrance, parts of Tompkins Square Park, and other walkways covered with the bands. Animal has her full artist's statement, but here's an excerpt:

The installations alter urban traffic environments, such as crossing staircases or busy sidewalks on the streets of Manhattan, inviting the pedestrian to reinvent their path. They can be very visible or almost completely invisible, depending on how the light hits them, (which changes throughout the evening of course as the sun moves through the sky). more ›

In another life, Gothamist may have been a mouse. That's how much we love cheese. It makes us really, really happy (sometimes to the degree that we could swear it gives us a high). We were thrilled to see that some people agree with us--in a recent Chowhound discussion on fromageries a contributor said, "I just took a piece of perfectly ripened Torta del Casar and ate it in my hands around the corner and it was like sex!" more ›

When we hear the phrase "American cheese," images of cellophane-wrapped neon orange slices leap to mind. Scary stuff. Anne Saxelby seeks to change that with her new shop, Saxelby Cheesemongers, which opens in the Essex Market in the beginning of May. Saxelby's shop will focus entirely on American cheeses -- cheese from dairies all across the U.S. Saxelby worked at the legendary Murray's Cheese as a cheese maven, and then worked at several farmstead dairies in the U.S. and abroad. Some of the cheeses she discovered in her travels across the country will be featured in the shop, including Chenango Historic Cheese from Norwich, New York and chevre from Beltane Farm of Lebanon, Connecticut. In addition to having a retail cheese counter, her booth in the Essex Market will have its own cheese “cave." Now that's the kind of American cheese we like. more ›

When Gothamist started this feature, back in the day, at the dawn of the day, really, the thought was to revisit bars as well as review new ones. But we got a little distracted. Between looking for Lillie and trying to get to Caddyshack, the new venture by Brooke Webster of Meox Mix, in Brooklyn and all the blind dates, well, you know. (Or you ought to anyway, because we blacked out.) more ›

The estimable Aaron of 601am, Jake, and I are planning a Gothamist-601am Happy Hour on Thursday June 19, at Smithfield on Essex. We hope to see some of our readers there. Smithfield has outdoor space, too, for any smokers, although you can create your own pick-up scene in the front, too, we guess. more ›