New Yorkers hear the argument from Californian refugees all the time: "You can't get any decent tacos in New York City." These poor ex-Angelenos have never put a Brooklyn Taco to their lips. Before this fall, you could only snag one at the Hester Street Fair or the Artists and Fleas fair in Williamsburg, but now you don't have to wait for spring. We paid a visit to Brooklyn Taco's first permanent location in the Essex Street Market, and as sad as it was to see Jeffery's Meat Market leave, the neighborhood now has sublime tacos just steps from 5 subway lines, 7 days a week. more ›

The Essex Street Market may have lost a good old boy when Jeffrey's Meat Market moved out but the NYC Economic Development Corporation, which runs the market, isn't letting the loss of Jeffrey hold them down. Instead they are bringing in more diverse food options for the newsy old market. First up? In the footsteps of Hecho en Dumbo moving to the Bowery, Brooklyn Taco is coming to the Market. more ›

Our hopes that we would taste the brilliant zing of Jeffrey's spicy Italian sausage in our meat sauce once more have been forever crushed. The Lo-Down is reporting that after three months of financial limbo, Jeffrey Ruhalter is closing his family's butcher shop in the Essex Street Market for good. more ›

[Update Below] We love being able to buy fresh produce, warm bread, a bottle of Pacifico and get a haircut and never leave the building. Thus, we love the Essex Street Market, a bastion of affordable, wholesome living on the Lower East Side. However, rising rent forced famed butcher Jeffery Ruhalter out of his space in March, and the New York City Economic Development Corporation, who runs the building, keeps promising that the Seward Park Urban Renewal project may eventually force the market to move. That's why one of Essex's famed tenants, Saxelby Cheesemongers, is urging folks to show up to Wednesday's CB 3 Meeting to protest its "possible demolition and relocation." more ›

This morning the Lo-Down reports that Jeffrey's Meat Market, the Essex Street Market's oldest tenant, is closed. The counters are bare, and one employee told them yesterday that that was their last day in business. They previously told us they would know more by Monday, but Jeffrey gave the Lo-Down this statement: more ›

[Update Below] Jeffrey Ruhalter, the Lower East Side butcher is having a rough winter. Despite a glowing Times profile in December about how the Essex Street Market butcher had gotten his groove back by reinventing himself and his third-generation shop with restaurant clients, classes and an online store, a new round of rent increases and insurance premiums are threatening his groove all over again. more ›

Forty years after it was cleared, the long-fallow Seward Park Urban Renewal Area (SPURA) is as close as its ever been to seeing some actual renewal. Last night a Community Board 3 task force assigned to figure out what do with the area voted unanimously on a plan for the parcel and, best of all, Sheldon Silver, who carries enormous weight in the area and has previously been against plans for it, came out in favor of the latest proposal. more ›

A long time ago New York seemed to be filled with unique and quirky butchers. Men in bloody aprons manhandling meat and taking names. It often seems like everyone who grew up in New York has a story or five about theirs (ours was Mike the Butcher, seen briefly in this vintage clip). But what becomes of an old-school butcher in the world of Whole Paycheck and foodies? They reinvent themselves, if the sweet story of Jeffrey the Butcher is any indication. more ›

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 ›

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 ›

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 ›