Last year, Mott Street mainstay Chinatown Fair—one of the last of its kind in the city—was shuttered due to an ongoing rent dispute. But against all odds, the famed NYC arcade reopened today under new manager Lonnie Sobel!
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Famed Arcade Chinatown Fair Has Reopened!
Famed Arcade Chinatown Fair Is Reopening Soon!
Last year we were very sad to learn of the shuttering of Mott Street mainstay Chinatown Fair. The famed NYC arcade—one of the last of its kind still in the city—was closed because of a rent dispute. But according to Kurt Vincent, who is currently finishing up a documentary all about Chinatown Fair, it will be opening back up under new management! "As far as I know it is opening ASAP. I'd say within the month since the longer it sits closed the more money is lost. Plus, they aren't changing a thing to the space. It is in need of renovation, but looks like they are just leaving as is," he told us.
Chinatown Fair: The Documentary—Coming Soon
A little over two weeks ago, famed arcade Chinatown Fair closed down after the owners lost their lease on Mott Street, where it had resided for half a century. The owners have already opened up a replacement for the downtown mainstay in Sunset Park, called "Next Level Arcade." But you'll get one more chance to relive the last day of Chinatown Fair with a new documentary coming out soon, called ARCADE. (You can see a teaser trailer below)
Famed Arcade Chinatown Fair Is Closing For Real
Last week, rumors ran wild that famed Mott Street arcade Chinatown Fair had lost its lease, and would be closing imminently. Manager Valentino Ventura told us that the rumors were just that, but Newyorkist sent us a tip that he "spoke to Samuel, proprietor of Chinatown Arcade," and the arcade was indeed closing tonight. And it's now been confirmed: "This location is permanently gone, unless something happens, which I don't know. As far as the landlord is concerned, we're finished with this location," CF assistant manager Ben Palmer told us this morning.
Is Chinatown Fair, Famed NYC Arcade, Closing?
Several places are reporting that Chinatown Fair, the famed NYC arcade and one of the last of its kind still in the city, is shutting its doors for good very soon. Arturo Sanchez, a Chinatown Fair regular, spoke with arcade manager Henry Cen, who said that CF "lost it's lease after decades of being in business" and will be closing on the 23rd (there's some confusion as to whether that means February 23 or March 23). However, we spoke to CF manager Valentino, who told us the whole thing was a giant rumor: "people have been saying that we've been closing down for five or six years," he told us.
To Catch a Pooper-trator
Spotted on Mott between Spring and Prince: a passive-aggressive note to a mysterious anti-pooper scooper! We just can't help but think this note could have been written better, though. It currently reads: "To person whose dog has taken a shit twice this week and you didn't pick it up. I'll be watching. If I catch you it won't go well for you." The threatening tone is there, but it doesn't seem to have that certain... je ne sais quoi. Next time maybe just try to sick the Sanitation Department on the Pooper-trator.
Chris Cheung, Chef
A veteran of Nobu and Ruby Foo’s, Chris Cheung was hired 5 months ago to replace Patricia Yeo at Monkey Bar, the red satin and black lacquer midtown institution known primarily for its, well, monkey theme. In an effort to reemphasize the food quotient of the restaurant, the 38 year-old chef maintains an inventory of global tastes and reassembles them using the template of traditional Chinese food: The curly fries, for example, that come with the burger are made with taro, and the burger itself is served on a bao bun made in-house. The result is not fusion, or an eclectic cook-by-numbers approach to food; Cheung seems to spend a lot of time thinking about ingredients, so the food at Monkey Bar isn’t really served with anything added for dramatic effect, and the plate presentations are relatively uncomplicated. Cheung calls his style “Evolutionary Chinese Cooking.”
Horchata
Many of you are probably familiar with the horchata you can buy at Burritoville, a pale, dairy imitation of the real thing made with fat-free milk, rice powder, cinnamon, and sugar. It's potable, but doesn't even begin to compare with horchata made with actual rice and almonds, cinnamon and vanilla, with no milk in sight.
Clubland, NY 10013
Will Manhattan's clubs be moving to the 10013? With the group that opened Cain on 27th Street having opened Gold Bar at 389 Broome Street in February; and uber-promoter Danny A having opened the VIP-only Upstairs on Spring Street and Broadway, The Observer is reporting on a move of "clubland" to Chinatown.
Suspected East Village/LES Sex Attacker Caught
The police have arrested a suspect in the series of sexual attacks in the East Village and Lower East Side. Twenty-year-old Harlem resident Asuncion DeJesus-Garcia was charged with sex abuse, burglary, robbery, assault and criminal possession of stolen property.
East Village, L.E.S. on Alert For Serial Sex Attacker
The police are looking for a man they believe may be involved with four sexual attacks in the East Village and Lower East Side. The Daily News ran a graphic (pictured) of showing where and when the attacks have occurred. Early yesterday morning, a 20-year-old woman was attacked at East 9th and Second Avenue, as the Sun puts it, "just steps away from the bright lights of the 24-hour Veselka Restaurant."
On the Plate: Upcoming Food and Wine Events
March 19 - March 30: Dine in Brooklyn
NYPD Captains Contractless, Recruits Still Underpaid
The contract talks between the NYPD's captains' union and the city have hit the brakes. The union has been working without a contract for 40 months, and now the matter will have to go to the Public Employment Relations Board for binding arbitration. This comes as the starting salary of police recruits are under increasing scrutiny. The NY Times has an editorial, calling the $25,100 "a pauper's sum" and pointing out it's no surprise that the NYPD recruited just over 40% of its goal.
Extra, Extra
-- Holy schlamoli, the College Humor kids are rich, bitch! It's not Girls Gone Wild money, but still!
Hot Sake - Food News You Can Use
- We were pleased as punch to see our buddy Rick Bishop get some well deserved recognition as a food influencer in the New York magazine piece. Our world-class chefs here in NYC could get nothing done without farmers. The one thing not mentioned in the article is the huge contribution of Rick’s wife Nicole and Alex’s wife Linda. Some things never change.
A (Small) Taste of Chinatown
Because Gothamist can never have too much Chinese food, we stopped in at Taste of Chinatown this afternoon despite the weather forecast. The crowds were surprisingly large considering with some people saying that there were actually more on hand than expected. Pictured above is Peking Duck House and Ping's Seafood, both on Mott Street. As one might expect, there was a long line for duck. When we talked to one of the people in line, he said that he wouldn't mind waiting in the line for up to 20 minutes.
A Mouthwatering Taste of Chinatown Preview
Tomorrow is the annual Taste of Chinatown where over 50 restaurants offer a variety of their dishes for $1 or $2 bites. And for $1 or $2, you do get a lot. In fact, we tried a few of the dishes offered tomorrow, and we got very full after four "tastes," so save your appetite for tomorrow. And the event is between 1PM and 6PM, rain or shine - and there are tents so if rain comes, you'll be covered.
Amy Chin, Program Consultant for the Chinatown Partnership Local Development Corporation
Amy Chin, Program Consultant for the Chinatown Partnership Local Development Corporation
The Iceman Leaveth
As some of you have pointed out, one of our favorite summer spots, NYC Icy, is no more. Like you, we had the same reaction -- severe depression. Where are we supposed to go now to get our cool summer treats on, especially on a day like today?!? We've come up with a few suggestions on our own, and the Daily News added a bunch to our list.
Victorian Flatbush
city rag has photographs of "Victorian Flatbush," the part of Brooklyn that looks rather un-city like. Upon further research, brownstoner calls it a South Midwood area - and links to a helpful realty site that explains more - and VictorianFlatbush.org a "polyglot and polychrome" "softly shaded patch of Flatbush in Ditmas Park, Brooklyn with a multitude of races. Now, Gothamist heard the term "Victorian Flatbush" last week for the first time, and we wondered if "Prohibition West Village" or "Speakeasy Harlem" or "Mafia Den Mott Street" would be the next hot new terms. Or "Drug-Addled Alphabet City" or "Gay Chelsea"? But Victorian Flatbush is quite pretty - it's like Cape May meets Queens!
Drink Up: Gothamist Visits Palais Royale
Gothamist was under the weather this week. Sometimes, as the one thing we learned from our first office job goes, spirits can jolt your system back into the realm of the living. Spirits imbibed at Palais Royale, a very new addition to Mott Street co-owned by a Adrian Gallo of Orchard Bar, were pretty much limited to the official spirit of the United States, bourbon. Definitely a jolt to the beer, wine, sangria and vodka with a splash of tonic diet we've been keeping religiously.
Pussy Pastore Surrenders
Vincent Pastore, who beat up his girlfriend last week, surrendered to the police and was arraigned for misdemeanor assault yesterday. Pastore's now ex-fiancee, Lisa Regina, accused him of beating her on Mott Street, possibly because she was running late during their trip to her family in NJ. Gothamist found out that a friend actually witnessed part of this exchange: She didn't realize it was Pastore - she thought it was a "big Italian guy yelling at his girlfriend," plus throwing her clothes out of the car. Anyway, Regina's lawyer told the media they don't want Pastore to kill Regina, but Dominic Barbara, the celebrity lawyer that Pastore has retained, said, "This is a very gentle man who is anything but what the charges are against him." Yeah, right.
Big Pussy Ain't a Big Pussy
. The NY Post described the brawl:
The brawny Pastore allegedly punched fiancée Lisa Regina — who formerly played a bit part on the gangland show — as they drove through SoHo during the start of a trip to see the woman's family in New Jersey, said Regina's lawyer Jeff Schwartz. The TV leg-breaker allegedly became enraged and accused the 44-year-old woman of delaying the start of their journey by being late...He began beating Regina in the car and smashed her head against the dashboard...He then stopped his SUV in front of 284 Mott St., dragged her out of the vehicle by her hair and slammed her to the ground, where she injured her tailbone, Schwartz said.more ›
BBQ Can Be Asian, Too
Where is your favorite non-American BBQ from? And did anyone else find it interesting that Moskin found the Second Annual Big Apple Barbecue too crowded, so she and her crew hightailed it for Chinatown? We're thrilled that Moskin is focusing on the less sexy but equally delicious Asian styles of cooking pork ribs (perhaps because Gothamist grew up with these kinds of spare ribs, we never really thought of them as BBQ, we just considered them "char siu"), we're surprised that a Times reporter is so wimpy. Gothamist is a huge wimp, and we, like thousands of other New Yorkers, managed to fight our way for some 'cue at the block party. We imagine Danny Meyer is calling up the Times right now.
Chinese New Year Parade
It was cold and confetti-ful at this year Chinese New Year parade in Chinatown. Gothamist shivered along with other New Yorkers, Asian and non, and even some bloggers, Asian and non, as we waited for the parade to start. People were warming up by firing projectiles of colorful confetti on Mott Street. Finally, the parade got started, with Senator Charles Schumer at the front; he wasn't wearing a hat, which impressed Gothamist with his hardiness. There were marching bands (even Irish bagpipers), lion and dragon dancers, plus a procession of floats.
More Chinese New Year
It's only two days into the Chinese New Year, so here's some more information on the festivities in the city from NYC Visit. The Post looks at places to eat and shop in the Chinatowns of Manhattan, Queens (Flushing) and Brooklyn (Sunset Park). Some of their picks: Gum Fung (Main Street and 39th Avenue) for food and Flushing Mall (39th Avenue and College Point Boulevard) in Queens; Jade Plaza (6022 Eighth Avenue at 61st Street, [718] 492-6888) for food and Tien Lung Aquarium (5822 Eighth Ave., at 58th Street) in Brooklyn; and Mandarin Court (61 Mott Street between Bayard and Canal streets) for food and Great Wall of China (277 Canal St., between Broadway and Lafayette Street) in Manhattan. Citysearch has suggestions as well, including tomorrow's parade. Perhaps Gothamist will see you there, in the middle of the dragon dances.
New Places to Drink
Manhattan User's Guide has a nice roundup of some new and old places for a drink. Gothamist is most interested in Shebeen (202 Mott Street) - "Irish name, South African owners, in the middle of Chinatown and Little Italy, occasional African music played."
Rice to Riches Reviewed
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Rice to Riches Reviewed
For those of you in Basra, or Carroll Gardens, Rice to Riches is the new rice pudding place that opened on Spring Street across from that little park right off Mulberry.
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