A fire ripped through 101 Orchard Street in the Lower East Side at around 9 a.m. this morning in a building that houses the restaurant Congee Village and abuts the Tenement Museum. The FDNY's press office wasn't available for comment, but DNAinfo reports that the fire started in the ground floor kitchen of Congee Village "and spread to the duct work in the building." Bowery Boogie notes that the fire appeared to be put out by around 10 a.m. and that the northbound M15 bus is on a temporary detour. No other buildings appear to be damaged, and there were no apparent injuries. Phone calls made to the Tenement Museum weren't answered. more ›

Things got messy when a group of shoppers came into the Pilgrim Vintage Clothing Store on Orchard Street last night, tried to shoplift a $2,500 purse, and promptly threw the owner of the store through his own glass window when he tried to intervene. more ›

Early Sunday morning, police found a 23-year-old woman who suffered numerous stab wounds—her head was allegedly nearly decapitated—in her Lower East Side apartment at 63 Clinton Street. Police say that Sarah Coit's boyfriend, Raul Barrera, confessed to the brutal crime, and a person who heard Coit's screams told the Post, "My friend who lives here told me this has been going on for a while. They've been fighting like that for months." more ›

We know they changed their name to Ess-A-Pickle when they moved to Borough Park about six months ago, but they'll always be Guss' Pickles in our hearts. And their iconic awning bearing the old name on 87 Orchard Street will soon be getting the boot. According to Bowery Boogie, they'll be replaced by a specialty cigar shop. Maraya Cigars explains on their website: more ›

Remember when the benches outside of American Apparel on Houston and Orchard streets were the place to be? It was a very "this too shall pass" moment, and it did. The benches, however, remained... until now. According to Bowery Boogie, 5 of the 9 benches on Orchard Street have been removed by American Apparel; an employee at the store said it was a “whole ordeal,” but essentially the company “didn’t want people living outside the store anymore.” Because Dov Charney though they clashed with his new preppy image? more ›

If you've ever lived in an older building in New York, you've probably wondered what was behind your walls (a secret room, perhaps!). Or maybe that's just us. Anyway, the Tenement Museum is readying their visitors center, and has just posted up some gorgeous photos of the process. When they renovated their 97 Orchard space, there was more in-depth archeological research done; the selective demolition at 103 Orchard Street includes the basement, ground, and second floors of the building — which dates back to the 1880s. Click through for some hot shots of ceiling timbers! Phantom staircases! Old playing cards! And much, much more. more ›

Good World, the Orchard Street bar and grill with the cozy back patio, closed last week after more than a decade of Swedish meatballs and Gaffel Koelsch. The cause of death here wasn't the recession, but that other NYC restaurant Paraquat: the mustache-twirling landlord. Owner Annika Sundvick previously told Grub Street that she was being forced out to make way for some desperately needed condos; an elegiac note taped to the shuttered establishment elaborates further: "It was built with love and a warm light brightened the tip of Orchard Street like a beacon of hope. Sadly, a greedy landlord who has never stepped in America, and doesn't speak a word of English bought this building, evicted the tenants in order to flip it. In place of a thriving business that brought life to this corner, he has left us with an empty hole." But don't despair, brothers and sisters; that flickering flame of hope was heroically sheltered before it guttered completely, and the convivial blaze has been rekindled by Sundvick at her new restaurant/bar White Slab Palace. Excelsior! more ›

Tonight is the housewarming party, so to speak, for the Tenement Museum's new apartment and the opening of its first tour since 2002. This one is titled, The Moores: An Irish Family in America. They tell us that "it’s taken about 6 years from concept to completion for this particular project. That includes research, planning, fundraising, designing, bringing the upper floors up to code, purchasing artifacts for the apartment, developing content." more ›

Orchard Street designer Doron Braunshtein (aka Apollo Braun, pictured) is at it again; in March he launched his "Who Killed Obama?" t-shirt and now he's added a new political statement to his line: the $250 "Jews Against Obama" t-shirt. more ›

Cartoons just got a little more real with The Three Thug Mice, an online series set in New York City. The 35 animated shorts follow the tales (and tails!) of three rodent crooks named Vic, Tik and Brik. Described as an "ongoing ghetto saga" set in some of the seedier sectors of the concrete jungle, the trio's home turf is light years away from Disney World. (Though that is the Hotel Chelsea in the background, which isn't so seedy; wonder if that frog jumped after BD Hotels took over management.) more ›

Wouldn’t be caught dead with a “latte” from Starbucks or a Coolata from Dunkin Donuts? Well, you haven’t reached the summit of coffee snobbery until you’ve had the self-proclaimed “ultimate” cup of coffee, expertly prepared by computers and pneumatic tubes at the Lower East Side’s Roasting Plant. Since opening last spring, business has been hopping at the sleek Orchard Street café; coffee aficionados are drawn back as much for the fresh coffee as for the experience of seeing it made. more ›

Today marks the grand opening of the Moscot Museum. You know Sol Moscot, the lens shop with giant yellow bespectacled signs that look over the streets of New York like Dr. Eckleburg's eyes? Apparently they're not much less symbolic -- sticking around New York for the past 100 years is no small feat, and must stand for something. But a museum, really?The Moscot Museum will showcase never before released, historic black & white photographs of... more ›

On the Gothamist Newsmap: A large fight/stabbing at Church and Remsen in Brooklyn, a stabbing on 5th Ave. in Manhattan, and a home invasion robbery on Cruger Ave. in the Bronx. An early morning fire damaged four businesses in Inwood; the FDNY is investigating, but the fire may have started in a business that's been closed for months. Senator Schumer releases a statement about his support for Attorney General nominee Michael Mukasey (the senior... more ›

BEER: This one is pretty simple...there will be lots (58!) of New York beers, and a few bands to soundtrack your drinking them, at the Seaport tonight. Go, imbibe, enjoy! more ›

Celebrate the extension of the vendors' permit through the end of their season in October and add on extra festivities for Mexican and Central American Independence Day. Caesar Fuentes, the organizing force behind the vendors, promises that "the food vendors committee will host a livelier than usual weekend event - more soccer games, pinatas, music, and a 2 day art exhibit featuring photographs taken by the food vendors." Sounds good to us. more ›

September 3: West Indian–American Day Carnival more ›

The new J.J. Abrams movie which is still listed as Untitled, but is unofficially being referred to as Cloverfield, was filming on the Lower East Side yesterday and last night. Did anyone catch it? The monster movie is due out January 18th, 2008 - and this past week Abrams spoke of the somewhat mysterious project at Comic-Con. more ›

May 12: Brooklyn Pigfest more ›

Diane Wongprasert is no newbie to the restaurant business. Owner of Regional Thai Taste, Pad Thai, and Sa-Woy, Lower East Side newcomer Sticky Rice is the latest in Wongprasert's Thai ventures. With yet to procure a liquor license (your server might ask you to sign a petition), the Orchard Street joint is still BYO, but in Gothamist's opinion, that makes Sticky Rice an even better bargain. Dishes prepared in the northeastern Thai tradition contribute to an extensive menu that highlights barbeque with lemongrass marinades, a plethora of classic noodle and rice dishes like popular favorite Pad Thai, homemade curries, and more than a dozen vegetarian entrée options. more ›

January 13: Seasonal Game Cooking Class more ›

A yuletide favorite since 1965, A Charlie Brown Christmas, airs tomorrow night at 8pm (as we mentioned in yesterday's tv listing). Seem a little early? Hey, it's after Thanksgiving...so Christmas is only a hop, skip and jump away. We've been prepared for this since the seasonal lights went up on Orchard Street just after Halloween. more ›

This weekend Orchard Street, between Rivington and Delancey, became a Bollywood set. Store owners were heard complaining to the police that it would "Disturb their business", but everyone else enjoyed the scene. The officers let the store owners know that they should file a complaint with the NYC film commission if they had a problem, though they clearly didn't realize the film set was bringing more foot traffic to their storefronts. Here are some photos, did anyone else come across the set? more ›

They just called me. The first screening of it took place in Paris on Dec. 1st, 2004, so it’s almost 2 years ago, but nobody was interested to see it or show it here. I am more known in Europe than here. Here they only talk about me like, Oh when he was there, Warhol, the ‘60s and they don’t know that life continues. I make new things and I have shows. And most of my new work is seen in Europe, not here. more ›

No question about it, New Yorkers like to bitch. Bemoaning Gotham's noisy neighbors, putrid stenches, dirty streets, etc., etc., is a habit New Yorkers have enjoyed as long as there have been New Yorkers. Especially popular is the letter of complaint to Hizzoner, a habit that lives on to this day. Seriously, people have been writing these letters for centuries now. A number of just such letters have been unearthed from more than 30,000 boxes of correspondence in the Municipal archive. more ›

July 7 - 11: Fancy Food Show more ›

This one's gonna be short and sweet: here's a new, low-key bar offering cheap drinks and we like it. From the owners of Welcome To The Johnson's comes another bar below the Lower East Side, to BelDel, if we're still saying that. We like the comfortable seating, extended happy hour (4pm-9pm Weds-Sun, $2 beers, $2 well drinks) and their choice of a house beer, choosing, like Abilene, the very inexpensive PBR alternative Genessee Cream Ale ($2 all the time). We also like their nod to the bar's previous life as a candy store -- glass shelves and rows behind the bar showcase more choices than a concession stand -- Runts, candy laces, etc. A word to the wise, don't try to buy one of the golfball sized gobstopper by the register, they're only for show. There's no gimmick here, though, only simple decor, tried and true music (Bowie, Bloc Party), and no plans to add Nerds to drinks anytime soon. more ›

It's getting a little easier to be green these days. There are ten new greenmarkets opening around the city, spreading around the summer bounty of fresh produce. One of the city's goals in creating the new markets is to make seasonal produce more accessible to low-income city residents. To this end, many of the greenmarkets will take senior coupons, WIC coupons, and EBT cards. The new Greenmarket locations, hours of operation and opening dates are as follows: more ›

It's not secret that we love panoramic imagery of NYC-- and one of our favorite sources has long been Urban75. Their NYC panorama page has dozens of 360-degree images of the city-- and the November 2005 update added at least a dozen more. Some of the new ones: Orchard Street (seen above), Mercer Street, Battery Park, Ellis Island, Grand Central, East River, Williamsburg Bridge. Awesome! more ›

Late this afternoon we started getting text messages about a building collapse on Rivington near Orchard Street. Turns out it was the interior of the First Roumanian American Synagogue, just up from THOR. For those who missed the chaos, check out this set from Lawrence on Flickr. Here's some info about the temple: more ›