After a see-sawing week of failed inspections, late-night cleanings, and repeated visits from the DOH, a-la-minute East Village photographer Bob Arihood reports that as of 3 p.m. this afternoon, beleaguered Avenue A institution Ray's Candy Store officially, legally, open for business. more ›

The Health Department isn't playing with poor old Ray Alvarez, whose eponymous Candy Store has been an Avenue A institution for generations. The indispensable East Village photographer Bob Arihood has the latest update on the beleaguered snack shop, which has been paid four visits from Health inspectors this week. The shop was initially shut down by the DOH on Monday after racking up 53 violation points and the discovery of an "extensive mice infestation." Arihood reports that the latest inspection produced even more violations than the first inspection, and he thinks the city is coming down too hard on the Candy Store. more ›

The saga of DOH-shuttered East Village stalwart Ray's Candy Store continues today, with owner Ray Alvarez saying he's brought in exterminators to rid his Avenue A storefront of the "extensive mice infestation" that led to its closure and a promise to prove to the Health Department that he's cleaning up his act. more ›

Yesterday we reported that beloved Ray's Candy Store on Avenue A was shut down by the Department of Health for a number of violations, including but not limited to an extensive mice infestation. But omnipresent East Village denizen and excellent photographer Bob Arihood reports that after the inspectors shut him down, owner Ray Alvarez went to sleep... and his employees opened for business, even serving two cops who made purchases despite the big yellow DOH sticker on the door. Unsurprisingly, the DOH wasn't too pleased about this. more ›

After falling behind on his $3,700 rent and almost getting evicted by his landlord, the owner of Avenue A hole-in-the-wall institution Ray's Candy Store says things are looking up. 77-year-old Ray Alvarez, who opened the little burger, shake and fries joint in 1974, tells the Villager the landlord is no longer trying to get rid of him, and he's received $36,000 in back-pay from Social Security (until now Alavarez, a Turkish immigrant, has been unable to receive Social Security). The money is enough to keep things afloat, but now there's a new problem. more ›

The saga continues! The Villager confirms that the landlord recently sent Ray an eviction notice, but that if he pays his rent by next Tuesday, they'll drop the case. However, what the landlord really wants is to replace Ray's with a noodle shop—just what the EV desperately needs! Ray says, “They told me they have a Chinese guy who can pay more money, and he will hire me as the night manager and keep me working here.” At least he'd still have a job, but we'd be out of a good egg cream! more ›

This is really sweet: A group of young adults who grew up in the neighborhood have volunteered to operate a free delivery service for the struggling Ray's Candy Store, the hole-in-the-wall East Village institution across the street from Tompkins Square Park. Every Saturday from 7 p.m. to 5 a.m., they'll try to help owner Ray Alvarez stay afloat by making deliveries to hungry locals free of charge. (Here's the menu.) Two of the inspiring organizers, Kyla Raskin and Arianna Gil, tell EV Grieve: more ›

Looks like Ray's birthday wish of staying open might have been granted! Bob Arihood reports that Ray was able to pay his January residential and commercial rent yesterday. Hopefully, Saturday's "Day of Ray" and a little extra support will put him on his way to covering February, too. Since Ray began having trouble with his $3,000-a-month rent, the neighborhood has rallied with support, holding fundraisers and creating a Facebook page to help the local institution. Isn't it time you had an egg cream? Who knows, you might get a striptease, too. more ›

Around midnight last night Ray Alvarez, owner of beloved East Village hole-in-the-wall Ray's Candy Store [MySpace], celebrated his 77th birthday with a cake, a clown, a stripper, and a spanking. (Photo #4 mildly NSFW) Bob Arihood took some stellar photos and reports, "These are very trying times for Ray and this party afforded a brief respite from his struggle and noticeably lifted his spirits." Slum Goddess writes that before blowing out the candles, Alvarez wished for his business to stay open until his 80th birthday. Many in the neighborhood view Ray's as one of the last relics of a funkier Alphabet City (it opened in 1974) and hope it survives longer than that. more ›

Fox 5 News is the latest media outlet to catch on to the plight of Ray's Candy Store, an Alphabet City hole-in-the-wall still selling classic New York concoctions (and where this blogger got her first egg cream for $1.50 in 1999). Ray is in danger of being booted from his space due to rising rents and the expensive repairs needed, but the neighborhood is rallying to help. more ›

The NY Times is the latest media outlet to chime in on the dire fate looming over Ray’s Candy Store, the 24-hour burger/fries/shake hole-in-the-wall that's been in operation on Avenue A since 1974. Though there's not much new here for those who have been following the sad plight of 76-year-old owner Ray Alvarez—in 2000, the building's owner raised Ray's rent from $800 a month to $3,500, and is now threatening to evict him because he's two months behind—there are some sad quotes. "If they terminate this store, my life will be terminated, too," Alvarez tells the Times. "I like to be around people, and if I can’t be here it’s going to be sad, depressing." And one longtime regular who routinely holds court at Ray's observes that the store is one of the last remaining relics of Alphabet City's gritty past: "When there was nothing else around, Ray was around." more ›

For over three decades, Ray's Candy Store [MySpace], the burger, shake, etc. joint, has occupied a hole-in-the-wall on Avenue A across the street from Tompkins Square Park. As you may recall, the past year has been extremely tough on elderly owner Ray Alvarez, who's got health problems, has fallen behind on his rent, and had to deal with Muslim fundamentalists shaking him down for free coffee. Today Neither More Nor Less reports that one of the last vestiges of the old Alphabet City is on the verge of closing. more ›

The year began and ended with bad news for Ray's Candy Store [MySpace], the hole-in-the-wall burger, shake, etc. joint on Avenue A across the street from Tompkins Square Park. Ray's has been a neighborhood institution for decades, but owner Ray Alvarez, 76, has fallen deep in debt and has health problems compounded by the fact that he's a Turkish immigrant without a birth certificate and ineligible for Social Security. Now he's late on his rent for the first time since opening in '74, and tells the Villager, "They might throw me out. If I work alone — no girls, no help — I will make $100 a day and pay my rent. ... And if lose my store, I lose my apartment, too. This is my only income, and it’s too cold to collect cans." [Via EV Grieve] more ›