According to the Post, Al Qaeda operatives tried to use dogs as their own kamikaze weapons against America in 2008, by surgically implanting explosives and detonators inside two stray dogs. We should be grateful for two things: that they sucked so much at stitching, the plan was nixed; and that the only thing that is explosive about our dogs is their poop. So in light of this dastardly doggy terror plot that-almost-was, let's appreciate the relative ease of dealing with our occasionally poop-filled sidewalks. more ›

The Obama Fried Chicken in Harlem may have a Presidential name, but the Health Department just took away any hope they had at staying open. The joint was closed last week with an epic 115 violation points, and according to Grub Street that's almost 100 points past the C mark. What was found amongst the fried chicken? Live roaches, Filth flies and food/refuse/sewage-associated flies, evidence of live rats, inadequate personal hygiene, and temperature violations, to name a few. The full list can be read here—and keep in mind this isn't to be confused with the other Obama Fried Chicken, in Brooklyn. more ›

Thanks to arrests over fraud and corruption in a number of Brooklyn day-care centers, Health officials have been forced to shutter almost two dozen centers for safety violations. Another 17 centers may be on the chopping block if they fail to address violations in the next 45 days, and the shut downs have left over 700 Brooklyn families scrambling to find new options. Last month's "Operation Pay Care" bust accused city workers accepting bribes from a ring of Russian child-care workers who frequently violated teacher-child ratio and permit rules. And added on top of increased wait lists for pre-K programs, Brooklyn parents may have to resort to other neighborhoods, other boroughs, or home schooling for pre-K. more ›

When the Jane Hotel first entered the neighborhood, Community Board members say they were enthusiastic about the ballroom, having "visions of people reading from their new works in an elegant salon." While the March sisters may have found parlor readings of contemporary literature a satiating social experience, the Olsen twins represent the Jane's real clientele, and we're guessing they don't read much Murakami whilst making their late night rounds. more ›

You'll probably want to avoid eating dinner during tomorrow night's episode of Inside Edition, which promises some pretty revolting video of street vendors doing all sorts of unsavory things with their hands while on the job. According to the press release, the show's "Investigative Unit" caught a number of New York food vendors on tape exhibiting some "unsafe food handling practices." These include:
• One food vendor touching his bare feet with his fingers between his toes before going right back to serving customers.
• Another vendor near Times Square, who while wearing gloves picked his nose, handled money, scratched himself and touched raw chicken right before preparing food and serving customers.
• A vendor outside the Museum of Natural History who licked his gloved hand and counted money. Then he left his cart to use a bathroom in the museum and returned to serve customers without washing his hands.

Last year, the former Deutsche Bank building was in the process of being dismantled when a fire broke out on August 18. It escalated into a seven-alarm blaze, and two firefighters died after when their oxygen tanks were depleted. It turned out a construction worker's smoking caused the fire, but there were a host of other problems, from the dismantled standpipe (which brings water up in case of fires), blocked exits, and a lack of inspections to make sure the dismantling was being handled carefully. more ›

There was some surprise when Geoffrey Zakarian’s three star restaurant Country (pictured) was shut down by the Department of Health last Friday. But it turns out that fruit flies, mouse droppings and a fly in the Maker’s Mark were the least of its problems – the main infraction was the restaurant’s unapproved sous vide method, which Country utilizes to vacuum-seal raw meat in plastic for slow cooking at low temperatures. more ›

Fellow vendors and loyal customers are rallying to the defense of Antonios Dragonas, the 50-year-old pushcart food vendor who may soon be put out of business. For the past 25 years, Vendy runner-up Antonios Dragonas, has been serving his famous lamb shish kebab from the corner of Madison Avenue and East 62nd Street, but now the Department of Health is refusing to renew his license and permit. more ›

A piece in The New York Times today shows that that the residents of 475 Kent are not prepared to go quietly after their recent eviction due to fire safety violations. Even the landlord of the owner of the nearly block-long building near the Navy Yard in Brooklyn wants his tenants back in and is cooperating with them to that end. more ›

Cats in delis: they are ubiquitous, loved, objected to, necessary, and illegal. City inspectors are constantly on the prowl to ferret out deli felines, but deli owners say they are necessary fixtures to keep their businesses free of pests like mice, rats, and roaches. The New York Times has a story today on the ongoing battle between the city and the cats that are the sentinels of its delis--feline samurai who serve their masters in return for food, shelter, and the occasional scratch behind the ears.

To store owners, the services of cats are indispensable in a city where the rodent problem is serious enough to be documented in a still popular two-minute video clip on YouTube from late February (youtube.com/watch?v=su0U37w2tws) of rats running amok in a KFC/Taco Bell in Greenwich Village. Store-dwelling cats are so common that there is a Web site, workingclasscats.com, dedicated to telling their tales.