Vanishing New York Backup

VANISHED On the last weekend of the Chelsea Antiques Garage , before its 1920s-era garage is demolished for a towering luxury hotel, the mood was resigned. This closure had been a long time coming. Dealers sipped champagne for a farewell toast. Many talked of moving--there's some room at the outdoor flea in a parking lot on 25th, and at the Hell's Kitchen flea further uptown--but it's unclear exactly how so many vendors will fit. Space is limited and being outside is not ideal. "Paper doesn't do well outdoors," said one vendor, a hawker of vintage nudie photos and other ephemera. "The moisture!" Most dealers, when asked if they'll move to the other sites, said they'll probably take some time off, travel for the summer up and down the flea market circuit, until the kinks are worked out. Flea market people are gypsies at heart. Whether or not they return to the city is anybody's guess. This group of flea markets got started in...

VANISHED Tipster Chris writes in: " today is the last day for Bereket on the corner of Orchard & Houston after 20 years in business. Apparently, the landlord sold the building." Bereket opened in 1995 . I went by to check it out and they confirmed they will be open through tonight, until 6:00 AM , and then shutter. They hope to reopen nearby and are looking at a possible space on Allen Street. Back in March, Bowery Boogie reported that the building--along with ALL the remaining low-rise buildings on that block of Houston, except for Katz's--were bought by Ben "The Sledgehammer" Shaoul. Goodbye open sky! Yet another tower of misery is coming.

VANISHING Word has come in that Lucky Cheng's is closing for good. An employee confirms that their last show will be tomorrow night. Calls to the club go unanswered, but the employee, who asks to remain anonymous, cites the reason for the closure: "Ridiculously high rent + decline in business = demise." UPDATE: Gothamist and NY1 have both since verified this news of closure with the club. At the same time, a Facebook commenter writes that he went to a show and "Staff adamantly denies this 'internet rumor' and insists new management is taking over." Another commenter walked by and talked to a couple of the queens. They said, "They are closing then re-opening under a different name in the same location." So...it's anybody's guess. For two decades, Lucky Cheng's brought drag queen action to the East Village, attracting queers and art scenesters, then tourists, Sex and the City , and eventually hordes of shrieking bache...

After being forced to close in March 2013, after 34 years in business , the Rawhide bar was set to become a California pizza chain. That didn't happen and the space remains empty to this day. Recently, one of the front shutters was opened. I peeked inside. It isn't pretty. Meanwhile, Folsom Street East was a success this past Sunday, moved to West 27th Street after being pushed off its long-time home of West 28th by: condo owners, the community board, the High Line, more rising condos. Kinksters and queers came out in their full leather and latex regalia, the street was packed, and the music was fierce (Michael Tee and the Vanities are a must-see). The fair felt a bit tame, however, compared to years past. It was more easy-going somehow, and less dirty, less edgy, with what seemed like fewer flogging and spanking demonstrations and, regrettably, no ass-pie eating contest. Unless I somehow missed it. It also seemed shorter than in years past. I wonder if these were...

The Mysterious Time Machine has left 14th Street--and moved south. Located for years on the second floor, behind dusty windows printed with the words MEMORABILIA and NOSTALGIA, the shop looked like it had been there forever. the old space The large room was packed with cardboard boxes filled with vintage magazines--movie magazines, girlie magazines--and comic books. The walls were covered with posters and magazines, faces from the past. I loved going up there and wading through the ephemera. (I love an odd second-story business, climbing the murky staircase to what feels like a secret spot above the city crowd.) On a recent trip, I was met with a sign that said, "We moved." I looked up. The place has been cleared out, white-washed, the ceiling hung with cold track lighting. Imagine the wonderful nail salon to come! I walked to the new address, a basement spot on 6th Avenue, next to Bigelow's drugstore. You walk down now, not up, into a much smaller room. ...

VANISHED After 21 years on E. 9th Street in the East Village, Archangel Antiques closed this weekend. The owners decided it was enough, time to retire. Also, the lease was up, and you know how that goes. Oh That Sherry reported: " They cannot keep up with the increased rent. Besides competition with other vintage clothing stores in the area, East Village’s demographic is mostly students. Generally speaking, students do not have money or taste. Gail argues that to buy vintage, 'you have to have a little sense of adventure, style, and be willing to stand out a bit.' While there is nothing wrong with buying what everyone else is wearing from H&M or Urban Outfitters, she adds that 'Young people just don’t have a sense of personal style.'" Archangel was a great spot to browse and buy, making selections from their large collection of buttons (over a million), or cufflinks, maybe an old LIFE magazine. It was also fun to chat with its manager Micha...

Back in March, I reported that the locally beloved Alan's Alley video store would be leaving Chelsea , its home for over 25 years. At the time, I talked to Alan, who told me, " We don't have any plans to close. We go with the flow. But the landlord's got plans. He's looking for a new tenant ." The store was on a month-to-month at that point, hanging on until a new tenant came along. Well, some Starbucks or Chipotle or nail salon must have grabbed the space, because the time has come. Reader Eileen writes in to let us know: "Alan of Alan's Alley just texted me that he has to be out by the 15th and is closing on the 7th." Of July. Alan has not been able to find a new spot. Time to say your goodbyes to another long-time local.

Last month I shared the distressing news , thanks to known and reliable tipsters, that the management of El Quijote would be changing hands. I was told it would be taken over by the new owners of the Chelsea Hotel, in which El Quijote has stood, unmolested, for 84 years. I was also told that the beloved restaurant would never be the same again. When I shared this information, people panicked. My tipsters panicked, too, and I removed most of the details in the post by request, leaving only the warning: "if you'd like to experience it as it's always been, go have a good, affordable meal while you still can. Changes are coming." I got some angry comments for sharing the intel, including: "this is completely untrue, as in false rumor. There's not even a hint of truth to it. Allegedly reliable sources should pull their heads out of their a## and Jeremiah you should pull the post. Youre [sic] making El Q's life more difficult." The restaurant denied ...

With Pride upon us, Manatus has been on my mind, that long-time go-to spot for the LGBTQ communities, unceremoniously shuttered in April , possibly to make room for Calvin Klein . I went by and peeked in the window. Everything is gone. It's still a heartbreak. Reader Lee Magill sends in this painful shot of the sign being scraped from the bricks last week: From the few reports that came in, the final night at Manatus was a quiet one. They hadn't announced it, so only a handful of people knew about the closure . Reader Elizabeth wrote in to say "negotiations with the landlord stalled" a few days before the beloved diner shuttered. " He wants $50,000 for the space. Long-time customers are bereft! Jimmy, the owner, and Eleni, longtime waitress turned manager, patiently took pictures with us and even shed some tears with us as well." Reader Andy sent in a video of the quiet last moments, and described the final night: "When my friend, Tin...

Before it dies, before it is razed to the ground and replaced with skyscraping glass towers of luxury, the Domino sugar refinery has been turned into a work of art. In "Subtlety," Kara Walker's colossus, the sugar mountain of mammy, commands the space, attended by a retinue of boys molded out of candy in the style of "pickaninny" figurines . The caricatures are familiar to viewers old enough to recall the more blatant racist days when Aunt Jemima still wore a kerchief, and Looney Tunes were filled with goggle-eyed black children ( "Inki" comes to mind). With these lurid, cartoonish characters, Walker is reaching deep into Domino history, when slaves harvested cane for sugar. ( Similar practices continue to this day .) "Basically, it was blood sugar," Walker told NPR . "Like we talk about blood diamonds today." In the heat and humidity, the sculptures are melting. The boys are coming apart, their arms and legs collapsing i...

VANISHING We've been hearing about the end of Chelsea's Antiques Garage flea market since 2007. And now, after lost leases, new leases, sales, and financial acrobatics, the end has finally come. Crain's reports: "After two decades of business and several last-minute reprieves, Chelsea's Antiques Garage has finally set a closure date . The flea market, which began in a parking lot on West 25th Street between Sixth and Seventh avenues in 1993, will operate its last weekend on June 28 . The site will be developed into a hotel tower." I have often enjoyed the Antiques Garage, but will let Larry Baumhor from Larry Baumhor Photography's Facebook page wax eloquent about it, as he does so well: "The Garage has a legacy for collectors and dealers that will never be duplicated. When you walked up and down the ramps at the Garage, you entered a grimy, dilapidated, concrete building that seeped into your pores with its lack of ventilation, and ...

Sound & Chaos: The Story of BC Studio tells the tale of Martin Bisi and his sprawling Gowanus music studio where he recorded Herbie Hancock's "Rockit," along with Sonic Youth, John Zorn, the Dresden Dolls, and many more. All back in a time when girl gangs (!) and packs of wild dogs (!) roamed the Gowanus landscape. Much has changed in the neighborhood--and mostly in the past few years--with more major changes to come. Watch the trailer here , see the film at Anthology Film Archives on July 17, and enjoy this special clip below (thanks to co-director Sara Leavitt for cutting it at my request), in which Bisi tours Whole Foods and explains how one "damn grocery store" is bringing on a major land rush that will likely push him out, along with the rest of the artists.

There's still some time to see the Vanished Spaces exhibit at ABC No Rio , today and tomorrow only. It's a fascinating look at the homegrown artist spaces that once thrived in the East Village and Lower East Side, only to be destroyed, mostly by gentrification. Here's a sneak peek. Julius Klein's XOXO was at 19 Second Avenue, across from Mars Bar, from 1990 - 1997. It was demolished to make room for the massive, sprawling, hollow-eyed Avalon luxury apartment complex. In its space today is Blue Ribbon Fried Chicken, complete with a view of another luxury apartment complex and a TD Bank where Mars Bar used to be. Gas Station / Space 2B stood on 2nd Street and Avenue B from 1986 - 1995, when it was evicted (thanks to a 900% rent increase) and demolished. Wrote the Times at the time: "For 10 years, the Gas Station, with its towering sculpture built from discards ranging from a 1970 Plymouth Valiant to department store mannequins to television sets, has b...