Huge Free Wine Tasting at Union Sq. Wines Saturday

Say sayonara to Sumile Sushi on 13th St. near 7th Ave. Started out as super high-end Japanese and morphed into expensive sushi. It always seemed overpriced, even before the recession. Here’s hoping something new and interesting will take over the space.

Here’s the official word on how the renovations are going:

Spring weather has brought with it a flurry of activity in Union Square Park, both in the new playground and at the construction site.  Parents and kids have been taking full advantage of the warm sunny days by swinging, climbing and sliding their way out of the winter doldrums.  The Partnership’s new landscape efforts, including more than 260 ornamental shrubs and 650 perennials, will soon be underway, as well as the creation of additional seating opportunities in the center lawn, in front of the new Pavilion entrance and around the James Fountain (a/k/a Mother & Child).

In construction news, structural work on the Pavilion columns and ceiling beams has finished at last, and the protective plywood barriers have been removed from the front of the building, exposing the beautifully restored neo-classical interior to passersby.  As the Pavilion elevator is installed and tested, interior lighting fixtures, gates and handrails round out the final touches of building restoration work.

Park visitors can soon make use of the restroom facilities as they, too, near completion.  Last week, eco-resin panels were mounted above the granite walls to enclose the building, allowing the final plumbing fixtures to be installed.  Once complete, the Parks Department will work closely with the Department of Buildings to inspect all systems in order to open the facilities for the busy summer season.

This is Union Square West in the ’40s. The reason all these buildings are so narrow is that the lots originally held townhouses.

Brit chain Pret A Manger had moved into the former Tisserie space at 857 Broadway (at 17th Street), and now comes official word that when it opens for a test run this Friday, it will give away 3,000 free sandwiches starting at 12:15 p.m. — provided you snag one of the flyers that will be given away at the Union Square subway entrances between 8 a.m. and 9:25 a.m. that morning. Pret is calling this the “Guinea Pig Day” for what will be their U.S. flagship (the store features a fresh design and free Wi-Fi), but for better or worse, cuy won’t be served — instead, Pret is sourcing food directly from Greenmarket vendors. The location opens fully on June 22.

There was a rumor that leading restauranteur Danny Meyer wanted to run the new restaurant to be established in the Union Square Park pavilion. Not true, says Meyer, but he will be taking over the cursed Wakiya space in the Gramercy Park Hotel and establishing an Italian restaurant there.