Soon to arrive in the former location of Xu’s Public House in the lavish condo at 15 Union Square West will be Le Basque, a kosher and vegan take on northeastern Spanish cuisine. Interesting.
Strip House has doubled its size on East 12th St.
Reminder: The annual shareholders’ meeting will take place on July 22nd at 7PM – 9PM at the usual place: The Seafarers and International House at 123 East 15th St. on the second floor.
Later this year, Capital One will open a new banking concept in New York City’s Union Square with a large café, operated by Peet’s Coffee, and an upstairs lounge that will function as a communal work space, complete with free Wi-Fi.
Not unlike the Apple Store, the bank will serve customers with mobile tellers, who will have iPads on which they will handle transactions, rather than the standard glass window setup.
The bank already operates a number of Capital One 360 Cafés, where customers are invited to enjoy coffee while they learn about ways to manage their finances, but the upcoming location takes a page from the rising popularity of communal office spaces, which are increasingly common in New York City.
The basement of the café at 853 Broadway will be used as a classroom. Customers can take courses on mortgage financing and other topics.
The elevated café concept is expected to expand beyond Union Square; the bank is reportedly already looking to open a location in the SoHo neighborhood, but a deal has not yet been made.
Reps announce that Tortaria, the new Mexican sandwich shop and tequila bar at 94 University place and 12th Street, will open on Monday. The 65-seat space will serve tortas, taquitos, made-to-order guacamole, homemade salsas, hand-pressed tortillas, and a range of margaritas in a space that is the owners’ “reimagined take on the bodega.”
Here’s an article about an upcoming book that sounds like it takes a very interesting and pictorial look at the history of our own Union Square.