Next week (January 28 to February 1), material and equipment deliveries and installation work will continue on all floors inside the building as well as roof work. Additionally we will begin work on the new sidewalks around the building.
The following week (February 4 to February 8), Material and equipment deliveries and installation work will continue on all floors and roofs as well as sidewalk work.
This weekend the site will be open on Saturday, January 26th for interior, superstructure and sidewalk related activities between the work hours of 7AM and 5PM as permitted by the City.
7:00 AM Morning Running Club with Paragon Sports (Fitness)
7:00 AM Boot Camp with Circuit of Change (Fitness)
8:00 AM Yoga with Jivamukti (Fitness)
10:00 AM Yoga StoryTime with Karma Kids (Kids)
11:00 AM Gazillion Bubble Show – The Next Generation (Kids)
11:15 AM Baby Loves Disco (Kids)
12:00 PM New School Jazz (Music)
5:00 PM Performance by Peridance Contemporary Dance Company (Music)
6:00 PM Salsa with Baila Society (Dance)
Heres an NY1 video report on how well the commercial spaces ringing Union Square are doing, depsite the failures of Circuit City and Virgin.
Parks & Recreation Commissioner Adrian Benepe announced the selection of the City Farm Café as the new operator of a seasonal café in Union Square Park, managed by O-V Hospitality Group, LLC (“O-V”), a New York-based restaurant management firm.
From May through October, anticipated to begin in 2012, this seasonal café will provide park users with a casual and affordable food service in the newly restored historic Pavilion in Union Square Park, part of a long tradition of unique and diverse food services in City parks. In keeping with Union Square Park’s history as the birthplace of the City’s first Greenmarket and with the Parks Department’s initiative to provide varied and healthy food options in City parks, City Farm Café’s menu will feature seasonal produce and other food products from the Union Square Greenmarket.
In the off-season, the Pavilion will be used for a range of educational and recreational activities open to the public from November through April. The Parks Department plans to sponsor childrens’ programs, fitness programs, and films, and the Greenmarket plans to organize public education programs to encourage healthy eating habits.
“City Farm Café submitted an inventive proposal for a seasonal café that will take full advantage of the locally grown and produced fresh food sold at the Union Square Greenmarket,” said Commissioner Benepe.
From Gothamist.com:
Fragrant bricks of dark, heavily seeded rye. Marshmallow puffs studded with peanuts, a swirl of caramel hidden inside. Smorrebrod piled with bright, blackcurrant herring, or roasted chicken salad. Gooey cinnamon and chocolate “socials.” Hot rolls stuffed with ham and messy with eggs. Intensely chocolatey Truffle Logs. Ole and Steen, aka Lagkagehuset, a Danish bread and pastry shop which opened on Thursday in Union Square, wants to be your new everything bakery, a place to sit and enjoy a full meal, or grab a coffee and a treat (or a box of treats), or a loaf or three of bread. Given how exceptional everything I’ve eaten here over the past couple of days has been, it has a very good shot at doing just that.
Founded in 1991, in Copenhagen, by Ole Kristofferson and Steen Skallebaek, there are more than 90 of these in Denmark and the UK, but the Union Square flagship is the bakery’s first outpost in this country. It will not surprise you that, like its international-chain baked goods predecessors here (Breads, Le Pain Quotidian, Maison Kaiser), the company is planning on opening more shops in NYC, and already have two spaces leased and under construction in Midtown. But until then expect legions of homesick Danes, Brits, and anyone who appreciates first-rate sweets and carbs to descend upon this spot.
Most of the baking is done right here at the Union Square location—they prep the long-fermented dough at a commissary kitchen in Long Island City—but there’s still plenty of room left for seating for about 70, available at both the street level and in a large dining room/hang out spot downstairs. The real action, of course, is up front, with breads and pastries stacked high in the window looking out onto Broadway and at the long counter just inside the door. Even during the general mayhem of opening day, the young staff was speedy, efficient, and eager to answer the many questions thrown at them by Lagkagehuset newcomers.
The menu is long and appealing, but a few highlights from a couple of preview events these past few days include an insanely rich and delicious Peanut Pie, which is basically a chocolate covered brownie stuffed with peanuts and caramel; the dense and chewy loaves of Rugbrød, or Danish rye bread; the Chistianshavner, a fluffy fruit tart, available in small or large sizes, and featuring one of the best crusts—hazelnut with “cookie crumble”—you’ll ever eat; and the Marzipan Slice, which is actually more like a log, and will satisfy that very specific almond-cake craving like few other pastries in town.
In addition to the breakfast dishes (Skyr Yoghurt Pots, bowls of Porridge) and an array of sandwiches and salads, there’s also hot food such as Chicken Meatball Stew, Brandt Beef Soup, and Herb Roasted Salmon. Coffee, juices, beer, and wine provide liquid refreshment.
Ole and Steen: Lagkagehuset is located at 873 Broadway between 18th and 19th Streets and is open weekdays from 6:30 a.m. to 10 p.m., and on weekends from 7:30 a.m. to 10 p.m. (929-209-1020; oleandsteen.us)
The annual holiday market runs till 8PM nightly (7PM on Sunday) through 4PM on Christmas Eve.