The Good Old Days

It doesn’t look like much now, but a new bar, Everything’s Jake, is coming to 13th St. between University and Broadway. It’ll be your place to go for a nightcap after dinner at PF Chang’s.

Our new neighbor Ann Roth tells us about this incredible image of the 14th St. building that she dug up:

“I found the image on the web, where someone was selling a hand-colored print of the 14th Street facade, from a magazine that dates to 1891. So it clearly dates to that year (or earlier), not 1899, as all the real estate ads say. I ordered it, and they immediately took it off their site, so I can’t send you the link, but I copied the image first, so I’ve attached it. I must say, I wish it still had the fancy spire. The architects were D’Oench & Simon. Albert D’Oench studied in New York and Stuttgart, and then worked for Robert Morris Hunt (who designed the Metropolitan Museum’s facade) for a while. He was the NY Inspector of Buildings for five years, which seems to have mainly involved fire safety. After that, he had a successful architectural partnership with Albert (or Bernard?) Simon, and they designed and built several fire stations in New York. D’Oench later married the mayor’s daughter. Clearly a man with good connections. The plan calls it a “store building,” built it for Mrs. Mary S. Van Beuren, who was the granddaughter and heir of Henry Spingler (who I think has a building on Union Square named after him). She lived nearby, on 14th Street, just west of 5th, and seems to have been a bit of a sharp customer, to judge from some of the legal tussles I found when I searched her name on Google.”

Here’s what local folks are saying:

Pop diva Rihanna was spotted singing karaoke downstairs at Shanghai Square. End of report.

The Diesel store on the corner of 14th and Union Square West is no more. In its place will be a Reebok store and gym. Let’s get physical.

On a recent visit to Everyman Espresso on East 13th Street, we were stopped by a sign saying the coffee shop will close for renovations starting June 25th.  A barista inside who explained the work should take 3 – 4 weeks.  After that,  they’ll have snazzy new interiors.