Pret a Manger to Union Square

The Union Square Partnership is teaming up with Mount Sinai Health System and Paragon Sports to offer FREE flu vaccinations to the Union Square-14th Street community. To take part, you must register in advance for an appointment on Tuesday, November 1st. No insurance is required. If you cannot attend the clinic, please visit the bottom of our webpage for information about how to get your flu shot at several Union Square-14th Street pharmacies. There should be no cost to you with most insurance. Please note: the clinic is not happening at a Mount Sinai location, but instead at Paragon Sports at the corner of 18th Street + Broadway.

The New School says of its upcoming building:

“Although gardens are rare in a place as densely built as Manhattan, the designers of the University Center found room for a front lawn of sorts: On the setback between the seventh and eighth floors will sit the Green Roof, carpeted with a leafy green flower called sedum. And in true New School fashion, the Green Roof’s purpose is interdisciplinary, providing both decoration and a boost to sustainability. The sedum plantings help cool and heat the center by providing an extra layer of sustainable insulation. Further, sedum allows the roof to absorb 40 percent of the rain falling on the building, which reduces impact on the city’s water system. The Green Roof, which is just one part of an overall water conservation strategy for the University Center, will reduce the building’s potable water usage by 74 percent and sewer discharge by 89 percent.”

Weird that Il Laboritorio del Gelato has chosen to open at 56 University Place on the corner of 10th Street, directly across from Amorino, but so it goes.

On Saturdays Aug. 3, 10, and 17th, enjoy 8 hours of car free streets on Park Avenue S, Union Sq E and 4th Ave, with countless programs and activities from 7AM to 3PM. Summer Streets provides space for healthy recreation and encourages New Yorkers to use more sustainable forms of transportation.

Tomorrow (Tuesday 2/2) a product launch for Beyonce’s new Heat perfume will include an all-red light and fog show in Union Square for six hours starting at 6PM. Interesting.

From the Times: “Venice was Chris Jaeckle’s inspiration for this duplex restaurant. “It has always had the most global outlook of any place in Italy,” said Mr. Jaeckle, the chef and a partner. “And that goes back 800 years.” But Venice is only a starting point. He also applies a touch of Japanese flavor to the typical Venetian rice, noodles and seafood. “With these ingredients, Japanese food has a lot in common with Venetian,” he said. Sardines with typical sweet-and-sour “in saor” flavors are artistically arranged Japanese-style. A touch of miso brightens razor clams. He interprets Venetian liver and onions with monkfish liver and adds a touch of curry to spaghetti with clams. Chris Cannon, the manager and consultant, has created a list with more than 36 Italian sparkling wines (white, rosé, red and even orange varieties) to pair with the food. The upstairs dining room is relaxed and understated; the ground floor is the bar. (Opens Monday): 22 East 13th Street, 212-231-2236, allondanyc.com.”