Year: 2009

Steak Frites on 16th St., which morphed into Union Prime, is morphing back into Steak Frites. Go figure

Tisserie, the fancy pastry shop that closed at the northwest corner of Union Square, will be replaced by popular British-based sandwich shop Pret a Manger. They have rather good coffee, by the way.

The flowers are back on sale at the corner deli on 13th. Problem solved.

First it was the mysterious India Pavillion, which survived for many years even though no one ever ate there. Then it was Mauricio for a couple of years. Now Da Andrea is thriving in the spot on West 13th formerly occupied by those two long gone establishments. People sure seem to like it.

Have you noticed that many dry cleaners, including the one on 13th closest to our building, are now billing themselves as “organic?” What does that really mean. Not much in reality. Click here to read an article and watch a video report.

What happened to the brisk flower business at the corner deli on University and 13th? It’s been swept away. No explanation.

The renaissance of the Jefferson Market on 6th near 11th is a letdown. While the prepared foods section is still OK, the rest of the store has been transformed into a humdrum Gristedes. All the local flavor is pretty much obliterated.

Amazingly enough in these tough times, work is going ahead on the construction of ten floors of luxury duplex condos on the corner of 5th Ave. and 13th St, where the burned out deli once stood. To read more about the history of this spot, click here.

Anyone curious about what is happening to real estate values in our neighborhood (hint: they’re going down) should know about StreetEasy, currently the best available resource for block-by-block and apartment-by-apartment comparisons of current listings, including recent prices. An invaluable resource as we navigate these interesting economic times.