BLT Fish Is Just a Little Tacky; Corn Strippers Now in SoHoAstoria: Tonight is trivia night at Dillinger’s on 30th Avenue, which means $5 pitchers. [Joey in Astoria]
Brooklyn Heights: Uncommon Grounds is closed for renovations, and it looks like the coffee shop’s application to set up outdoor seating will get approved. [Brooklyn Heights Blog]
Coney Island: Since Thor Equities can’t start developing any time soon, the company has handed out leases to eight vendors to keep the fryers operating until next fall. [Lost City]
East Village: Some pork hater tagged the entrance of Vanessa Dumpling with the word “LARD.” [East Village Idiot]
Red Hook: LeNell’s is hosting a bourbon festival on the 23rd with a tasting, discounts, and even alky ice-cream made on the spot. [LeNell’s]
SoHo: Wondering how to get those kernels off the cob? Sur La Table sells a Corn Stripper that actually works. [Serious Eats]
Tribeca: Ceci-Cela may still be cranking out croissants on Chambers Street, but there’s a “Store for Lease” sign in its window. [Grub Street]
Union Square: Bruni extols the virtues of BLT Fish, but warns would-be diners that the upstairs and downstairs spaces differ greatly, and the Laurent-Tourondel cookbook listing on the menu is tacky. [Diner’s Journal]
Neighborhood Watch
Just 9,680 More Signatures Needed to Preserve Coney IslandChinatown: Tow-happy deputy inspector Gin Yee instills fear in government officials: no more double-parking for dumplings. [downtown express]
Clinton Hill: The Pan Y Mas grand opening, and the 49-cent coffee it promised, has come and gone. [Clinton Hill Blog]
Coney Island: Online petition to battle Thor Equities needs 9,680 more e-signatures. [Kinetic Carnival]
East Village: Birdies chicken restaurant takes over Flor’s space on First Avenue, panders to the stereotype that old ladies and chicken naturally go together. [Gothamist]
Flatiron: Shake Shack open early! [Eater]
Midtown East: Hip new Pod Hotel soon to have “bitchin’ roof deck” and bar. [Gridskipper] Upper West Side: Saigon Grill’s delivery workers continue strike; “Fat Guy” implicates all of us. [egullet]
West Village: A campaign backed by Virgin Atlantic, Tea and Sympathy, and celebs like Mischa Barton looks to rename part of Greenwich Avenue “Little Britain.” [Englishman in New York]
Williamsburg: Almost all the ice-cream trucks involved in last Tuesday’s Koolman garage fire were indeed damaged. [i’m not saying, i’m just saying]