@pauliegee123 on Instagram.

It’s been over two years since wildly popular Greenpoint pizzaiolo Paulie Giannone– better known as Paulie Gee— announced that he was planning to open a slice joint. After some fussjng from neighbors and the usual delays, there was no sign of its opening– except, of course, for the barrage of taunting Instagram shots showing some delicious-looking experiments with vegan thin-crust slices, baguette sandwiches, pan pizza squares, “OG” grandma slices, Sicilian slices, and, of course, the classic “NYC-style” slice. Now, the time has finally come. Paulie Gee’s Slice Shop has announced a grand opening of Aug. 29.
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Sure, you can beat the heat by buying cubed watermelon at the bodega, but that’s so basic. Here’s how to get your watermelon fix and be extra. 

(Photos: Daniel Maurer)

Ladle soju punch from a watermelon
At Pocha 32, 15 W 32nd St # 2, Koreatown.
Pocha 32, a second-floor pub hidden away in Koreatown, would be worth the trip even if it didn’t use hollowed-out watermelons as punch bowls. Notes written on chopstick wrappers hang from the fishnet that covers the walls and ceiling, and oil drums serve as tables. It’s a festive place for dipping a ladle into a watermelon and helping yourself to a frothy mixture of ice, soju, Sprite, and fruit puree. This is a lot of drank even for two people to share, but you can always sneak the leftovers into the Vivi lightbulb jar below.

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Yesterday we reported that national retailer Toms is opening a store and cafe off of Bedford Avenue. Turns out that an even chainier chain is opening up right around the corner. Sephora has made it official and unveiled signage indicating it’ll open a store at 241 Bedford, right next to the Apple Store, this fall.

Needless to say, they won’t be opening a tacky megastore like you’d find in Times Square. Much like Starbucks snuck onto N 7th and Bedford with its “Reserve” concept, Sephora will open a Sephora Studio, a smaller store offering “a more curated experience.”

In 2013, when Dunkin’ Donuts opened on Bedford, it registered a 6.3 on our Outrage-o-Meter. But here we are in 2018– when a Happy Socks outlet is also poised to open next to the Dr Martins on Bedford— and nobody has lamented that CB I Hate Perfume, the experimental Williamsburg perfumer that made a scent inspired by Alan Cumming, has moved to New Jersey while Sephora is making itself right at home in prime W’burg. All the opposite:

https://twitter.com/caseymcquillen/status/1026845627966205952?s=21

Actually, as you can see below, residents have been downright lobbying for a Sephora since as far back as 2011. Does nobody miss the time when beer burps from the Charleston was the only scent wafting onto Bedford Avenue?

What a gas!

The posters around Williamsburg mimicked an ad campaign for Old Blue Last, the beer launched by Vice in 2016. But instead of advertising “Beer for Drinking” they touted Old Blue Fart: Beer for Farting. And they directed passersby to Vice’s nearby offices for a free can. Which isn’t as crazy as it sounds; the stuff is on tap there. But let’s clear the air: Vice hadn’t caught wind of the posters, so its employees had no idea over 100 people were going to show up on Monday, looking to get a buzz on.

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(Courtesy of Toms)

After popping up on Bedford Avenue last year, altruistic shoe brand Toms is opening a permanent shop in Williamsburg. The new store and cafe will open in the fall at 160 N. 4th Street, just down the block from where international clothing brands Levis, G-Star and Scotch & Soda have also set up shop.

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Over a year after hitting the market at $35,000 per month (it’s now asking about $27,000), the retail space in the former Amato Opera House building finally has a tenant. Just not a human one.

The animatronic wastrel you see in the window of 319 Bowery is an “activation” (read: advertisement) for Burrow, a company that’s trying to do for couches what Casper does for mattresses (or, for that matter, what Joybird does for couches). Clearly, Burrow’s founders, a couple of Wharton grads, are hoping the so-called Lord of Leisure becomes neighborhood lore along the lines of Zoltar, over on Second Avenue. But when we texted the brand’s name to a phone number as instructed, his response was a little underwhelming.

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HBO series The Deuce is heading into its second season, as you can see from the trailer released yesterday; today, the production is taking over Blue and Gold Tavern in the East Village. An air conditioning unit is currently hooked up to the East 6th Street dive and a public notice indicates filming will occur until about 10pm.

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The Rock and Roll Hall of Fame is notorious for getting it wrong, sparking yearly lists of snubees. (For starters, Sonic Youth and the Pixies have yet to be honored, though Kim Gordon’s and Kim Deal’s basses are currently displayed in the museum’s Guitar Gallery.) Of course, you can’t always get what you want– unless you’re the Rolling Stones, in which case you get a ton of display space. But you’d think the Rock Hall would at least get their shit straight with bands that have been inducted. Not so with the Ramones.

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On stage at the PNC Bank Arts Center last night, Billy Corgan recalled how someone, after the previous evening’s show at Madison Square Garden, asked him why the Smashing Pumpkins were playing their special 30th anniversary show in New Jersey, of all places. He explained that it was because New Jersey knew how to rock, knew how to party, and had supported the Pumpkins early on. (They played Maxwell’s in early 1991, before their debut album, Gish, came out.) Whatever the reason, those who skipped the NYC show to see them at the amphitheater in Holmdel were treated to a lively (semi-)reunion packed with cameos.

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(Screen shot via Chris Cuomo’s Instagram)

Governor Andrew Cuomo has previously referred to marijuana as a “gateway drug” (he’s more of a beer guy), but it looks like he’s finally mellowing out. After commissioning a report that recommended the drug’s legalization, the governor is convening a team to draft legislation for what’s being called a “regulated adult-use marijuana program.” Translation: legal weed. Snoochie boochies, New Yorkers.

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(Photo: Nai Tapas Bar on Instagram)

The narrow, slightly subterranean space at 174 First Avenue has been home to a tapas bar and flamenco shows since the ’90s, when tapas were described by the New York Times as a “novelty.” The original occupant, Xunta, moved to Williamsburg in 2009 and Nai Tapas Bar quickly took over the dark, date-friendly nook. Now, after eight years, Nai has moved on as well. It plans to reopen on Second Avenue next month.

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TVOTR at Rough Trade in 2014. (Photo: Daniel Maurer)

Is it 2008 again? First Interpol releases a new single, and now this. After moving to Los Angeles, TV on the Radio is heading not just halfway, but all the way home to mark the 10th anniversary of Dear Science. They’ll play the entire album live at the Knockdown Center on Sept. 20.

“For various reasons this record means a LOT to us and we’re thrilled have a chance to play it in its entirety, in New York, nonetheless,” Tunde Adebimpe said in a statement. “I’d say it’s gonna be a special night.”

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