Would you like to see this exact shot of 25th & 10th, but 100 years ago?

From the New York Historical Society

Companion post to the post immediately below. Check out what 10th Ave used to be, replete with the train tracks and horse-drawn carriage-taxis. You’re here for just a moment, my friends.

Something a little apocalyptic is going on at 25th & 10th, formerly Joe’s Tavern

Neighbor John writes in with a question: what’s going on with the dilapidated building on 25th & 10th (pictured here)? We took a walk down there and can confirm that the scene is a bit apocalyptic—we couldn’t even make out what the old bar sign used to say, and we see a Polymarket banner posted with questions that are provocative to the point of insanity (“What are you voting for?” - and then “Retirement” “Gun Control” “Climate” and “Housing,” as though I can hop on my phone right now and make $50 betting against housing…). Anyway, we did a little digging and there is actually quite a bit of history here—here is what we found:

As detailed quite colorfully in this blog, that very old sign says “Joe’s Tavern,” and Joe appears to have closed his tavern around the late 1980s or early-1990s‍. More on Joe, from the comments to the article:

The “Joe” was Joseph Luka b. 1912 a bartender who immigrated from Hungary in 1931. He married Clara Kocsis from Virginia in 1946. They and their two children lived in the East 80s in the Hungarian section of Yorkville.

[…]

Joseph Luka made the news in Nov of 1956 when he threatened to jump from his apartment window at 355 E 83rd. When the police arrived he was half out the window with his wife holding his leg. It was probably a publicity stunt as he addressed the gathered crowd on the ground floor about the need to help fight the Soviets who had invaded Hungary earlier that year. He was carted off to Bellview for observation.

Also, in the late 1800s, the spot was a saloon owned by a “Martin P. Grealish” and evidently was selling beer under the tagline “It’s a Man’s Beer.” The property has been owned by NYC (designated as Block 722, Lot 74) for as far back and we can trace property records, possibly because the city seized the property in the last 1980s due to unpaid property taxes. From the city’s perspective, the entire lot is currently valued at $3.073 million (Zillow estimates $5.1 million) and the building has one commercial unit (i.e., Joe’s former spot downstairs) and three residential units above, at least two of which appear to have people actually living in them, based on the air conditioners and shades in the windows.

So what does this all mean for purposes of your neighbor’s original question? The tavern that was formerly Joe’s has been out of service for nearly 40 years and the owner doesn’t have any incentive to do anything about it because the owner is the city and isn’t paying anything in property taxes. For things to change, someone who really loves a fixer upper will have to come along and buy the place off the city, probably for pennies on the dollar.

In the meantime, from the comfort of our apartments and phones, we can all continue to bet on gun control, retirement, “climate,” and housing. We’re short all four, if you were wondering.

Guys sitting on 21st Street stoop have been out there for a while

Two very old friends spotted on 21st Street between 9th & 10th (right across from the Vanderbilt NYC campus we posted about below).

Olly Olly on 26th & 11th has a pop up flea market this Sunday [SATURDAY, sorry] from 12-4pm

We have written before about the little flea markets that occasionally pop up at Olly Olly, which is inside the historic Starrett-Lehigh building on 26th Street & 11th Avenue. This Sunday, October 17, 2026, a flea market is again popping up at Olly Olly from 12-4pm—this is where you can get your vintage clothes, handmade jewelry, pottery, art pieces, and the like. There is also a ton of incredible food at the Olly Olly; the Thai place called Kinn Thai and pizza place called Honey Pie Pizza are stand outs. Recommend you stop by and browse.

Ed note: This took place on October 17th, not 18th. Whoops. Hopefully you looked at the picture rather than the writing.

Imagine a world where you don’t have to choose between a coffee shop and a flower shop

The basic problem with getting you somebody who can do both is actually finding somebody who can do both. We at High Line 28 are at your service at least in some respects, including the coffee respect, and so we occasionally take it upon ourselves to do the heavy lifting of life for you. The latest result of those efforts is our discovery of a coffee AND flower shop called Ora La Casa de las Flores‍, which opened on 24th Street & 9th Avenue in February 2026. Trust us on this; this is your new favorite place to meet a friend, work on a laptop, or even buy a bouquet. Turns out life isn’t always about choices and tradeoffs.

The first thing we have to say about Ora La Casa de las Flores (which refers to “Ora,” the owner’s mother, and then “the house of flowers” in Spanish) is that it is absolutely huge for an NYC cafe. This is not a flower slash coffee shop; it is really a flower shop when you walk in on 9th Avenue and then a coffee shop as you wander towards the back. The block-approved move is to walk slowly through the flowers and then go for the cappuccino, slice of pecan apple pie, and your laptop (Ed note: no wifi yet, so charge your phone and be ready to turn it into a hotspot). There are large rooms right near the coffee shop space that, when we showed up randomly on a Saturday morning, were hosting an entire flower-cutting event and a Hispanic Heritage craft event‍ (which you’ll see in the pictures here). Somehow the owners, Guztavo and Tangni, have already managed to turn Ora’s casa into a community gathering place. That, we think, will happen when you create a bright, floral, celebratory yet somehow still quiet place that is perfect for parties of one to parties of one hundred to—really everything in between.

Highly recommend.

Vanderbilt campus on 21st Street between 9th & 10th will let you walk around this Sunday

We wrote a few weeks ago about the new Vanderbilt NYC campus opening to its first class of students. Mostly understandably, the gates on 21st Street have been shut to the public since we added it to our regular walk around the time of our original post. Neighbor Lauren now writes in informing us that this Sunday, October 18, 2026, Vanderbilt will be opening its gates for an “open house” from 12-4pm. Architects will be on scene to answer your questions about the historic Gothic buildings on campus. We will wander down this Sunday and encourage you to as well.

Korean wellness and beauty spot called “Noona’s” opening on 20th Street & 7th Ave

“Noona” means older sister in Korean and is used exclusively by a younger brother to refer to an older sister. So in serious honor of someone’s little brother (Ed. note to him and probably you as well: you really need to call your older sister and probably your mother as well), a Korean wellness and beauty establishment called Noona’s is opening soon on 20th Street & 7th Ave. As we understand it, the owner Christine Kim is cultivating a lounge-like atmosphere that should feel like your tasteful and approachable older sister’s room. It will serve coffee, smoothies, and small bites (some of which you can see here); and then at night it turns into a wine bar.

We’ll reach out to Christine and report back here with more information, including anticipated opening and hopefully a description from the noona’s mouth as to what she’s got in store here. Really happy to have this opening up in our neighborhood.

“Memoirs of Amorous Gentlemen,” a musical, now playing on 27th Street

“Memoirs of Amorous Gentlemen,” a musical based on a Japanese manga novel by the same name about a literary and disassociating sex worker in 20th century France, is playing from September 25, 2026 through January 3, 2027. Venue is The Culture Club, the former site of Sleep No More (between 10th & 11th Aves). You can see some rehearsals here and a write-up from New York Theatre guide here, excerpted below:

In Memoirs of Amorous Gentlemen off Broadway — the first Japanese manga to be adapted into an American musical — Colette (Beetlejuice's Sophia Anne Caruso) is a dreamer in twentieth century Paris who uses her writing to cast herself out of her place at a brothel. In her writing, she transforms the fantasies, confessions, and private sorrows of her eccentric clients, turning herself from object into observer. All the while, she has a desire even she can't outrun: a lingering, destructive attachment to Léon, her childhood love.

Memoirs of Amorous Gentlemen is a thrilling and sharp new musical about passion, connection, and the power of writing. Moyoco Anno is one of Japan’s most renowned manga artists, known for her complex look into character psychology, and now her story comes to the stage. Now, Tony Award winner Rob Ashford directs this new musical from Sheik, who passed away in 2026, and Leah Nanako Winkler.

We love this space on 27th Street and highly recommend seeing any show you can here.

Restaurant row is really in Chelsea

With some respect to 46th Street between 8th & 9th Avenues (shown here), “restaurant row” is rightfully in Chelsea. Start at 25th Street & 9th Avenue and mosey just five streets down and here are the world-class restaurants you’ll pass along the way: Txikito (Spanish Basque), Sullivan Street Bakery (a bakery…), Shukette (Middle Eastern), Lilli and Loo (Chinese), Pastai (Italian), Qanoon (Palestinian), La Bergamote (French), and Tradicionale (Filipino). Bocca di Bacco and Remo’s (both Italian) are also in the same stretch and while we haven’t been ourselves, both come highly recommended by some of our top contributors. Truly a crisis of riches and cuisine around here.

Comic Con is back at block convention center

North America’s (and this block’s) most attended fan convention, Comic Con, is back this year at our very own the Javits Center (note: the largest fan convention in the world is “Comiket,” held in Tokyo every December). Running on its usual Thursday to Sunday schedule (October 8 - October 11, 2026), the gathering celebrates comic books, graphic novels, and the like, and approximately 250,000 people were expected to attend this year. One of our chief investigative photojournalists compiled the gallery, featuring Captain Jack Sparrow, that you see here.

Inside Javits, you can wander from comic-specific station to station and find whatever comic books or figurines or trinkets that you’re into. For us though, it’s really about the swarms of ghostbusters and power rangers and catwomen who descend upon and wander around our block and the High Line and the subway and the Vessel year after year. Happy to have you all back next year.

“FBI” filming on 28th Street on October 19th

The guy’s name who created Law & Order is the one and only Executive Producer Dick Wolf (go ahead and picture his white name against the black background). Executive Producer Dick Wolf isn’t evidently making enough on Law & Order royalties and so he went ahead and created a sister-looking show on CBS called FBI. Season 9 of FBI is filming next Sunday and Monday (October 19 and 20, 2026) on 28th Street between 10th & 11th Avenues. Here’s the trailer, and here’s the Law & Order sound effect. ‍

“Tulsa King,” starring Sylvester Stallone, filming on 28th Street on Oct 12

You might not have thought a show called “Tulsa King” would be filming in our neighborhood on October 12, 2026, but here we are. Here’s the Wikipedia and here’s the trailer; it stars Sylvester Stallone as a mob caporegime named Dwight who was released from prison in New York and is then sent by his boss to Oklahoma, evidently to establish criminal operations down under. Season 4 (code name “King Street”) is filming here next week, and so you get the sense that Dwight might have gotten a little homesick.

We love a good mob movie around here and the trailer looks like a party. Sly Stallone is set against 50 Cent music in the background, and we see a Suge Knight-type character, one of the guys from Silicon Valley, and even Pat McAfee in the trailer.

I will say I think that it might be time for the 80-year old gangsters to consider passing the torch to the next generation of tough guys (similar views on our government officials…), but for now, happy to have Tulsa King on our block.