LOWER EAST SIDE—It was pretty well known that LES French-Asian fusion restaurant Chubo was struggling. Now, we hear that they are abandoning their current concept and will be reopening as a French bistro. From the restaurant: "Restaurant Chubo, located at 6 Clinton Street in heart of lower east side will be morphing into a French bistro sometime this summer. We are in search of a managing partner who will help us realize this concept. Please e-mail credentials to chubonyc@aol.com. Monetary investment required." Yes, that last part is especially important. [EaterWire]
RED HOOK—If you're worried about the uncertain future of the Red Hook Ballfields vendors, well, here's a new blog resource for you. From a reader, "I'm sure Serious Eats will put together something smarter on this, but in the meantime I put up a quick blog with all the relevant info and emails: http://savesoccertacos.blogspot.com/." Might as well stop by and check it out. [EaterWire]
CHELSEA—The unfortunate shuttering of Bright Food Shop and Kitchen/Market might have been the beginning of the end for Chelsea. From a tipster, "I know you guys covered the Bright Food/Kitchen Market closing, but it looks like higher rents are squeezing the whole neighborhood. It appears that Havana Chelsea and their best in breed Cuban sandwiches has closed, their storefront being closed since the 1st and Murray's Bagels celebrated their new cash registers with 5% price hikes across the board. The sneakiest price raise I saw in the neighborhood was "The Bagel Store" on 6th @ 18th, where one day their prices stopped including tax, giving them an instant 8.375% price hike. Oh and one of the two seedy adult stores on 6th appears to have gone out of business next to where Sleepy's used to be." [EaterWire Inbox]
WEST VILLAGE—Neighborhood sandwich and coffee stop Café Angelique has been shut down by the DOH. From a reader, "Thought you'd be interested - Café Angelique on Bleecker and Grove was shuttered as of Monday night, for DOH violations." [EaterWire Inbox]
BROOKLYN HEIGHTS—More DOH cafe carnage from Brooklyn. A tipster reports, "Walked by Brooklyn Heights wine bar/cafe Tazza this morning to find it DOH'ed. It's a shame; their coffee is the best in the area by far. A sign on the door next to the yellow sticker said they were still dealing with the red tape, but would be open soon. I can't recall seeing a timeframe for when." [EaterWire Inbox]
