East Village Irish Bar Shutters After 24 Years in Business

Long-running tavern shutters in East Village

After 24 years in the neighborhood, Irish pub St. Dymphna’s at 118 St. Mark’s Pl., between Avenue A and First Avenue, has permanently closed. EV Grieve reports rumors of a rent increase, though the official reason for the closure has not been confirmed. Owners Eric Baker and sisters Patrícia and Raquel Sanguedo posted a farewell on Instagram, thanking regulars.

Two coming attractions

Small coffee cafe chain Cocoa Grinder will open a new outpost in the East Village at 45 East First St., between First and Second Avenues. In addition to coffee drinks, there will be an all-day menu with breakfast items like poached eggs and salmon as well as burgers, protein shakes, and fresh-squeezed juice. Signage has also gone up for a new outpost for noodle shop NuNoodle at 130 First Ave. near St. Mark’s Place.

Katz’s to host panel on Jewish delis

Iconic Jewish deli Katz’s Delicatessen will host a panel on the future of Jewish delis on November 7 at the Henry Street Settlement. Sitting on the panel are Katz’s owner Jake Dell, Russ & Daughters owner Niki Russ Federman, the Gefilteria co-founder Jeffrey Yoskowitz, the author of Knish: In Search of the Jewish Soul Food Laura Silver, and OneTable associate director of community partnerships Sarit Wishnevski, with Food & Wine’s Jordana Rothman hosting. The conversation will explore what a Jewish deli meant 100 years ago versus today. Tickets, available here, are $55 per person, and include catering from Katz’s after the panel.

Health department asks food and beverage companies to cut down sugar

NYC’s Department of Health is one of nearly 100 health departments across the country calling on processed food and beverage makers to lower the amount of sugar in their products by 20 percent by 2025. Condiments like ketchup are caught in the crosshairs of this initiative, along with the more obvious targets like cookies, frozen desserts, breakfast cereal, soft drinks, and candies.