10/31/2002: Hit the grand opening of new Ludlow Street bar/restaurant/music venue Pianos last night. Huge place hidden behind a quiet facade just across the street from Barramundi. Talked to well-pierced owner Glenn, who says he's going to have live music a la Mercury Lounge -- there's a big music space in the back. Best part is the upstairs bar, walls awash in jungle decor and long padded benches attired with pillows.

10/25/2002: Each day brings us a moment closer to learning what it is they will be selling at the new store Rice to Riches under construction on Spring between Mulberry and Mott. Today on my walk to the subway I noticed what appears to be a sink in the front of the establishment.

10/22/2002: Just when you think the neighborhood can't get any more crowded, we've noticed what looks to be two new bars opening up on Ludlow between Stanton and Rivington on the LES... the same stretch that features such stalwarts as Barramundi and Local 138. One already has its kitchy name on the door: Tenement. The other is still a mystery. Meantime, we made a late-night stop at Suba's grotto last Saturday, and can report that the scene is still a scene. If you've never checked the place out, it's worth a drop-by for the jaw-drop (though probably not a meal). But my go-to neighborhood retreat remains Lolita down at the corner of Allen and Broome, a place that's always perfectly uncrowded, with great tunes to boot. It took the title from the Lotus Club when Ken spotted live vermin therein... don't ask.

10/21/2002: Two spots visited this past summer that are great choices for a slightly more upscale meal. Down in Tribeca, new seafood restaurant Fresh (105 Reade St.) amazes with unexpected preparations and trippy interior decor. Closer to the dear Lower East Side is Cafe Lebowitz in NoLiTa (14 Spring St.), a strange German bistro that somehow works.