Last night was the last time New Yorkers could dine at the Four Seasons in the Seagram Building. The iconic restaurant served its final meal on Saturday evening, a year after it became public that its lease in on East 52nd Street would not be renewed. After a final bash for Citymeals on Wednesday, which featured prominent chefs such as Jean-Georges Vongerichten and Daniel Boulud enjoying a barefoot dip in the pool of the Pool Room, it was “business as usual” Saturday night, though nostalgia seemed to be in the air. “It’s like attending a wake,” said one first (and last) time visiter. The owners of the Four Seasons plan on reopening nearby, and the contents of the former space will be auctioned off later this month. (New York Times)
Meanwhile Presumptive Republican vice-presidential pick Mike Pence has already gotten right to work alienating New York voters with his culinary choices. The Indiana governor stopped by NYC for the official announcement of his new gig, and opted to dine at, of all places, a Chili’s in Teterboro, NJ. Twitter was merciless after seeing the smiling photo-op from the popular, yet decidedly un-New York, chain restaurant, with many comparing it to Donald Trump’s infamous Cinco de Mayo tweet. Maybe the Republican duo should just stay away from knockoff Mexican food… (DNAinfo)
A 21-year-old MIT student struck and killed by an allegedly drunk off-duty policeman in Williamsburg has been remembered glowingly by his high school wrestling coach. “He was the greatest kid in the world…He was an All-American boy,” Scott Weidemier said of Andrew Esquivel, who was in New York for a summer internship with mobile marketing firm Appboy. After driving his SUV on the sidewalk and hitting Esquivel early Sunday morning, Officer Nicholas Batka refused a breathalyzer at the scene and is being charged for manslaughter and seven other counts. (Daily News)
After last week’s mass overdose in the Bedford-Stuyvesant neighborhood that sent 33 people to the hospital, Sen. Chuck Schumer is pushing legislation that would add 22 synthetic drugs to the federal list of banned substances. The main drug in question is K2, a form of synthetic marijuana that is made from legal materials, but the bill would also include three derivatives of fentanyl and a number of others that mimic marijuana’s psychoactive effects. Five bodegas in Brooklyn were raided on suspicion of being connected to Tuesday’s mass overdose, but this bill would attempt to curb synthetic drug use on a legal level. (CBS News)
Technology and sex is a combination that strikes fear in the hearts of parents everywhere, but the New York public hospital system is using it to raise sexual health awareness among teens. A new campaign by NYC Health and Hospitals is encouraging young people ages 12-21 to seek confidential care, including STD testing, from any of 20 YouthHealth centers in New York City. The campaign uses *those* emojis, like the eggplant and the peach, in their ads to show that the centers are useful resources that understand where teens are coming from. According to state law, children do not need permission from parents for certain sexual and reproductive health care services, but many are unaware of the resources that exist for them. (New York Times)
