Good Morning & Happy Friday!

• This past week provided a great preview of the summer. Especially loved the trippy music events happening all around NYC, from the LES where the Abracadabra Trip bus, helmed by the amazing Laura Newman, entertained the crowds outside of the New Museum, to Central Park where the Robot Heart Foundation’s Fare Forward played for a ginormous burner crowd (#2 below).
• Also exciting to see so many new restaurants opening on the Bowery. Two worth noting: Belse (plant based), opens next week, and it looks beautiful; and Ainslie, in the old Vandals space, scheduled to open late-Spring. But most exciting is Gjelina (out of LA) opening on Bond St. later this summer (#3).
• And finally, keep an eye out for the dreaded e-commerce reset. Already happening among once high-flying pandemic-brands – and, of course, accompanied by a string of layoffs (#10).

To find out more, please scroll down for this week’s Top 10.

1. [watch]: Video Recap

2. THE “BURN” COMMUNITY takes over NYC

• Saturday April 30th was a BLAST. Discovered the Abracadabra Trip Bluebyrd Art Bus outside of the New Museum on the Bowery. Such a great vibe – big shout out to the fabulous Laura Newman (singer/producer).
• Then headed up to Central Park to check out the scene at the Robot Heart Fare Forward Music Festival. It was a WILDLY colorful affair!

3. Major new restaurant openings!

Ainslie Opening Soon on the Bowery!

• Restaurants on the Bowery have a dismal track record. Fingers crossed Brooklyn’s Ainslie has what it takes to thrive in this space. If so, it will be a welcome addition to the neighborhood.
• Ainslie is not only an enoteca, it’s also doing some wildly creative menu collaborations, e.g., recently hosting an Underground Sushi pop-up with Chef Hamazaki (formerly of Koi).

Belse Plant Cuisine Bar & Brewery opening next week (also on the Bowery)

But what I’m most excited about is Gjelina on Bond St.

• Have only eaten at Gjelina in Venice once but the memory has stayed with me. Their charcuteries, salads, and especially the sandwiches are amazing!! Fantastic addition to the NYC dining scene.

4. Kono: major buzz. stunning!

Kono from acclaimed Japanese yakitori chef Atsushi ‘ATS’ Kono.

• This 14-seat restaurant is located in an alley off the Bowery.
• Everything on the menu is exquisitely presented and mostly delicious.
• My knowledge of yakitori cooking is limited so I did not fully appreciate some of the more esoteric menu items, e.g., chicken skin and chicken heart were a bridge too far for me. However, those dining around me, many of whom have been following the chef’s career over the years, blissed out and savored every course.
• NOTE: Kono can get very expensive, very quickly, if you opt for the extras they offer midway through your 16-course organic Amish chicken dinner. I ordered the crab legs and some mushrooms. My check came to $550 (with taxes and tip).
• But I went for the experience and it delivered and then some. Sitting at the 14-person table, chatting with interesting, well-informed fellow guests made for a perfect evening. Major highlight: Ai Weiwei (!!!) was one of my fellow diners.

Another great discovery this week: MaryLou, a French bistro, from my friend Panos Kourakos

• Food and ambiance both great. We had the coq au vin (delicious) and the mussels were the best I’ve EVER had!
• They also make an amazing Perfect Manhattan. And it’s reasonably priced.

5. SuperRare Coming to SoHo – just as NFT sales are tanking!

• This will be an interesting litmus test for NFTs since the latest data shows NFT sales have declined 92% since their peak, falling to a daily average of 19,000 this week, down from 225,000 in September. (Source: Videogameschronicle/WSJ)
• Nevertheless, SuperRare is opening a gallery at 417 West Broadway in SoHo, on May 19. The first exhibit’s theme is science-fiction and futurism. The gallery will be open through Aug. 28. (Source: thedefiant)

#MyTake: NFTs have flatlined (at least for now). Besides declining sales, active wallets are also down 88% (from 119K last November to 14K last week) and according to Google Trends, searches for NFTs peaked in January and have fallen around 80% since. Even Beeple is creating real object artwork (and converting his crypto millions into cold hard cash!!) His interview with Decrypt on the future of NFTs is fascinating (worth a read, here).

6. here’s a “real” show I’m bummed to miss: “Desert Rider” at Phoenix Art Museum 🔥🔥🔥

Desert Rider explores the sociopolitical realities and imaginative interpretations of automotive and skateboarding subcultures through works by local Arizona and regional artists, focusing almost exclusively on Latinx and Indigenous perspectives that have defined the identity of the Southwest.

• Justin Favela’s Gypsy Rose Piñata (II), 2022 is a signature piece by the artist (who I first discovered in Vegas at the Life Is Beautiful festival, link here, #3).
• Doug Miles’ “You’re Skating On Native Land” also impressive and provocative.
• If any of my art peeps are going to be in Phoenix anytime through September, check it out. Link here.

7. Lake Hop, like Uber or Lyft, but for boats (good idea? bad idea?)

• Lake Hop is a peer-to-peer boating service that connects customers to local boat owners who provide the boat and on-the-water experiences. Users don’t have to know how to drive or operate a boat because boat owners serve as captains during the experiences. (Source: kvue)
• Lake Hop experiences are available for 2-8 hours and range from $20 to $900 an hour. They can be booked online by picking a location or the kind of experience offered.
• The service started in 2021 in response to the COVID-19 pandemic boating boom and now features more than 200 boat owners in 30 states. 

#MyTake: This doesn’t seem quite like an Uber to me. Also, I have some doubts as to how well-vetted the boat owners are…..this could so easily go awry. But undoubtedly they’ll get at least one or two summers out of it.

8. Bozeman’s new Ponderosa Social Club (inspired by Soho House perhaps??)

• Montana’s first and only social club opened this week. It’s in a fairly non-descript building but all the design cues are taken directly from Soho House!
• Taylor Shull (above) owns and runs it with his dad.
• He came up with the idea after visiting “social clubs” in other cities. They specifically wanted to create a cool, “classy” place for the post-college crowd to mix and mingle.
• It’s open from 4pm-2am – so strictly social, not even a nod to co-working.
• Oddly, no membership is involved!

9. Brick-and-Mortar Retail making a comeback

• 2022 kicked off with a positive retailer outlook due to store openings outpacing store closings for the first time after three years of consecutive net closures. (Source: UtahBusiness)
• In-store sales rose 10% YOY while e-commerce transactions declined 1.8%, per Mastercard SpendingPulse
• JLL Research identified four markets on the precipice of outpaced retail rental growth: Las Vegas, Orlando, Salt Lake City, and Boise MSA. All predicted to have double-digit rent growth by 2025.
• These markets are in the middle of population growth booms, and are key areas identified for future investor demand.
• Airport retail and restaurants are also making a big comeback. (SLCabc4)

#MyTake: I MISS SHOPPING IN REAL STORES — and I never thought I would say that! And (although large swaths of NYC storefronts remain empty), I am seeing commercial spaces filling up more rapidly these days. Observationally, it seems that restaurants are taking bigger spaces and stores are taking smaller footprints, e.g., Rowing Blazers, Faherty, and Rothy’s have all taken retail spaces downtown over the past few months.

10. e-commerce reset; pandemic-boom over; tech layoffs coming

Examples:

• Amazon: slowest rate of growth for any quarter since the dot-com bust in 2001 and the second straight period of single-digit growth (revenue up 7% compared to 44% a year-ago).
• Netflix: stock dropped by more than two thirds based on a drop in subscribers with more losses expected in the spring. People have more options for entertainment now that pandemic restrictions are being relaxed.
• Meta (Facebook): lost close to half its value this year and announced this week, it will be shutting down its podcast platform after less than a year. It also plans to stop the pace of adding midlevel and senior people.
• Robinhood: the buzzy “meme stock” brokerage firm reported wider-than-expected losses and shrinking revenue. Monthly active users declined as did average revenue per user ($53, down from $137). Company went public in July 2021 at $38 per share, stock closed at $10.09 last week. Company cutting 9% of full-time emloyees.
• Instacart: Sales slowed precipitously last summer (as did the size of each order) as people returned to grocery stores. The company slashed its valuation by 40%. Top executives have abandoned ship, including two presidents, one of whom resigned after just three months.
• Cameo: the popular pandemic app that let people pay celebrities to send them customized video greetings, is laying off a quarter of its workforce (more than 80 employees).
• Ebay and Etsy: weak guidance suggests a cooldown in the e-commerce sector after a pandemic-fueled boost in online shopping.
• CVS Health: raised guidance based on customers returning to its stores for prescriptions. However, demand for Covid vaccines and testing dropped 60%. The company will close 900 stores over the next three years.

#MyTake: A long overdue reset may be in the offing but it’s still too early to make a call on how this impacts the “great resignation” mindset. We will have a clearer idea of who calls the shots at work by the end of the year. At the moment the power rests solely with workers. We will see how the balance shifts during the course of the summer.

And that’s a wrap for this week.

But not before I post my favorite look from the MET GALA (can’t believe this didn’t get more play)! Simply gorgeous.

And with that, let me wish you all a great weekend and for all you moms out there, Happy Mother’s Day.