Shadowman, Big Apple + HK This Week

Good morning and welcome to the weekend. We’ve been taking it to the streets. Our stories today are about street art (official and unofficial) and we check out the neighborhood in a viral music video.

The streets of New York are always in constant flux — and so is the art. Over at Hudson Yards, the cows have made way for extravagant flower displays and a 4,766-pound gorilla has swapped places with a Big Apple. Also, mysteriously, a Shadowman has appeared on W37th Street… More here…

Global superstar and “Prince of Reggaeton” J Balvin was in the neighborhood to record his latest music video with a cast of Pokémon characters. Can you spot his Hell’s Kitchen hangouts? More here…

Here’s what’s been happening in the neighborhood this week…

Hell’s Kitchen shopkeepers Matt Fox and Enrique Crame III have now become neighbors after taking over the store next door on W49th Street for a new range of vintage clothes and accessories. Welcome, Fine and Dandy Throwback to the neighborhood.

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We brought the food, the flair, and the floating cantina…now you bring the fun! La Barca Cantina is OPEN at Pier 81 and ready for a #tacosonaboat fiesta!

Now’s your time to have your say in the New York City budgeting process. Manhattan Community Board 4’s Budget Task Force is getting community input on what are the three most pressing issues facing our neighborhood (and any specific requests or suggestions). Take the survey here…

You’ll have to curtail your skateboarding and rollerblading for a while — Pier 76 is closed until October 22 for the New York City Wine & Food Festival (NYCWFF).

This week, we announced the W42ST Best of Awards 2021. It’s a long while since our readers nominated and voted for their favorite businesses pre-COVID in February 2020. The awards will run from now until mid-December — and they are again sponsored by Wells Fargo.

We’ll be announcing the categories and voting procedure over the coming weeks. In the meantime, we’re launching the W42ST Local App that includes all of last year’s winners, plus businesses recommended by our readers in our lists and their West Side Stories. Enjoy and share…

Steve Kaufman and Enza Santoro were nominated as W42ST Hell’s Heroes even before the pandemic. Then they took to the front line last March to provide vital meds and manage the rising panic with calm and professionalism while putting themselves at risk. Now the Hell’s Kitchen pharmacy they run faces closure. Details here…

If you’ve walked down Broadway recently, you might have encountered the seven gigantic, origami-inspired sculptures called Transformations by California artist Hacer. Hell’s Kitchen animator, Dystopika, was not content with the static two dark turquoise coyotes, two medium turquoise rabbits, magenta elephant, yellow dog and green bear cub — so brought them to life with his animation skills. Magical…

The installation is part of Garment District Art on the Plazas and can be seen (unanimated) between W36/39th Streets through November 23.

It’s pumpkin season! Thanks to all the readers who took the time to share their Hell’s Kitchen seasonal treats with us. We got a nice note mid-morning yesterday from Amy Scherber at Amy’s Bread, saying: “Thank you for featuring our pumpkin donut yesterday! The donut fans were out today and they sold out already!” Run, don’t walk… Pumpkin treat list here…

Congratulations to Holly-Anne Devlin of Hell’s Kitchen Neighborhood Action Committee and Joe Restuccia of Hell’s Kitchen Neighborhood Coalition, who were honored as Most Valuable Partners at the Annual Meeting of Hudson Yards Hell’s Kitchen Alliance for their services to the community during the pandemic. Details here…

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Over on 11th Avenue, Black developers, architects, builders and financiers have formed a dream team to develop a supertall skyscraper alongside Hudson Yards and the Javits Center. The 1,500-foot tower has not received critical acclaim so far. More here…

Our writer Alexandra Alexa has been researching all that’s happening in Hell’s Kitchen and the city for Halloween. Enjoy the list — and many of the best things are free (including the display at Cybert Tires)! More here…

If you cannot get along to NYCWFF at Pier 76 and Intrepid Museum this weekend — don’t worry, we’ve got you covered. W42ST’s favorite foodie, Michael Muñoz — The Kitchen Gaily, is taking over our Instagram Stories and sharing his weekend of food-filled fun!