When E.V. Grieve reported that Joe & Pat's, a 57-year-old pizzeria on Staten Island, would be moving into the space, many of us felt hopeful. Lanza's would not become a Starbucks or an artisanal bone brotherie. It would, at least, remain Italian--and New York.
But I worried about the antique murals.
Now the renovation of Lanza's has begun. I recently walked past this troubling sight--scaffolding, wheelbarrows full of concrete. They're putting in a new floor, which is alright--the old floor of Lanza's wasn't anything special.
What about the murals?
When I peeked inside I saw plastic sheets taped to the walls--and I am going on the assumption that they are there to protect the murals.
If you click the photo below twice, you can see, above the shoulder of the young man in the "Extreme Violence" t-shirt, the painting of the half-topless woman beneath a plastic sheet. She's not as fully covered as she ought to be, however, so let's hope for the best.
You can also see that the pressed-tin ceiling has apparently been removed--hopefully for refurbishment and re-installation.
And while we're hoping, let's hope all the antique stained glass makes a comeback, too.
2 comments:
If all those valuable accouterments are going to be restored, what's the point of a "renovation." No. Lanza's is gone. and what will replace it will be an old-timer's nightmare.
PS- I hope I'm wrong.
"artisanal bone brotherie"
tee hee hee hee!
I shouldn't laugh, though, because I'm sure this sort of thing actually exists in this foul year of our Lord two thousand and seventeen.
I was mocking the precious, precious lifestyle people recently by referring to them as the "hand-made, artisan ice cube crowd" but then, horrifyingly, I learned that there is actually such thing as hand-made artisan ice cubes - to then be placed at an ironic angle in their craft cocktails.
It was then that I decided in no uncertain terms that I'm done with Planet Earth.
Too much. Much too much.
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