Pete Wells of the New York Times issues a call to action: Downtown needs diners now     This is a big hit for businesses that get by on small margins, and for workers who are often paid by the hour. A few places may not survive. All will struggle…   Not one of these establishments requires help as desperately as a family whose home was destroyed by water, fire or wind. Basic food and shelter are urgent requirements for many New Yorkers this week.   But a city where doing many things at once is as natural as breathing can certainly help out more than one cause at a time. Right now, these restaurants, the people who own them and, even more, the people who work for them, need us. And we need them. Downtown's restaurants show us who we are.   Read the rest of his editorial here.  The photo above was taken at East Village Pizza on 1st Avenue near 9th street. It was one of the few places open during the blackout that I saw in East Village.
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