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Help a Village small business post-Hurricane Sandy

Hot bagels fresh from the oven at Tompkins Square Bagels.
Hot bagels fresh from the oven at Tompkins Square Bagels.

After riding out the week of Hurricane Sandy at home in Greenpoint, Brooklyn, as the Greenwich Village Society office was without power, I was fairly anxious to explore somewhere outside my local neighborhood once the city got transit underway. Because my usual train wasn’t running and I had to alter my commute, I found myself walking by Tompkins Square Bagels on Avenue A between 10th and 11th on my way into the office. Since I had heard so much about the store from local blogs like E.V. Grieve and even from some GVSHP members, I decided to spend some money in a place I knew had lost almost a week’s worth of business.

I was not disappointed. The bagel was crisp on the outside and chewy on the inside, clearly hand rolled, and delicious. Helping out small businesses hurt by Hurricane Sandy, if not particularly good for my waistline, was incredibly easy. Even the New York Times is reminding New Yorkers to support downtown businesses. Restaurant critic Pete Wells devoted his column last week to reminding us that restaurants often squeak by on small margins and staff is paid only when they are working.

While you can support hurricane relief efforts in many ways, you can easily help by spending money in a local Village business. I know I enjoyed finding a great new bagel shop. We would love to hear your stories about a new business or old favorite that you support in the coming weeks. Tell us about it in the comments section.

For those of you who own a local business, WBAI has a great article featuring City Councilmember Margaret Chin that details steps you can take to get help.

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