Hello everyone. The worst thing for this newsletter is not a slow news day, it’s a hangover. The second worst thing for this newsletter is spending all morning at Café Telegrama with my favorite Los Angeles people — Ellie Chen and Jensen Neff from Oddli,
, , Ally Walsh from Canyon Coffee, Miles Fisher, and everyone else I got to see this morning. Remember when Cheddar would record live from the Flatiron Building? Attempting to finish today’s letter in front of everyone kind of felt like that.There will be more hats online in a few days, and I’m open to more merch suggestions (but I’m generally anti-tote.)
Today’s newsletter includes: Restaurants are beginning to include Substack in their social strategy, Playboy’s new editor, underground New York mafia poker games, Chris Black on Lanserhof’s fundraise, and Moda Operandi thinks they can plan your next vacation.
I’ve always said if you love capitalism and markets, you should love Canal Street. This week, far-right influencer Savanah Hernandez posted about “illegal migrants” selling bags and watches on Canal Street. A few days later, over 50 federal agents stormed the neighborhood and arrested nine men, mostly from West Africa, for “criminal activity relating to selling counterfeit goods.” I believe living in New York is coming to appreciate the different black and gray markets and informal economies that make the city run – merch stands outside Penn Station during a Knicks game, people that sell churros in the subway on chilly nights, and cheap umbrellas when it rains. No, I don’t like seeing school-age kids selling candy on the train during rush hour when they should be with other kids their age. And I don’t like being heckled when I’m walking down the street by fake monks. But Canal Street is an institution! It democratizes looking fly. I famously carry a $5 Chanel wallet I bought on Canal Street two years ago (sorry Chanel team who reads this newsletter). I also believe masked men should not be hauling people off the street and detaining them without due process.