"[T]he man walked into Eskimix and ordered a blueberry, raspberry and banana smoothie. 'I kept thinking about how he looked like the author William S. Burroughs,' the employee, Andrew Smith, 22, said.

Then the customer pulled out a handgun, pointed it at Mr. Smith and calmly told him to empty the cash register….

The most recent robbery occurred Friday night, when the same man ducked inside Rainbows and Triangles, a gift store on Eighth Avenue that caters to gay men. He pulled out his gun and demanded money. The clerk said there was none in the register, and the man left." -It's a quiet time in the West Village, [...]