New York Today: How’s He Doing?

Damon Winter/The New York Times

Updated 10:45 a.m.

Good Monday morning to you.

The moderate weather has inspired us to take stock of our liberal mayor.

Twelve days is not a long time to run a city.

But because first impressions can be both lasting and telling, we asked the City Hall bureau chief of The Times, Michael M. Grynbaum, to look back at the fledgling administration of Bill de Blasio.

- Over all, Mr. Grynbaum said, things have gone relatively smoothly for the mayor - “with the notable exception of his pizza faux pas on Friday.” (Mr. de Blasio’s regular-guy image took a global hit when he ate pizza with a fork.)

- After a few sour notes on inauguration day - critics said some speakers struck a tone of unsportsmanlike hostility toward former Mayor Bloomberg - the weather handed Mr. de Blasio a perfect beginner’s snowstorm.

“There was enough snow that Mr. de Blasio could preside over storm briefings and claim credit for the successful clearing of streets,” Mr. Grynbaum said. “But not so much that he was forced to confront a serious crisis early on.”

- On the politics front, the mayor notched a victory with the election of Melissa Mark-Viverito as City Council speaker.

- At news conferences, Mr. Grynbaum said, Mr. de Blasio is “carving out a unique style, putting on a far more jokey and goofy persona than his more staid predecessor.”

- What’s next?

“There are still dozens of city agencies that remain leaderless,” Mr. Grynbaum said.

The mayor also said he would outline a formal role for the first lady, Chirlane McCray, whom he has described as a valuable adviser.

How do you think Mr. de Blasio is doing so far? Tell us in the comments or on Twitter with #nytoday.

Here’s what else you need to know for Monday.

WEATHER

March-like: sunny with a high of 51 and puffs of wind.

Rain moves in overnight and into Tuesday.

COMMUTE

Subways: Check latest status.

Rails: Check L.I.R.R., Metro-North or New Jersey Transit status.

Roads: Check traffic map or radio report on the 1s or the 8s.

Alternate-side parking is in effect all week.

COMING UP TODAY

- Mayor de Blasio meets with Cardinal Timothy M. Dolan at the cardinal’s Madison Avenue residence.

- City officials discuss proposals for fire safety in high rises in the wake of a fatal fire last week in a Hell’s Kitchen condo. 11 a.m. at City Hall.

- On Long Island, Senator Charles E. Schumer, fishermen and charter-boat operators launch an effort to get regulators to relax quotas on fluke. 11 a.m.

- Readings from the Afghan Women’s Writing Project at the Richmond Hill Library in Queens, with the project’s director, Masha Hamilton. 6:30 p.m. [Free]

- An illustrated lecture on the 15th-century painter Piero della Francesca at the Italian Cultural Institute on the East Side, on the eve of the opening of a show of Piero’s works at the Met. 6:30 p.m. [Free]

- The Grammy-nominated Cuban singer Adonis Puentes performs at Rockwood Music Hall on the Lower East Side. 9:30 p.m. [Free]

- A lecture on the history of American vegetarianism at N.Y.U.’s Department of Food Studies. 6:30 p.m. [$40, with veggie burger sliders]

- A concert to benefit Syrian refugee children, featuring the music of Shostakovich, at Carnegie Hall. 8 p.m. [$35 and up]

- Actors read from celebrity autobiographies, and hilarity ensues, at the Triad Theater on the Upper West Side. 9 p.m. [$35 and up]

- For more events, see The New York Times Arts & Entertainment guide.

IN THE NEWS

- City economic officials have suggested five new ferry routes, including ones from Astoria in Queens and Soundview in the Bronx. [amNewYork]

- A fire at a Citibank branch uptown burned for 30 hours. [New York Times]

- The community board on the Lower East Side will vote on whether to name the corner of Ludlow and Rivington streets “Beastie Boys Square” [New York Post]

- Making a comeback: graffiti-tagged subway cars. [Daily News]

- Scoreboard: Rangers ground Flyers, 4-1. Islanders dim Stars, 4-2.

AND FINALLY…

Concerning the mayor’s fateful pizza fork:

You can now pay it a personal visit.

It sits behind the bar at Goodfella’s Pizza on Staten Island.

In a plastic police evidence envelope â€" courtesy of one of Goodfella’s owners, Marc Cosentino, a retired police sergeant.

“People are coming in and having their pictures taken with it,” Mr. Cosentino said. (See photo.)

Someday, Mr. Cosentino said, the restaurant may auction the fork for a fund-raiser.

Mr. Cosentino conceded that the fork has been washed, removing traces of the mayor’s DNA â€" a glaring procedural misstep, and evidence-tampering to boot.

“The only thing we have is the chain of evidence,” he said.

Joseph Burgess and Maureen Seaberg contributed reporting.

New York Today is a morning roundup that stays live from 6 a.m. till late morning.

What would you like to see here to start your day? Post a comment, email us at nytoday@nytimes.com or reach us via Twitter using #NYToday.

Find us on weekdays at nytoday.com.