And in an even more inescapable sign of what is to come, a Starbucks may be headed for Erie Street. A pricey bakery is opening not far from the French restaurant. Farther west, on Fourth Street, where youths once chucked rocks at newcomers, there is a tiny French restaurant called Madame Claude that since October has featured escargot ($8.50) and crème brûléee ($5). A renovated dive on Newark Avenue is a lounge bar that since September has been selling beer in fluted glasses and attracting a diverse crowd. On Grove Street, across from City Hall, a storefront that was boarded up for years is now a cafe that sells Belgian beer for $12 a bottle. In a short time, Uncle Joe's has transformed itself from a run-down gay bar on First Street to a live-music venue for up-and-coming bands - the only one of its kind in this city of about 240,000, long a haven for blue-collar workers and immigrants. ''It's been kind of amazing to watch, to see this transformation,'' said Ralph Cuseglio, 27, who attended high school here and is now the lead singer of Rye Coalition, a well-known local band.
