New Manhattan office towers are tempting employees back to their desks with a tastier amenity than pickleball courts — elaborately conceived restaurants from some of the nation’s greatest chefs and designers, opening in numbers and varieties never before seen.
The phenomenon isn’t new, of course. The Four Seasons put the Seagram Building on the map for those without the least interest in architecture. The trend gained further traction in recent years with such major signings as Daniel Boulud’s Le Pavillon at One Vanderbilt and Jean-Georges Vongerichten at 425 Park Ave.
But it didn’t hit warp speed until now, with marquee eateries signed at a crop of glamorous new commercial skyscrapers and redeveloped older ones. One office-leasing broker who didn’t want to be named said, “A new tower without a high-end restaurant would be regarded as cutting corners — which is why there aren’t any.”
The new wave inserts restaurants inside specific office towers — unlike earlier situations where they were part of large development complexes such as Brookfield’s Manhattan West and malls like the one at Related Companies’ Time-Warner (now Deutsche Bank) Center.
“Distinguishing an office property in the current market is critical to leasing success,” said Peter Riguardi, JLL tristate chairman and president. “There are a host of ways to do this, from amenities to hospitality services, but bringing in a celebrated restaurateur is especially powerful, adding a new dimension to the building while raising visibility among tenants, visitors and people throughout the city.”
Close partnerships between landlords and eatery operators took on a new dimension with Howard Hughes Corp.’s purchase last year of a $55 million, 25% stake in Jean-Georges Vongerichten’s global restaurant company, with an option for 20% more.
Although South Street Seaport operator HHC does not own office buildings in New York, the deal reflects the increasing codependency of real estate and restaurant interests.
As The Post first reported, Olayan Group signed Simon Kim’s Gracious Hospitality Management, owners of pioneering Korean steakhouse COTE, to launch a 15,000-square-foot restaurant and cafe at 550 Madison Ave., the landmarked former Sony Tower, which Olayan spent nearly $2 billion to purchase and redesign.
We can now report that the yet-to-be-named “Asian concept eatery” will be designed by premier restaurant architect David Rockwell. The hiring was a joint decision between Olayan and Gracious Hospitality, sources said.
A few blocks east, “Iron Chef” TV star and longtime New York favorite David Burke is bringing his first Manhattan restaurant in over three years to 277 Park Ave., which the Stahl Organization spent $120 million to modernize.
Burke’s massive, nearly 7,000-square-foot Park Avenue Kitchen, an American brasserie, will open in the fall.
Chef Boulud plans to launch a French-style steakhouse at SL Green’s One Madison, a $2.2 billion restoration and expansion at Madison Avenue and East 23rd Street.
Not coincidentally, Boulud also runs Le Pavillon at the developer’s One Vanderbilt.
Tishman Speyer’s Hudson Yards-district tower the Spiral will soon welcome another multiple-Michelin-starred chef, Gabriel Kreuther, whose namesake restaurant on West 42nd Street has long been a culinary destination.
“A new tower without a high-end restaurant would be regarded as cutting corners — which is why there aren’t any.”
Anonymous office-leasing broker
In a collaboration with the developer, Kreuther and partner Eben Dorros will operate a 5,700-square-foot eatery as well as an all-day casual cafe at the 1,000-foot-tall Spiral.
Also at the Spiral, Brooklyn’s Llama San team is planning a 6,000-square-foot Peruvian-Japanese place to bow later this year or in early 2024.
Although all parties are tight-lipped about how the deals are structured, brokers and restaurant owners say they typically combine a lease with revenue-sharing arrangements. The mutually advantageous arrangements often include landlord contributions to pricey buildouts and very low starting rents to cushion operators until the city fully recovers from the pandemic-induced slowdown.
But some insiders are skeptical that any restaurant can rescue a landlord from a likely recession and a workforce that still spends too many days at home.
“You could have 10 Michelin stars in your building,” a broker snarked, “but they won’t fill all the offices being put up for sublease.”
