New York icon Madison Square Garden debuted new suites, high-end concessions, and other improvements as part of a $1 billion renovation—yes, billion—that lasted three years and finished in October. Guests now arrive at the new Chase Square Seventh Avenue entrance, move through wider concourses, and view video and replays from a massive new center scoreboard. There also are new dressing rooms, locker rooms, greenrooms, and production offices. For corporate entertaining, the arena has 96 suites offered in three tiers as well as several new all-inclusive club spaces.
An instant hot spot as soon as it opened in February—Alexander Wang’s fashion week party was at the venue—Gilded Lily is a subterranean bar and club. Guests enter through a black elevator into an interior designed by Roman & Williams. There is a floor embedded with gold glitter, a sunken dance floor, and a massive chandelier that is synced to the music. The 4,000-square-foot space seats 150 seated guests or holds 250 for receptions.
The 761-room Park Central Hotel New York in Midtown West, located midway between the theater district and Central Park, finished a multimillion-dollar renovation from Jeffrey Beers International in October. There is a total of 15,000 square feet of event space including 11 meeting rooms, one boardroom, and a ballroom. The ballroom and adjacent room hold 860 for receptions. In early 2014 the property opened Park Kitchen, a contemporary American restaurant from chef Nathaniel Eckhaus.
While it has a Spanish name, chef Bobby Flay's new restaurant Gato serves a Mediterranean menu with items such as lamb tenderloin and scallop tartare. Designed by the Rockwell Group, the 3,640-square-foot restaurant in NoHo retained the building's exposed brick walls and vaulted brick ceiling and added flooring in a hex tile pattern with blue, black, white, and terra-cotta hues. The main dining room seats 117 and has a 12-seat lounge at the front of the restaurant. It opened in March.
Chalk Point Kitchen, a market-to-table restaurant in SoHo, and the Handy Liquor Bar located beneath it, opened in late March. Both venues are from IndieFork and feature menus from chef Joe Isidori, a specialist in sustainable seafood who previously worked as executive chef for Donald Trump and his resort properties. The 70-seat restaurant is designed in a vintage farmhouse style with decor sourced from antique markets in Pennsylvania and upstate New York. Succulents and herbs growing in planters are used as decoration and in cocktails. Downstairs, reached through a separate entrance, is the bar. With dark woods, Chesterfield sofas, and a fireplace, it has a club-like feel. There is a baby grand piano and a Wurlitzer jukebox, as well as audiovisual equipment and free Wi-Fi. The room holds 160 for receptions. Both spaces are available for buyouts, and they are soundproofed to allow for separate events to be held simultaneously.
Bodega Negra, an offshoot of a British concept, opened at the Dream Downtown hotel in February, replacing the former Marble Lane. Its design elements include a copper-penny disco ball, screens made of repurposed Mariachi uniform details and guitars, and banquettes upholstered in reclaimed military tents, animal hide, and traditional Mexican serape textiles. The Mexican eatery seats 108 and provides private dining for 24 guests.
Fabio Cucina Italiana, an Italian restaurant in Midtown East, opened February 5. The space has large red and gold banquettes in the center of the room that are divided by a table of Italian cookbooks. There is a 12-seat private dining room on the main level as well as a 25-person dining room downstairs that has audiovisual equipment for presentations.
The Flatiron restaurant Bo's Kitchen & Bar Room opened in October with a New Orleans-inspired menu. Chef Todd Mitgang serves dishes such as fried alligator, shrimp and grits, several preparations of oysters, and peach cobbler. The bar menu includes classics like the Sazarac as well as creations from mixologist Jeremy Strawn such as the Antebellum, which mixes bourbon, blood-orange tea, lemon, and mint. In addition to the 60-seat bar/lounge and dining room, there is a downstairs lounge dubbed Garden District. Both floors are available for private events.
In Brooklyn's Boerum Hill neighborhood, the French-American restaurant French Louie opened in late February. The 50-seat eatery is from the team behind another well-received Brooklyn restaurant, Buttermilk Channel. The mid-century design features a wood-paneled bar, leather banquettes, and a hand-painted mural featuring the restaurant's namesake, 19th-century folk hero Louis “French Louie” Seymour, a French-Canadian lumberjack. A 40-seat garden is set to open later this spring, and the garden as well as the dining room are available for buyouts.
Pillars 37 and Pillars 38—two modern, industrial-style raw event spaces—opened in August. Located a block from the Jacob K. Javits Convention Center, the spaces can be combined for more than 8,000 square feet of space. Both spaces have white interiors, high-gloss white floors, and patios. Relish Caterers is the in-house preferred caterer.
Just in time for 2014, Britney Spears debuted her show Britney: Piece of Me at Planet Hollywood Resort & Casino in Las Vegas. Marking the beginning of her two-year residency at the fully reconstructed Axis Theater, the pop star’s production is a compilation of more than 20 hits. It features a four-piece band, 14 dancers, elaborate sets, over-the-top costumes, and high-end technology.
As an alternative to serving unhealthy snacks such as muffins and doughnuts, Chicago company SnackItToMe customizes healthy snack boxes for meetings and events. “Our mission is to rework the corporate snack culture,” says founder Todd Barancik. Packs include whole-food goods such as pumpkin seeds and organic snack bars from small manufacturers. Items are all-natural, calorie-conscious, and preservative-free.
Farm & Fable is a new Boston shop that sells antique cookbooks and vintage kitchen goods. In a basement demo kitchen, owner Abigail Ruettgers hosts cooking classes for private groups of 10. Sample class topics include oyster shucking and beverage pairing, plus pies and tarts. The venue is also available for receptions of 40 guests.
Eleni’s Cookies in New York offers a new collection of emoji cookies that shows a variety of the expressive faces often used to illustrate texts and social media posts. Eleni’s can customize the treats with corporate logos and messaging.
En Ville Catering in Toronto now offers a spaetzle station. A traditional German dish, spaetzle is a comfort food easily set up at meeting or event spaces with just a tabletop burner and a frying pan. Plus, it’s not frequently seen on event menus. The stations are staffed by chefs and let guests top their dishes with condiments such as savory whipped cream, spinach, and smoked bacon lardons.
The Elements collection from Cort Event Furnishings includes eclectic rental decor pieces such as cages, candelabras, vintage trunks, and greenery. The line, available in Cort’s home base in the Washington area as well as nationwide, mixes materials such as rustic wood and metal furnishings appropriate for trade shows, meetings, or private events.
Enticing Tables designs one-of-a-kind metal event decor pieces in the company’s Southern California workshop. The collection includes uniquely shaped centerpiece and ceremony stands, cupcake and cake stands, and arches and chandeliers, and each item is fabricated by hand.
Jubilee, the longest-running show on the Las Vegas Strip, closed at the end of January and reopened in March after undergoing a major transformation under the direction of creative director and choreographer Frank Gatson Jr. Group tickets for the show at Bally's Las Vegas are available for 10 or more—but keep in mind, the showgirl revue is not right for every audience, so know your crowd.
Serve milk and cupcakes at your next meeting with an order from B Cupcakes, which opened a second location in Orlando suburb Winter Park in December. Among the bakery’s 20 daily flavors are sweet potato, salted caramel, and key lime, all based on owner Sheila Norton’s grandmother’s recipe. Milk comes in 10 flavors like toasted marshmallow and chocolate mint. Delivery is available.
PGA National Resort & Spa in Palm Beach Gardens, Florida, offers a mobile gourmet food truck, which it’s calling iTruck. Designed to cater golf events, weddings, and other private gatherings, it serves fare such as lobster sliders, truffle fries, crab fritters, and burgers. The vehicle also caters off-site events.
For a new take on event signage, Ultra Vista Systems offers 3-D lighted signs. The Los Angeles company can customize signs with illuminated brand names, logos, or art in a lightweight and low-voltage design.
