This year saw the opening of many significant event and meeting venues in New York. Here's a look at the best restaurants, party rooms, hotels, corporate event venues, conference centers, and private rooms to open in 2017. These new and renovated New York venues suit groups large or small for private and corporate events, business dinners, cocktail parties, conferences, weddings, and more.
Dream Downtown, a sister property to Dream Midtown, renovated its PHD Rooftop Lounge. The New York hotspot updated its indoor/outdoor space with new furniture, furnishings, and art. Offering dramatic views of the Empire State Building as well as of the Hudson River, the 4,400-square-foot lounge holds 350 guests for reception-style events. The space's amenities include two full-service bars, a DJ booth, audiovisual equipment, and a retractable canopy.
Hospitality legend Ian Schrager opened his Public Hotel this summer, and it quickly became a magnet for celebrity-filled events. Herzog & de Meuron designed the 367-room property, which features more than 13,000 square feet of indoor and outdoor event space. Also on site are a Jean-Georges Vongerichten restaurant; a modular, multimedia venue that can serve a variety of functions; and an outdoor garden designed by Madison Cox.
Following a four-month closure for a renovation, the much-lauded restaurant Eleven Madison Park reopened in early October. The fine-dining mecca—a frequent honoree of citywide and national best restaurant lists—underwent an architectural and interior redesign led by Brad Cloepfil of Allied Works Architecture. The changes included a new private dining room that seats 38 as well as new chairs, banquettes, carpet, flooring, light fixtures, and plates. Two other private rooms seat 34 and 18. Buyouts are available for 200 standing in the main dining room. Staff also have a new look: uniforms also were created by Todd Snyder, a nominee for C.F.D.A. Menswear Designer of the Year.
The eco-friendly luxury 1 Hotel Brooklyn Bridge, located at Pier 1 on Brooklyn Bridge Park, opened in February. The 194-room hotel has 20,000 square feet of event space, including a 50-seat screening room and a seasonal 4,000-square-foot rooftop area overlooking the Manhattan skyline and New York harbor with a pool, a bar, and fire pits. The hotel was home to Vanity Fair's first Founders Fair, which celebrated female founders and entrepreneurs.
From its opening in 1969 until its closure in 2016, the Ziegfeld Theatre in Midtown Manhattan showed more world premieres of Hollywood blockbuster films than any movie theater in the United States outside of Los Angeles. Building on that rich history, an upgraded version of the venue, renamed the Ziegfeld Ballroom, opened this fall with a color scheme of silver and grays to tie into its Art Deco heritage. Design of the column-free venue also drew inspiration from Rockefeller Center and the SS Normandie, a 1930s luxury cruise liner. The ship’s coffered ceiling, as well as the Lalique glass light pillars that flanked the dining room, are closely echoed in the Ziegfeld’s design. The space seats 900 for a reception and dinner. Additional seating for 250 may be added in the balcony, which overlooks the ballroom and has sight lines to the stage.
The Grill, a restoration of the iconic Grill Room at the former Four Seasons Restaurant, was the first of three restaurants by Major Food Group to open in Midtown's Seagram Building. Featuring mid-century-style decor and table-side preparation and service, the venue seats 120 or holds 240 for receptions. Captains sport tuxedos designed by Tom Ford. Major Food Group's other concepts to open in the building include the seafood spot the Pool; a converted private dining room now dubbed the Pool Lounge; and the Lobster Club, a Japanese eatery that took over the former Brasserie space.
Opened in September, the 612-room Moxy NYC Times Square brought some youthful energy to Midtown. The first location of the millennial-minded brand from Marriott in New York, the hotel offers 22,000 square feet of event space. Function areas include the 10,000-square-foot, all-season rooftop Magic Hour Rooftop Bar & Lounge as well as three 270-square-foot meeting rooms, a private dining room, and multipurpose lounge spaces with moveable and interactive seating. The property also is home to Legasea, a 185-seat seafood restaurant from Tao Group, which handles food and beverage operations.
The draw at Lovage Rooftop & Indoor Lounge is the 360-degree views of New York City, including the Empire State Building, Freedom Tower, Statue of Liberty, Times Square, and the Hudson River. The latest concept from Addison Hospitality Group, the venue debuted in April in New York’s Hell’s Kitchen neighborhood. The upscale space spans some 4,000 square feet both indoors and outdoors with a total capacity of 300 for receptions. While the space is ideal for summer entertaining, private events during colder months can still take advantage of the views thanks to 17-foot, floor-to-ceiling windows.
Bringing one of the city’s most famous sushi dens to Lower Manhattan, Nobu Downtown arrived in April. For the bar and lounge, Rockwell Group’s design was influenced by the art of Japanese calligraphy. In the dining room, furniture is upholstered in patchwork fabric inspired by Peruvian folk traditions, with Japanese patterns. The restaurant can hold 262 and is available for full or partial buyouts.
Following their success with ABC Kitchen, chef Jean-Georges Vongerichten and Paulette Cole in February opened AbcV, a 75-seat restaurant serving vegan and vegetarian dishes, earlier this year. Designed by ABC Carpet & Home creative director and C.E.O. Paulette Cole, along with Amy Ilias and ABC's senior creative team, the new eatery's interior decor is white and various shades of the sunset. The restaurant is available for buyouts; there is no private dining space.
