Latest news with #Waldorf-Astoria
New York Post
5 days ago
- Entertainment
- New York Post
Lex Yard at the new Waldorf Astoria is a wonder that reinvents the legendary hotel's stuffy old reputation
The reopened Waldorf-Astoria deserved a great new Waldorf salad. Michael Anthony, chef at the hotel's Lex Yard restaurant, goes one better. His re-invention of the 100-year-old recipe not only improves on the country-clubby original, it lives up to the entire hotel's spectacular, oft-delayed, $2 billion transformation. Like its Art Deco surroundings, Anthony's salad is lightened, brightened and reconstituted for a new generation. Just as the hotel retains its landmarked Peacock Alley lounge and other interior pleasures, the salad builds on the original salad's basics — celery, apples and grapes. 6 The classic Waldorf salad has been reimagined at the newly renovated Waldorf Astoria. Paul Quitoriano 6 Lex Yard occupies two floors in the iconic hotel. Courtesy of Waldorf Astoria New York First devised by hotel chef Oscar Tschirky in 1896, the Waldorf salad has never been a favorite of mine. Too often a cloying, mayonnaise-slathered affair whether in diners or fancy restaurants, the old warhorse was sometimes propped up with corn or raspberries. No matter, the result was the same: a bland heap of unrelated items tossed with cheap green lettuces and weighted down by gobs of mayo. Anthony, who's also the chef of well-loved Gramercy Tavern, said his aim was to 'keep it simple, visually appealing and memorable.' His boldest stroke was to replace mayo with a tingling, lemon-tinted aioli that flatters all the elements, which are fine-chopped into a chiffonade that's like a picnic on a plate. The salad tosses little gem lettuce, frisee, candied walnuts, fresh tomatoes, grapes and toasted sunflower seeds, beneath a cloud of grated cheddar cheese. All the bitter and sweet flavors, and crunchy and soft textures, come through cleanly and clearly defined. It's a great summer dish that will surely shine year-round as elements are changed with the seasons. It's the must-have item on the menu, and it's offered both as part of $140, four-course prix-fixe and for $26 a la carte. 6 A fully loaded lobster roll is one of many pleasures on the menu. Paul Quitoriano 6 Black bass makes for a light-but-flavorful summer dish. Paul Quitoriano 6 A red velvet souffle is vastly better than the red velvet cake that was once served at the hotel. Paul Quitoriano It will take weeks to experience the menu's full depth, but Anthony was at the top of his game on opening night with dishes such as pan-roasted black bass in a dark-hued, pleasantly sweet bouillabaisse sauce ($48), a sparkling Maine lobster roll ($53) that lived up to the waiter's description as 'fully loaded'; and a dangerously delicious, fresh-made red velvet souffle tart ($22) that laughed at the old dessert list's supposedly iconic but commercial-tasting red velvet cake. It was a thrill dining at Lex Yard on Wednesday, when the reborn hotel got its first heartbeat in nearly eight years. (A handful of guest rooms are open with the full-scale opening to include the grand ballroom planned for September.) Japanese restaurant Yoshoku, off the main lobby, was already near-full, while Peacock Alley buzzed with the sound of lounge-goers delighted to find the fabled venue looking better than it has in several generations. 6 Chef Michael Anthony is also the chef at Gramercy Tavern. Courtesy of Waldorf Astoria New York The two-level Lex Yard is more casual on the ground floor where voices from a lively bar permeate the scene. The more plush second level, where I sat, is more luxurious with richly upholstered booths and carpeted floors. It also unfortunately comes with a view through mullioned windows of floors-full of styrofoam boxes inside a building that seems under eternal renovation. July's quiet and hot summer days are springtime for Lex Yard. Catch them before autumn brings cooler nights — and the hordes who wondered for eight years if they'd ever set foot in the Waldorf-Astoria again.
New York Post
7 days ago
- Entertainment
- New York Post
Iconic Waldorf-Astoria brings back Big Apple's ‘grand hotel' style — here's what guests can expect
The Waldorf-Astoria Hotel's September reopening, five years later than first planned, will be well worth the long wait. The magnificently restored, reborn Waldorf-Astoria brings back the Big Apple's 'grand hotel' style, with glorious public spaces open to everyone and worthy of the inn's iconic legacy. New York City's great hotel lobbies fell one by one over the decades. Even the Plaza's once-spectacular entrance is a shadow of its old self. Advertisement 8 The magnificently restored, reborn Waldorf-Astoria brings back the Big Apple's 'grand hotel' style, with glorious public spaces open to everyone and worthy of the inn's iconic legacy. Waldorf Astoria New York The Waldorf's public portion, on the other hand, is so large, I almost forgot that more than half of the building was converted to condo apartments. (The inn's 1,400 guest rooms were pared down to 375, although they're much larger than the old ones). The Waldorf hosted the likes of Marilyn Monroe, Grace Kelly, Frank Sinatra, and global royalty. It was a key art of the city's celebration fabric for nearly a century. Advertisement But after it closed in 2017, relaunching it fell far behind schedule due to construction issues, COVID-19 and an unexpected change in Chinese ownership. The many delays that The Post first reported will be forgotten when visitors have their first look at the ground floor opening this week, before the first room guests arrive on Sept. 1. 8 A view of the lobby in 2014. AP 8 The Waldorf will reopen in September, five years later than planned. Waldorf Astoria New York Advertisement The new Waldorf-Astoria, an Art Deco icon of New York City since 1931, is a sight to behold. Its landmarked lobby and Peacock Alley lounge between Park and Lexington avenues never looked so beautifully burnished since I first saw them a half-century ago. Two gorgeous new restaurants, a magnificent marble floor and a welcoming porte-cochere entrance on East 49th Street elevate the Waldorf to a higher realm than the faded, tourist-trampled inn of the recent past. Fears that 19th Century murals and other interior details would be lost turned out to be baseless. All were meticulously restored by project architect Skidmore, Owings & Merrill and interior designers Pierre-Yves Rochon and Jean-Louis Deniot under the watchful eyes of the Landmarks Preservation Commission. 8 Newly renovated Peacock Alley lounge between Park and Lexington avenues. Waldorf Astoria New York Advertisement 8 Hotel guests in 2014. AP The famous floor mosaic 'Wheel of Life' near the Park Avenue entrance is so perfectly restored, it looks as France's Louis Rigal assembled its 148,000 pieces this year rather than in 1931. Much of the vast ground floor was reconfigured to improve sightlines. The check-in counter that forced Peacock Alley revelers to stare at piles of luggage was relocated. Gone are old lounges such as notoriously tacky — and sometimes scandalous — Sir Harry's Bar. Peacock Alley's walls in dark maple and black marble columns are magically lighter on the eyes than previous blue panels. The Waldorf clock, commissioned by Queen Victoria in 1893, was cleaned and polished to look new. 8 Cole Porter's Steinway piano in Peacock Alley. Waldorf Astoria New York Composer Cole Porter lived at the Waldorf, where he composed Broadway hits like 'Anything Goes.' His Steinway piano reposes serenely in the lobby where waitstaff sport outfits by designer Nicholas Oakwell — with silver silk blazers and waistcoats for women, three-piece check suits for men. The restaurants are a special pride of hotel managing director Luigi Romaniello. Lex Yard, a plush, two-level affair helmed by Gramercy chef Michael Anthony, opens on a limited basis for dinner tonight. Japanese cafe Yoshoku will open in stages as well. The Peacock Alley bar's cocktail menu was devised by Jeff Bell of downtown Please Don't Tell fame. Advertisement 8 Lex Yard, a plush, two-level affair helmed by Gramercy chef Michael Anthony. Waldorf Astoria New York 8 Park Avenue Junior Suite bed Waldorf Astoria New York There'll be live music, Romaniello said — 'nothing intrusive, maybe jazz.' I hope he sticks to that. Peacock Alley's enchanting surroundings don't need a cabaret to transport guests to heaven.
