Project Description
Perched on the 60th floor of the first International Style building in Lower Manhattan, the restaurant Manhatta and event space Bay Room just opened to great acclaim. Inspired by Walt Whitman’s “Manahatta” poem, the 90-seat restaurant celebrates the cultural and industrial history of the neighborhood, while echoing the midcentury sensibilities of the building. Together, Manhatta and the Bay Room encompass 38,000 square feet and offer stunning exposures on all four facades of the building, spanning north to Midtown, west and south to the Hudson River and the Statue of Liberty, and east to Brooklyn’s famous bridges and waterways. Manhatta’s 40-foot long, black walnut bar is one of the longest in the city and, with a backdrop of the island of Manhattan, creates a buzzy energy leading into the open kitchen and luminous wine wall. Beyond the kitchen is one of two serene dining areas, which feature warm woods and walnut tabletops, exposed stone, polished bronze ornamentation, and mid-century chairs. Muted and mature, Manhatta rejects glitzy gimmickry in favor of enduring materials in tones of honey, coffee, and deep aquamarine. Leather and walnut, granite and silk, brass and bronze compose the rich material palette. The arc pendant lights are perforated bronze, designed to minimize reflections on the picture windows.