By Kaya Laterman
Battery Park City, the man-made extension of Manhattan's Lower
West Side, has seen its share of boom and bust periods in its
relatively short history.
The multipurpose complex, standing partly on land excavated
during the construction of the first World Trade Center across the
street, currently is bustling as a residential community for
affluent families with young children. Yet dining options, one
important front for residential areas, have remained surprisingly
limited.
"We have great apartments, schools, parks and river views but
the area is a restaurant wasteland," Tom Saunders, a Battery Park
City resident since 2009, said of the neighborhood.
Mr. Saunders said the lack of variety was "shocking" when
compared with other Manhattan neighborhoods. He often finds himself
walking to TriBeCa with his wife and two children to find places to
eat out.
Perhaps the need to cross West Street in search of food could be
easing as more options open in Brookfield Place, the new name of
the former World Financial Center.
Opening in mid-May is Hudson Eats, a 30,000-square-foot gourmet
food hall on the second floor of Brookfield Place. The food hall
will have 14 casual eateries--including sandwich maker Num Pang,
Mighty Quinn's Barbeque and Umami Burger--and hopes to lure not
just the office lunch crowd, but area residents after sundown.
"We expect to do a lot of delivery business to the surrounding
residential buildings; it's a very attractive market to tap into,"
said Vanessa Palazio, one of the owners of Little Muenster, a fancy
grilled-cheese shop that also is opening as part of Hudson Eats. A
children's menu will be offered at the new Little Muenster,
something not available at the shop's other two locations.
Hudson Eats will be open until 9 p.m. daily and there will be
seating inside and outside overlooking North Cove Marina.
"Ultimately, we wanted to create a waterfront neighborhood," said
Ed Hogan, national director of retail leasing at Brookfield
Properties.
Brookfield plans to further expand food establishments with Le
District, a 25,000-square-foot French marketplace on the first
floor that will be partially open around the holiday season.
There will also be five new sit-down restaurants that are slated
to open by March 2015.
Also new to the neighborhood is Stephen Starr, who is opening El
Vez, a contemporary Mexican-American restaurant, on Friday. It will
be the fourth establishment that the Philadelphia-based
restaurateur has opened in the city.
"I first had the chance to come to Battery Park City three years
ago and I passed," Mr. Starr said. "Honestly, I was afraid to come
down here."
What convinced Mr. Starr to sign a lease were lower rents
compared with other parts of Manhattan. In addition, he said he was
attracted by the momentum generated from Brookfield Place's $250
million overhaul and the success of Union Square Hospitality
Group's three restaurants--Shake Shack, Blue Smoke and North End
Grill--that have opened in and around North End Alley in recent
years.
The canopied alley is also known as "Goldman Alley," since the
creation of it was overseen by Goldman Sachs Group Inc., which
moved its headquarters into an adjacent building in 2009 and took
charge of cultivating the surrounding retailing and dining.
"Helping to build a more vibrant community and support the
continued revitalization of Battery Park City is in all of our
interests," Timur Galen, global co-head of corporate services and
real estate at Goldman Sachs, said via email.
Richard Coraine, senior managing partner of new business and
consulting at Union Square Hospitality Group, said that in addition
to the area workers and residents, the number of bikers using the
path along the Hudson River was a sign that food businesses could
thrive in the area.
"It's exciting when you see an underserved community and you're
asked to cultivate a dining scene," Mr. Coraine said. "It gets me
up in the morning."
Also opening this summer is Pier A, a historic pier built on the
very southern tip of Battery Park City in 1886 that went through a
long renovation process. Developed by Dermot Co., Pier A will have
a casual bar area, as well as an oyster bar, a formal restaurant
and an event space.
Peter Poulakakos, a longtime lower Manhattan restaurateur who is
a partner in Pier A, Le District and other neighborhood
establishments, said the boom in eating places indicates the area
is over a hump.
"It's a vicious cycle in our world where you need three or four
places to start a restaurant community," he said. "This should stop
the previous pattern of various restaurants trading spaces and
people saying there's nothing to eat down here."
$599,000 350 Albany St., No. 2G
A one-bedroom condo with one bathroom.
Property Plus: The living room is long and wide.
Property Minus: Currently converted into a two-bedroom unit
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$1.95 million 70 Little West St., No. 5B
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Property Plus: The building is pet friendly.
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$5.95 million 2 River Terrace, No. 25A
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Property Plus: Great views of the Hudson River and the city.
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Listing Agent: Diane Gordon of William B. May, 917-770-0625
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