New York's only revolving restaurant slated to reopen after a revamp in Times Square
Plans are in the works to reopen the now shuttered revolving restaurant at the top of the Marriot Marquis in midtown Manhattan. Credit: Getty Images/Kazanovsky Andrey
Diners love revolving restaurants — or, at least, restaurateurs think they do.
After all, there's hundreds of the spinning dining platforms to be found around the world, including dozens in the United States. Heck, there's even one in Florence ... Alabama.
But, there's only one revolving restaurant in New York. It's located at the Marriott Marquis in midtown Manhattan. And, it's currently closed.
It won't be for long, however, restaurateur Danny Meyer of Shake Shack fame and his Union Square Hospitality Group this week are announcing plans to refurbish and relaunch the revolving restaurant this winter atop the 1,971-room hotel at 1535 Broadway and West 45th Street in the heart of Times Square — a restaurant first-opened as The View back in 1985.
But will the public buy into high-end dining at a site previously operated as a gimmicky all-you-can-eat buffet? First crashing the New York dining scene at age 27 with the hallmark Union Square Cafe in 1985, Meyer, who has since reeled off a score of successful ventures — Blue Smoke, Ci Siamo, Maialino, Manhatta, Tacocina, The Modern and, of course, Shake Shack — thinks diners will.
In a statement this week, Meyer said of the transformative project: " By combining culinary excellence with warm hospitality, we intend to create a destination dining experience and evening out — smack dab in the heart of the Broadway Theater District — that appeals to New Yorkers and visitors alike."
Brooklyn-based author Tom Roston, whose critically acclaimed 2019 book "The Most Spectacular Restaurant in the World" about the legendary Windows on the World dove headlong into New York City restaurant culture, laughed when asked about Meyer and his revolving restaurant gamble.
"Why am I laughing?" Roston said. "Because he's highbrow and he's going lowbrow."
But referring to Manhatta, a Meyer restaurant that features views of Manhattan from 60 floors up, he added: "Manhatta is a good experience — and, it's using the views in a classy way — so I guess if he's going to go in that direction then he's aspiring to Windows on the World ... and, that is definitely the standard he's going to have to achieve."
Roston said he believes that's because restaurants and dining are about more than just food. He said they're also about culture — and the dining experience. "If there's not enough culture and the food isn't good, with a revolving restaurant I guess there's still the entertainment," he said, adding: "But, just because [revolving restaurants] are here and there doesn't mean people love them ... It just means some businessman wants to draw them in."
A recent Travel Channel Food+Culture blog piece titled "10 Top-of-the-World Revolving Restaurants" offered: "The idea of eating a gourmet meal or drinking craft cocktails while rotating in a 360-degree circle might not sound very practical or conventional but when you add a spectacular view to the mix, what's not to like (unless you have vertigo)?"
Historians believe the premise of revolving restaurants dates to Rome and the Emperor Nero, though most agree the modern-day roots of the Jetson-esque idea stem from a proposal by architect and designer Norman Bel Geddes for a revolving restaurant at the 1933 World's Fair in Chicago.
The first revolving restaurant was built, in fact, as part of a TV tower in Dortmund, Germany, in 1959 — and the first in the United States, called La Ronde, was launched atop an office building at the Ala Moana Center in Honolulu, Hawaii, in 1961, followed soon after by the revolving Eye of the Needle atop the Space Needle in Seattle, built for the 1962 World's Fair.
In the 2008 book "Revolving Architecture: A History of Buildings That Rotate, Swivel, and Pivot," author Chad Randl wrote that while alternately lauded as the future of architecture or dismissed as pure folly, revolving buildings are "a fascinating missing chapter in architectural history" — one with "surprising relevance to issues in contemporary architectural design."
According to a comprehensive online list, revolving restaurants can be found, among locations worldwide, in Albania, Azerbaijan, Bangladesh, Bolivia, Cambodia, Canada, China, Egypt, Finland, France, Germany, Greece and Guatemala to India, Iran, Iraq, Japan, Kazakhstan, Kenya, Kuwait, Nepal and even in North Korea and Uzbekistan.
There are dozens in the United States, including one at the Marriott Shoals Hotel & Spa in Florence, Alabama, though there is just one in New York following the closure of the first revolving restaurant in the state, Changing Scene, which operated at First Federal Plaza in Rochester from 1977-1988.
Can a reimagined, revitalized and reopened revolving restaurant work in Times Square?
"Revolving restaurants have been around for decades, at least, and they've proved to be an entertainment draw for people," Roston said. "Though, honestly, I never went to one — and I never aspired to go to one. But he said of the Meyer Marriott Marquis venture: "If anyone can do it, Danny can."
Diners love revolving restaurants — or, at least, restaurateurs think they do.
After all, there's hundreds of the spinning dining platforms to be found around the world, including dozens in the United States. Heck, there's even one in Florence ... Alabama.
But, there's only one revolving restaurant in New York. It's located at the Marriott Marquis in midtown Manhattan. And, it's currently closed.
It won't be for long, however, restaurateur Danny Meyer of Shake Shack fame and his Union Square Hospitality Group this week are announcing plans to refurbish and relaunch the revolving restaurant this winter atop the 1,971-room hotel at 1535 Broadway and West 45th Street in the heart of Times Square — a restaurant first-opened as The View back in 1985.
WHAT TO KNOW
- New York's only revolving restaurant at the Marriott Marquis in Manhattan is slated to reopen after a renovation.
- The project is being managed by an organization that has opened other successful restaurants in New York City.
- There are hundreds of such restaurants around the world and dozens in the U.S.
But will the public buy into high-end dining at a site previously operated as a gimmicky all-you-can-eat buffet? First crashing the New York dining scene at age 27 with the hallmark Union Square Cafe in 1985, Meyer, who has since reeled off a score of successful ventures — Blue Smoke, Ci Siamo, Maialino, Manhatta, Tacocina, The Modern and, of course, Shake Shack — thinks diners will.
In a statement this week, Meyer said of the transformative project: " By combining culinary excellence with warm hospitality, we intend to create a destination dining experience and evening out — smack dab in the heart of the Broadway Theater District — that appeals to New Yorkers and visitors alike."
Brooklyn-based author Tom Roston, whose critically acclaimed 2019 book "The Most Spectacular Restaurant in the World" about the legendary Windows on the World dove headlong into New York City restaurant culture, laughed when asked about Meyer and his revolving restaurant gamble.
"Why am I laughing?" Roston said. "Because he's highbrow and he's going lowbrow."
But referring to Manhatta, a Meyer restaurant that features views of Manhattan from 60 floors up, he added: "Manhatta is a good experience — and, it's using the views in a classy way — so I guess if he's going to go in that direction then he's aspiring to Windows on the World ... and, that is definitely the standard he's going to have to achieve."
Roston said he believes that's because restaurants and dining are about more than just food. He said they're also about culture — and the dining experience. "If there's not enough culture and the food isn't good, with a revolving restaurant I guess there's still the entertainment," he said, adding: "But, just because [revolving restaurants] are here and there doesn't mean people love them ... It just means some businessman wants to draw them in."
A recent Travel Channel Food+Culture blog piece titled "10 Top-of-the-World Revolving Restaurants" offered: "The idea of eating a gourmet meal or drinking craft cocktails while rotating in a 360-degree circle might not sound very practical or conventional but when you add a spectacular view to the mix, what's not to like (unless you have vertigo)?"
Historians believe the premise of revolving restaurants dates to Rome and the Emperor Nero, though most agree the modern-day roots of the Jetson-esque idea stem from a proposal by architect and designer Norman Bel Geddes for a revolving restaurant at the 1933 World's Fair in Chicago.
The first revolving restaurant was built, in fact, as part of a TV tower in Dortmund, Germany, in 1959 — and the first in the United States, called La Ronde, was launched atop an office building at the Ala Moana Center in Honolulu, Hawaii, in 1961, followed soon after by the revolving Eye of the Needle atop the Space Needle in Seattle, built for the 1962 World's Fair.
In the 2008 book "Revolving Architecture: A History of Buildings That Rotate, Swivel, and Pivot," author Chad Randl wrote that while alternately lauded as the future of architecture or dismissed as pure folly, revolving buildings are "a fascinating missing chapter in architectural history" — one with "surprising relevance to issues in contemporary architectural design."
According to a comprehensive online list, revolving restaurants can be found, among locations worldwide, in Albania, Azerbaijan, Bangladesh, Bolivia, Cambodia, Canada, China, Egypt, Finland, France, Germany, Greece and Guatemala to India, Iran, Iraq, Japan, Kazakhstan, Kenya, Kuwait, Nepal and even in North Korea and Uzbekistan.
There are dozens in the United States, including one at the Marriott Shoals Hotel & Spa in Florence, Alabama, though there is just one in New York following the closure of the first revolving restaurant in the state, Changing Scene, which operated at First Federal Plaza in Rochester from 1977-1988.
Can a reimagined, revitalized and reopened revolving restaurant work in Times Square?
"Revolving restaurants have been around for decades, at least, and they've proved to be an entertainment draw for people," Roston said. "Though, honestly, I never went to one — and I never aspired to go to one. But he said of the Meyer Marriott Marquis venture: "If anyone can do it, Danny can."
John Valenti, a reporter at Newsday since 1981, has been honored nationally by the Associated Press and Society of the Silurians for investigative, enterprise and breaking news reporting, as well as column writing, and is the author of “Swee'pea,” a book about former New York playground basketball star Lloyd Daniels. Valenti is featured in the Emmy Award-winning ESPN 30-for-30 film “Big Shot.”
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