NEW YORK Tavern on the Green said they backed out of negotiations after determining that costly renovations and higher fees would prove difficult to recoup in the slowed economy. —Several potential bidders on the contract for
The May 18 deadline to submit proposals to take over the contract for the renowned restaurant came and went, and the field of bidders was winnowed from approximately 150 to just a handful of contenders, including the LeRoy family, which currently operates the iconic New York City restaurant. That contract is set to expire Dec. 31. —Several potential bidders on the contract for
High-profile restaurateurs, including Union Square Hospitality Group’s Danny Meyer, Alan Stillman and the Brennan family all dropped out. Still in the hunt are the LeRoys; Dean Poll, operator of the Central Park Boathouse restaurant; and Capitale’s Seth Greenberg. —Several potential bidders on the contract for
“We were enticed,” said Ti Martin, co-owner of Commander’s Palace in New Orleans. “We came up for one of the walk-throughs and were very much intrigued. After all, this is the most iconic restaurant location in the country.” —Several potential bidders on the contract for
Martin projected that renovating the restaurant, which is located on the west side of New York City’s famed Central Park, would have cost between $25 million and $40 million. —Several potential bidders on the contract for
“We looked very hard at it until the very end and then did not put in a bid like a lot of others,” she said. “It’s a complicated, expensive project that is, when you put pen to paper, difficult to make work. Maybe you can renovate a hotel and make those dollars back quickly, but at a restaurant it’s hard to make those numbers add up.” —Several potential bidders on the contract for
The demands of the city’s Parks Department, according to the request for proposal, or RFP, “would have made it unlikely to make much of a profit, if any,” she added. —Several potential bidders on the contract for
Martin also noted that the state of the economy would put further pressure on any operator taking over the contract, since many fine-dining restaurants have experienced huge drop-offs in traffic and revenue since the recession started. —Several potential bidders on the contract for
“Our world has changed, and it’s hard to predict if Tavern’s sales would have remained in place,” she said. “Recently, they had closed on Mondays and Tuesdays [for regular dining service]. That tells you the direction things were going in.” —Several potential bidders on the contract for
Tavern on the Green spokeswoman Shelley Clark said the restaurant did close two days a week during the winter but since May 4 has resumed dining service seven days a week. —Several potential bidders on the contract for
Despite his initial interest, USHG’s Meyer said he, too, ultimately decided to drop out of the bidding after reviewing the city’s RFP on the property. —Several potential bidders on the contract for
“After careful consideration, we elected not to submit a bid for the restaurant to succeed Tavern on the Green,” he said. “As passionate New Yorkers, we were excited and tempted by the opportunity to envision how to transform such a magnificent place into a new institution for our city to cherish.” But, he continued, “after a thorough review, we ultimately concluded that the overall business opportunity unfortunately did not make sense for us at this time.” —Several potential bidders on the contract for
The Boathouse’s Poll, however, said he has the financing to take over the project and is excited at the prospect of winning the Tavern contract. —Several potential bidders on the contract for
“My proposal very clearly addresses the capital expenditures,” he said. “Certainly, it has its challenges, but I’m up for the challenge. The economy is what it is and will be what it is for as long as it will be. But eventually it will get better. One thing I know for sure is there will be a restaurant at 67th Street and Central Park West, and who better to operate that facility than Dean Poll? —Several potential bidders on the contract for
“Tavern is not only a tremendous investment of money, but also of time,” he continued. “I think that a lot of the operators who dropped out very wisely chose not to get involved because the amount of work involved in Tavern on the Green would take them away from their core businesses. I have one restaurant on Long Island and the Boathouse in Central Park. I purposely chose not to pursue other restaurants because the Tavern contract was coming up and I wanted to be able to handle that undertaking.” —Several potential bidders on the contract for
Along with renovating the restaurant, another major requirement in the RFP is an increase in the amount of revenue the city would garner annually from the restaurant. —Several potential bidders on the contract for
Cristina Deluca, a spokeswoman for the city’s Parks Department, said the operators of Tavern, the Boathouse and Terrace on the Park in Flushing Meadow Park in Queens, all signed agreements that called for a minimum annual fee, versus the percentage of gross annual receipts. At the Boathouse, the fee is $1.1 million, and if sales exceed that figure they must pay the city 16 percent of their revenues. In the case of Terrace on the Park, the annual fee is $2 million, and if sales exceed that figure, they must pay 20 percent of their gross annual receipts. —Several potential bidders on the contract for
“Under Tavern’s old contract, there is an annual minimum fee of $1 million, versus 3.5 percent of the gross annual receipts,” Deluca said. “So in 2007 and 2008 they reported a little over $36 million [in sales] and paid us $1.2 million. That’s a little different than the agreement we’d make now. The agreement we had before was 20 years old. We’re looking to bring it more in line with our other concessions.” —Several potential bidders on the contract for
Tavern’s Clark said that the LeRoy family is committed to maintaining the contract to operate the restaurant. —Several potential bidders on the contract for
“At this point we’ve addressed everything we’ve been asked to,” she said, “and we’ve come up with what we think are some good solutions to problems we think already exist, including the physical structure as it exists right now and, obviously, the financial portion.” —Several potential bidders on the contract for
Tavern on the Green originally opened in 1934, and the LeRoys have run the operation since 1973. The restaurant is visited by as many as 650,000 diners annually. —Several potential bidders on the contract for
If the LeRoy family loses its bid, it would still own the Tavern on the Green name, which has been appraised at around $19 million. The right to use the Tavern name or the restaurant’s ornate design elements, including the numerous lights and mirrors decorating the space, would not be transferred to the new operator. —Several potential bidders on the contract for
Poll, however, said he is ready to deal with that potential complication if his is selected as the winning bid. —Several potential bidders on the contract for
“I haven’t been awarded the contract, so I can’t put the cart before the horse,” he said. “But if I am awarded the contract, I will deal with the [intellectual property] issue then. I would consider all options available to me at that time.” —Several potential bidders on the contract for
The parks department is expected to select the winning bid in July.— [email protected] —Several potential bidders on the contract for
