Sotheby's Bids Big on Fine Dining With Renowned NYC Restaurant Team

"New York City's cultural institutions have been amping up dining by partnering with known chefs and restaurants to attract New Yorkers, particularly those with deep pockets. Just this month, cult-favorite film production company A24 (behind Oscar-winning picture Everything Everywhere All At Once) reopened West Village neighborhood theater Cherry Lane with Wild Cherry, a new French restaurant run by chefs Lee Hanson and Riad Nasr, the duo behind Frenchette and Le Veau d'Or."

"Now the latest cultural institution union and restaurant team comes from design studio Roman and Williams (which worked on spaces like the Tin Building and Le Coucou and operates Soho French restaurant La Mercerie) and fine arts auction company Sotheby's, which Eater NY reported earlier this year. Fine dining French restaurant Marcel and French bakery La Mercerie Patisserie will open inside Sotheby's headquarters (which hasn't opened yet) on the Upper East Side at 965 Madison Avenue, between East 75th and 76th streets, in spring 2026."

"The striking Breuer building has undergone many past lives over the years. Most recently, it had been the temporary home of the Frick. Before that, it was the Met Breuer, when the restaurant space had been seafood spot Flora Bar, which closed at the beginning of the pandemic; the Whitney Museum resided in the space from 1966 to 2014. Sotheby's bought the building for nearly $100 million in 2024."

New York cultural institutions are increasingly partnering with renowned chefs and restaurants to enhance on-site dining and attract affluent visitors. A24 reopened Cherry Lane in the West Village with Wild Cherry, a French restaurant from chefs Lee Hanson and Riad Nasr. The Frick Collection introduced Westmoreland operated by Union Square Events. Rita Rodi and Jody Williams of Via Carota will overhaul dining at the Metropolitan Museum of Art and the Met Cloisters beginning in 2027. Design studio Roman and Williams and Sotheby's will open Marcel and La Mercerie Patisserie inside Sotheby's Upper East Side headquarters in spring 2026. Sotheby's acquired the Breuer building for nearly $100 million and plans galleries and auction spaces in November.

Read at Eater NY