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NYC notables mull Tavern on the Green bids

NYC notables mull Tavern on the Green bids

NEW YORK Tavern on the Green, one of the most famous restaurants in Manhattan and one of the highest-grossing eateries anywhere, with annual sales estimated at $37.6 million. —Interest is mounting among restaurateurs as this city’s parks department prepares to open up for bidding in December the right to run

The request for proposal, or RFP, is expected to go out sometime next month, said Cristina DeLuca, a spokeswoman for the New York City Department of Parks & Recreation. Although details of the proposal are not yet known, a bidding war is expected to ensue. —Interest is mounting among restaurateurs as this city’s parks department prepares to open up for bidding in December the right to run

A number of established operators, from Union Square Hospitality Group’s Danny Meyer to Central Park Boathouse operator Dean Poll to the Myriad group’s Drew Nieporent, have acknowledged that they are intrigued at the prospect of running the renowned restaurant when the current lease expires in December 2009. —Interest is mounting among restaurateurs as this city’s parks department prepares to open up for bidding in December the right to run

Located in Central Park adjacent to the famed Sheep Meadow, the ornate brass and glass Tavern on the Green was the crown jewel in the holdings of Warner LeRoy, the late showman and restaurateur who died in 2001. LeRoy, the creator of Maxwell’s Plum, took over the contract at the end of 1973 after Restaurant Associates shuttered the restaurant and reopened it in 1976 after a $10 million overhaul. LeRoy’s first lease was for 10 years. In 1984, he signed a 25-year lease. —Interest is mounting among restaurateurs as this city’s parks department prepares to open up for bidding in December the right to run

Though the restaurant had its financial ups and downs during LeRoy’s lifetime, since his death, LeRoy’s daughter, Jennifer, has turned it into one of the most lucrative operations in the country, reportedly generating about $37.6 million in sales last year. Published reports indicate the restaurant hosts about 850 private events annually. —Interest is mounting among restaurateurs as this city’s parks department prepares to open up for bidding in December the right to run

Jennifer LeRoy paid approximately $1.3 million, or 3.5 percent of gross revenues, to the parks department in 2007, said the department’s DeLuca. That amount probably would increase as part of a new management contract, according to published reports. —Interest is mounting among restaurateurs as this city’s parks department prepares to open up for bidding in December the right to run

Despite the increased attention, spokeswoman Shelley Clark said, “Every once in a while, [people] sit up and speculate or have some fun with this, but there’s not a whole lot of there, there—just speculation. It’s out there; there’s no secret [the lease] is going to be up. We expected the RFP to be out long before now, quite frankly. Obviously, the city and everybody would want everything to be settled so people planning events in 2010 would know with whom they are dealing.” —Interest is mounting among restaurateurs as this city’s parks department prepares to open up for bidding in December the right to run

While Poll of the Boathouse maintained that running Tavern would be a difficult assignment because of its very location and the fact that it is a union shop, he said he is up to the task. —Interest is mounting among restaurateurs as this city’s parks department prepares to open up for bidding in December the right to run

“I believe I probably am the best candidate,” he said. “I’m already in the park, and running [an operation there] is different than anywhere else. You’re dealing with many restrictions…and you’re part of the park. We are watching out for the well-being of the park, so it’s a different mind-set. Dealing with park users, well, they’re quite possessive; they think it’s theirs.” —Interest is mounting among restaurateurs as this city’s parks department prepares to open up for bidding in December the right to run

Poll noted that one of the biggest differences in running a restaurant in the park compared to one in a standard location is the diversity of business that occurs on a daily basis. —Interest is mounting among restaurateurs as this city’s parks department prepares to open up for bidding in December the right to run

“Restaurants typically are not used to changing floor plans every day, but that’s something you have to do,” Poll said. “On a given day you could be serving someone lunch and [hosting] a wedding that night. It’s a juggling act.” —Interest is mounting among restaurateurs as this city’s parks department prepares to open up for bidding in December the right to run

If he were able to secure the Tavern contract, Poll said, he would “make it a restaurant that more New Yorkers would want to go to.” —Interest is mounting among restaurateurs as this city’s parks department prepares to open up for bidding in December the right to run

“It’s a beautiful location,” he said, “and I believe it should be a New York restaurant that tourists want to come to. I’m eagerly awaiting [the RFP] as much as anyone else is.” —Interest is mounting among restaurateurs as this city’s parks department prepares to open up for bidding in December the right to run

USHG’s Meyer said he, too, is interested in the venture. —Interest is mounting among restaurateurs as this city’s parks department prepares to open up for bidding in December the right to run

“We’ve always loved parks and will be very interested to see the RFP when it is issued by the Department of Parks & Recreation,” he said. “That will help us decide whether or not it makes sense to submit a bid.” —Interest is mounting among restaurateurs as this city’s parks department prepares to open up for bidding in December the right to run

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