OAK ROOM and the OYSTER BAR at the Plaza hotel Closing, end of January!
This is not as bad as the (original) Russian Tea Room dying, but it is really obnoxious.
My mother and I missed out on the usual stroll through the lobby around Xmas, because now the powers that be, don't let anyone walk through unless they are registered there.
Corporate suck-asses, high-security false value-system, the death of an era.
December 2, 2004 --
It's going to be a lot harder to get a meal at The Plaza "” its new owners are closing three of the hotel's landmarked restaurants, including the historic Oak Room.
Elad Properties, which bought the historic hotel last August, will close the Oak Room and Oyster Bar by the end of January and ONEc.p.s. by Jan. 1.
"They don't perform well and they're losing money," said Elad spokesman, Steve Solomon. This leaves only the Palm Court, where Eloise roamed, and the fabled Oak Bar, which has a limited bar menu.
The company "” which is also turning The Plaza's top floors into condos "” would not divulge its plans for the spaces, but sources said high-end retail boutiques are expected to move in. Since the spaces are official landmarks, renovations cannot be extensive.
The news came as a surprise to Local 100 of the Hotel Employees and Restaurant Employees, the union whose members are employed in the hotel's restaurants.
"We have not been given formal notification of the closing of these restaurants," said union spokesman John Turchiano, who pointed out that the law requires 60 days' notice.
Local 100 President Peter Ward plans to meet with restaurant employees 3 p.m. today.
Diners were astonished
"I can't imagine The Plaza without the Oak Room," said William Hopkins.
The Oak Room has a history as lustrous as its oak paneling adorned with frescoes and carved coats of arms.
It's where songwriter George M. Cohan lunched every day and Ernest Hemingway drank with F. Scott Fitzgerald.
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