The post The Astor Brings Old New York Style Back to the Public Theater first appeared on Crafting Your Home.
A new restaurant has opened inside New York City’s Public Theater, bringing back a name with deep ties to the building’s history while giving its dining spaces a fresh identity.
Called The Astor, the restaurant opened September 15 at the Public Theater at 425 Lafayette Street in NoHo. It replaces the former Library restaurant and takes its name from the Astor family, whose connection to the building goes back to the Astor Library. The building has been home to the Public Theater since 1967.
A new chapter for the Public Theater’s dining room
The Astor occupies the theater’s second-floor dining space. According to The New York Times, the restaurant has been redesigned with a custom carpet incorporating names of Public Theater productions and a mural by artist André Carrilho featuring writers and figures associated with the theater.
The design is intended to connect the restaurant with the institution around it rather than functioning simply as a separate dining destination.
Eater describes the interior as inspired by old New York taverns and supper clubs, with wood paneling and vintage touches. The restaurant also incorporates archival material and memorabilia connected to the Public Theater.
What’s on the menu?
The food comes from chefs Andrew Carmellini and Angel Monge, whose work with NoHo Hospitality Group has already been part of the Public Theater’s dining program.
Rather than presenting an elaborate fine-dining concept, The Astor’s menu leans toward recognizable American and New York-inspired dishes.
Coverage of the opening highlights dishes like pigs in Wellington and a French dip made with mushrooms. Eater also reports that the menu includes dishes such as steak Diane and clams casino.
Bar Torino adds another option.
The changes at the Public Theater aren’t limited to The Astor.
On the ground floor, Bar Torino has also opened as a new café and bar. The space begins service earlier in the day, offering panini and pastries before moving into Italian snacks and aperitivi.
Bar Torino is the concept’s second location, following its first in Hudson Yards.
A long-running partnership
The Astor and Bar Torino are also the latest developments in a relationship between the Public Theater and the hospitality group that stretches back decades.
The partnership began in 1998 with the opening of Joe’s Pub, which was named for Public Theater founder Joe Papp. The collaboration eventually expanded into the Library restaurant and other food and beverage operations within the theater.
The Public Theater says its food and beverage programs are intended to complement its role as a gathering place for artists, audiences and New Yorkers.
With The Astor, that relationship now takes shape through a restaurant whose name deliberately looks backward, while its menu and design create a new version of the theater’s dining experience.
For New Yorkers familiar with the Public Theater, the change is more than a restaurant rebrand. The Astor reconnects the building with an earlier chapter of its history while giving theatergoers a new place to eat, drink, and spend time before or after a performance.
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