Earlier this week, the new owners behind the rebooted Tavern on the Green announced that they'll start serving diners on April 24. And it won't be your mother's—or grandmother's—Tavern on the Green.
For many, the old Tavern was a gaudy tourist trap with terrible food at outrageous prices—a small price to pay to dine while surrounded by the lush greenery of Central Park. However, new co-owner Jim Caiola told the Daily News, "There's zero garish about this version, and much more Old New York." The restaurant has more of an elegant rustic feel, with an open kitchen, and Caiola added, "It's also very bucolic - we tried to make you feel one with the park." So it won't be dripping with crystals and fairy lights?
The restaurant's debut brunch—for Mother's Day, no less—on May 11 booked all of its 600 reservations "almost immediately," according to Page Six.
The new menu will be from chef Katy Sparks. No word on whether diners will be so entranced that they won't notice when a demon terror dog (Vinz Clortho, probably) is chasing a nebbishy accountant in Central Park.
Bonus factoid: Debbie Gibson played one of the diners in Tavern on the Green in that scene!
