Four Twenty Five, Jean-Georges Vongerichten’s new restaurant, has opened in New York. Designed by Foster + Partners and split across the first two stories of the practice’s 425 Park Avenue tower, the restaurant includes a cocktail lounge, private dining room and a mezzanine dining level, with a glass fronted show kitchen and bespoke lighting installation.
Norman Foster Founder and Executive Chairman, Foster + Partners, said: “Four Twenty Five is very much of its place and encapsulates the spirit of Midtown Manhattan. Every detail has been carefully considered, from the bespoke furniture and lighting fixtures to the works of art, creating a truly memorable setting for lunch or dinner on the world’s grand boulevard of commerce.”
Diners enter the restaurant via a cocktail lounge on the first floor of the building and ascend to the mezzanine dining level, via a sweeping feature staircase. The timber-panelled dining level cantilevers over the lounge to create a more enclosed and intimate environment at the bar. A 24-foot painting by the celebrated American artist Larry Poons runs the full length of the wall behind, animating the space with color and movement. Adjacent to the lounge, a separate dining room offers a private area for parties and events. The dining room is flexibly designed and can be easily divided into two smaller private spaces or opened up to create one larger event space.
The mezzanine dining level provides 80 covers and features a glass fronted show kitchen, allowing diners to watch their food being prepared. Above their heads hangs a bespoke lighting installation, comprising 231 Foster + Partners designed ORSA fixtures in a three-dimensional elliptical configuration, which was developed with the practice’s in-house Applied R+D team.
Nigel Dancey, Head of Studio, Foster + Partners, said: “The restaurant has been designed to provide an exceptional culinary experience, with an ambient lighting installation and a refined material palette of dark wood, terrazzo and metal. The immersive show kitchen adds another dimension to the space, offering diners a behind-the-scenes view of the creativity and skill that goes into making their food.”
A bespoke collection of furniture, the NF Collection, is used throughout the space. Designed by Norman Foster and Foster + Partners Industrial Design, in collaboration with the leading Japanese furniture manufacturer, Karimoku, it is characterised by the flowing lines of timber frames. The collection includes a chair, bar stool, lounge chair and sofa, made in walnut and burgundy leather for Four Twenty Five. Sharing the same distinctive smooth and organic form, each item has been manufactured by Karimoku’s state-of-the-art woodworking machines and hand-finished meticulously by artisan craftsmen.
L&L Holding Company was the developer for 425 Park Avenue and a partner in the restaurant development.
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Press release and photo courtesy of Foter + Partners
Photos ©Nigel Young / Foster + Partners
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