Eleven Madison Park works out deal with landlord to reopen

Restaurant owner Daniel Humm and Eleven Madison Park (Getty, Google Maps, City Foodsters via Wikipedia)

SL Green Realty has “stepped up in a big way” according to the chef behind Eleven Madison Park.

The three-Michelin star restaurant has struck a rent agreement with its landlord, according to a recent interview with its chef and owner, Daniel Humm, by restaurant newsletter Astrolabe.

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The fate of the restaurant — along with many others in New York City  — has been up in the air since the coronavirus shut down much of the U.S. economy starting March. Humm told Bloomberg News in May that it would, “take millions of dollars to reopen,” Eleven Madison Park. The massive restaurant space sits at the base of SL Green’s office building of the same name.

While the chef did not share details about the rent negotiations with SL Green, he said the landlord had been “super accommodating and supportive.”

“I know that’s unfortunately not the reality for everyone,” Humm said. “Landlords have a lot of power in whether restaurants will come back or not.”

Humm’s situation is common ground in New York City, where hundreds of restaurants have struggled to operate on a skeleton staff and bring in revenue solely from outdoor dining and deliveries.

The anxiety is set to intensify as the temperature drops: The city has yet to announce a plan for indoor dining. More than 300 restaurants have filed a class action lawsuit against the city and state for delaying indoor seating.

A recent survey by the New York State Restaurant Association indicated that 64 percent of restaurants across the state expect to close by the end of the year. [Astrolabe] — Sasha Jones