A Texas-based billionaire is the new owner of one of Manhattan’s most famous steakhouses.
Tilman Fertitta paid $30 million for the Keens Steakhouse brand and its longtime Midtown location, Crain’s reported. Fertitta is the CEO of Landry’s, a Houston-based hospitality brand known for Morton’s The Steakhouse, The Palm, Rainforest Cafe and Dos Caminos.
The hotspot at 72 West 36th Street — spanning about 16,000 square feet between Fifth and Sixth avenues — was purchased by two separate limited liability companies.
The restaurant dates back to 1885, when it was opened by Albert Keen. Restaurateur George Schwarz bought the establishment in the late 1970s and revived it, drawing a wide clientele of high-profile New Yorkers, including Anthony Bourdain. The restaurant’s website calls it the “only survivor of the Herald Square Theatre District.”
Schwarz died in 2016. His estate oversaw the deal.
Jesse Fink was both the executor of the estate and facilitator of the sale, according to records. Fink and the attorney representing Landry’s, Alan Freeman, did not respond to requests for comment.
Landry’s also owns and operates the Golden Nugget Casino and Hotel brand, as well as several luxury hotels across Texas.
Along with helming Landry’s hospitality holdings, Fertitta is the owner of the NBA’s Houston Rockets. In 2012, Forbes called him the “world’s richest restaurateur.” Bloomberg’s Billionaires Index estimates Fertitta’s net worth at $15.2 billion.
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“We looked for a buyer that agreed to allow our team to continue to operate and manage Keens in the same tradition it has been for the past 140 years,” Keens general manager Bonnie Jenkins told the publication Eater.
“This is a New York jewel,” Fertitta told Bloomberg. He promised that it will “continue to be one of the best experiences in New York City.”