Woody Allen (and his hat) are now welcome back
After four dormant years, the festive Russian Tea Room reopens this week under new ownership.
Gerald Lieblich, who bought the showy West 57th Street restaurant from Tavern On The Green heiress Jennifer Oz LeRoy for a reported $19 million, tells the NY Post that the revamped Tea Room will retain some of its historically fabulous touches:
including a revolving 15-foot juggling bear aquarium filled with parrotfish, and a golden tree dripping with huge Venetian glass eggs in a 20-foot-high second-floor dining room. Wall-sized mirrors etched with performing bears and a mechanical diorama of turn-of- the-century Red Square are still in place on the third and fourth floors.
Where the new guy in charge hopes to improve on the past is the historically not-so-spectacular cuisine. Lieblich has signed on ex-Biltmore chef Gary Robins to kick things up a notch:
Yes, there will still be borscht. Chicken Kiev might even appear on the pre-theater menu. He also promises “as large a caviar program as we can.”
Internet eatery maven Restaurant Girl already snagged a reservation. Got yours?
– Chris Shott
