Tavern on the Green
Encyclopedia
Tavern on the Green was a privately owned American cuisine
restaurant located in Central Park
on the Upper West Side
of Manhattan
, in New York City
. It remained in operation from 1934 to 2009 under various owners. As of October 15, 2010, the building is a public visitors center and gift shop run by the New York City Department of Parks and Recreation
, retaining the name Tavern on the Green.
The restaurant in 2007 had gross revenues of $38 million, from more than 500,000 visitors, making it the second-highest-grossing independently owned restaurant in the United States (behind The Venetian's Tao restaurant in Las Vegas
, at $67 million). Of the several dining rooms, the most famous was the Crystal Room, which features windows overlooking the restaurant's adjacent garden in Central Park.
off Central Park West
at West 66th Street
on Manhattan
's Upper West Side
. It was originally the sheepfold that housed the sheep that grazed Sheep Meadow
, built to a design by Calvert Vaux
in 1870. It became a restaurant as part of a 1934 renovation of the park under Robert Moses
, New York City's Commissioner of Parks.
From 1934, the landmark restaurant was managed by restaurateurs licensed by the City of New York's Park Department. In 1943 Arnold Schleifer and his nephews, Arthur Schleifer and Julius Berman, won the contract to operate the restaurant. During their tenure, the dance floor was enlarged and nightly music was enjoyed. A large outdoor patio offered dining al fresco
. Trees were first wrapped in the well-known twinkling lights around the property, and the Elm Tree Room was built to surround one of the city’s classic American elms. The menu was designed to be elegant but affordable for New Yorkers. Luncheon and dinner offerings changed regularly, and Mr. Berman would often add special desserts to celebrate family events, e.g., "Parfait Ruth" to honor the birth of his granddaughter.
The Berman-Schleifer family ran numerous restaurants they owned and other New York City concessions. Among these were the food venues at Orchard Beach
, the Claremont Inn (1934–1948) in Riverside Park
, accessed from Riverside Drive
, United Nations Caterers, Manny Wolf’s 49th Street Chop House on Third Avenue, and New York City's first air-conditioned restaurant, Schleifer’s Fashion Center on 7th Avenue
.
In 1962, Joe Baum
's Restaurant Associates purchased the Schleifer-Berman interest in the Tavern’s operation.
In 1974, Warner LeRoy
took over the restaurant's lease and reopened it in 1976 after $10 million in renovations including the addition of a glass enclosed Crystal Room which doubled the seating capacity to 800. According to city officials it was illegal but the city wanted the restaurant expanded at a time when the city was having its own financial problems did not stop the expansion. Since LeRoy's death in 2001, it was managed by his daughter, Jennifer Oz LeRoy, until its closure in 2009.
During the 1980s, the restaurant was periodically victimized by the disturbing wave of "wolf pack crime" that swept New York City. On at least one occasion, dozens of young hoodlums perpetrated a barrage of robbery and assaults against the Tavern and its patrons by swarming the parking lot and scaling the walls of the prestigious eatery before making off with purses and cash registers.
Tavern on the Green was frequented by prominent actors, musicians, politicians, and writers. Regular patrons have included former New York City Mayor Fiorello H. La Guardia, actresses Grace Kelly
and Fay Wray
and many others. Tavern on the Green has hosted the wedding receptions of several prominent Americans, including Pulitzer Prize
-winning author Robert Olen Butler
and film director Walter Hill. John Lennon
was a neighbor to Warner LeRoy
and his son, Sean
, was a playmate of Warner LeRoy's son, Max LeRoy. As a result, John and Sean celebrated numerous birthdays at Tavern on the Green during the late 1970s.
In May 2008, the restaurant and the Westfield Group announced plans to open a second, 40000 square feet (3,716.1 m²) location in the Metreon
mall in downtown San Francisco, California
, in summer 2009. The plans had not materialized as of late 2009.
In June, 2008, Tavern on the Green agreed to pay $2.2 million to settle a sexual and racial discrimination lawsuit over claims by the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission
of "pervasive harassment" of women and minority employees.
On August 28, 2009, the New York City Department of Parks and Recreation
announced that it had declined to renew the restaurant's license, granting it instead to Dean Poll, operator of the Central Park Boathouse. The LeRoy management was required to cease operations and remove all furnishings from the location before January 1, 2010.
In September 2009, the restaurant filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy protection in the United States District Court for the Southern District of New York
, located in New York City, citing the 2009 national financial crisis and the August 28, 2009 loss of the restaurant's operating license.
Tavern on the Green had its last seating on December 31, 2009. It auctioned off its interior decorations and closed its doors after filing for bankruptcy.
On October 15, 2010, the city re-opened the building as a visitors information center with a gift shop selling city-themed t-shirts and hats and other memorabilia. Street vendors sell food outside. Adrian Benepe, New York City Parks Commissioner, said at the opening ceremony that the future of the building remains open depending on how well the visitors center does. The glass-enclosed Crystal Room was removed, exposing the original 19th century architecture. While the original restaurant was a private establishment, the new facility is public space in a public park.
said he obtained an agreement from the union employees and that he would invest $20 million in the restaurant, including rebuilding the Crystal Room, provided he is granted a 20-year lease. He said he would keep the Tavern on the Green name. "I don't think every place needs to be called Trump," he joked. Trump earlier had completed Wollman Rink
(and continues to operate it) after the city for several years had been unable to repair and reopen it. Mayor Michael Bloomberg
and Central Park Conservancy officials have not officially taken a stance on Trump's proposal. Among the considerations is whether an upscale restaurant is needed in the park with officials praising the impact of the Shake Shack
hamburger restaurant in Madison Square Park.
was theirs while the city challenged them. At the time the trademark was appraised at $19 million. In November 2009, Poll registered a backup name with New York State: Tavern in the Park.
In March 2010, Judge Miriam Goldman Cedarbaum
, of United States District Court for the Southern District of New York
, ruled that the trade name was owned by the City of New York and that Warner LeRoy had trademarked the name “fraudulently” in 1981. She wrote: “Because the undisputed facts show that the city established and continuously maintained a restaurant under the name ‘Tavern on the Green’ at the same location in New York’s Central Park since 1934, the city has a protectable interest in that name.”
named the restaurant's wine list its "Best Award of Excellence."
. The Barilla Marathon Eve Dinner, a pre-race pasta party
on the eve of the marathon for 10,000 guests (including registrants, who attend for free), took place at the Tavern.
coffee advertising campaign capitalized on Tavern's reputation, among other locales, in variations of an ad featuring the line: "...we’ve secretly replaced the fine coffee they usually serve with Folgers
Crystals...Let's see if anyone can tell the difference!"
Many Broadway
shows had their opening night festivities at the restaurant. The Broadway musical title of show
includes a line in the song "Part of it All": "Ducking out of the theatre before the show's finale to get to the opening night at Tavern on the Green!" The Tavern also makes its way into popular culture in several movie appearances, including Beaches
, Edward Scissorhands
, Ghostbusters
, Made
, Requiem for a Dream, Stella
, The Out-of-Towners
and Wall Street. It also has been featured in television shows such as elimiDATE
and Live with Regis and Kelly
. The film The Flintstones
(1994
) parodied the restaurant in one scene as "Cavern on the Green".
Tavern on the Green is cited in at least two popular songs. The restaurant is mentioned by the hip-hop group Nice & Smooth
in the song "Sometimes I Rhyme Slow," on their album Ain't a Damn Thing Changed
: "I go to Tavern on the Green and have a glass of wine..." It is also mentioned by rapper
Black Rob
in the song "24 Hours to Live" on Mase
's album Harlem World
, in which Black Rob says that, if he had only 24 hours to live, he would: "Get them cats I wanted to get, since the Tavern on the Green robbery in '86."
In a 30 Rock
web exclusive titled "More Donaghy Secrets Uncovered", Jack Donaghy
's assistant, Johnathan, reveals that Tavern on the Green calls him every night to see if he would like a reservation.
An episode of Earth: Final Conflict
features the protagonist realizing his memory has been tampered with to include a nonexistent girlfriend, when he finds pictures of himself celebrating a certain birthday at home with his family, when he remembers taking the girlfriend to Tavern on the Green.
The Tavern was parodied in two episodes of Futurama
titled "The Late Philip J. Fry
" and "A Leela of Her Own
," which both featured the "Cavern on the Green" restaurant in New New York City.
The Tavern featured prominently in the 2011 film, Mr. Popper's Penguins
, which recreated the defunct restaurant during its heyday. Jim Carrey
plays a real estate professional attempting to purchase the restaurant from its owner, played by Angela Lansbury
, on behalf of owners who wish to tear it down. The film references Donald Trump
's later attempts to buy the restaurant in order to reopen it, as well as the restaurant's importance to the culture of New York.
Cuisine of the United States
American cuisine is a style of food preparation originating from the United States of America. European colonization of the Americas yielded the introduction of a number of ingredients and cooking styles to the latter...
restaurant located in Central Park
Central Park
Central Park is a public park in the center of Manhattan in New York City, United States. The park initially opened in 1857, on of city-owned land. In 1858, Frederick Law Olmsted and Calvert Vaux won a design competition to improve and expand the park with a plan they entitled the Greensward Plan...
on the Upper West Side
Upper West Side
The Upper West Side is a neighborhood in the borough of Manhattan, New York City, that lies between Central Park and the Hudson River and between West 59th Street and West 125th Street...
of Manhattan
Manhattan
Manhattan is the oldest and the most densely populated of the five boroughs of New York City. Located primarily on the island of Manhattan at the mouth of the Hudson River, the boundaries of the borough are identical to those of New York County, an original county of the state of New York...
, in New York City
New York City
New York is the most populous city in the United States and the center of the New York Metropolitan Area, one of the most populous metropolitan areas in the world. New York exerts a significant impact upon global commerce, finance, media, art, fashion, research, technology, education, and...
. It remained in operation from 1934 to 2009 under various owners. As of October 15, 2010, the building is a public visitors center and gift shop run by the New York City Department of Parks and Recreation
New York City Department of Parks and Recreation
The City of New York Department of Parks & Recreation is the department of government of the City of New York responsible for maintaining the city's parks system, preserving and maintaining the ecological diversity of the city's natural areas, and furnishing recreational opportunities for city's...
, retaining the name Tavern on the Green.
The restaurant in 2007 had gross revenues of $38 million, from more than 500,000 visitors, making it the second-highest-grossing independently owned restaurant in the United States (behind The Venetian's Tao restaurant in Las Vegas
Las Vegas metropolitan area
The Las Vegas Valley is the heart of the Las Vegas-Paradise, NV MSA also known as the Las Vegas–Paradise–Henderson MSA which includes all of Clark County, Nevada, and is a metropolitan area in the southern part of the U.S. state of Nevada. The Valley is defined by the Las Vegas Valley landform, a ...
, at $67 million). Of the several dining rooms, the most famous was the Crystal Room, which features windows overlooking the restaurant's adjacent garden in Central Park.
History and location
The restaurant was located in New York City's Central ParkCentral Park
Central Park is a public park in the center of Manhattan in New York City, United States. The park initially opened in 1857, on of city-owned land. In 1858, Frederick Law Olmsted and Calvert Vaux won a design competition to improve and expand the park with a plan they entitled the Greensward Plan...
off Central Park West
Central Park West
Central Park West is an avenue that runs north-south in the New York City borough of Manhattan, in the United States....
at West 66th Street
66th Street (Manhattan)
66th Street is a crosstown street in the New York City borough of Manhattan with portions on the Upper East Side and Upper West Side connected across Central Park via the 65th Street Transverse...
on Manhattan
Manhattan
Manhattan is the oldest and the most densely populated of the five boroughs of New York City. Located primarily on the island of Manhattan at the mouth of the Hudson River, the boundaries of the borough are identical to those of New York County, an original county of the state of New York...
's Upper West Side
Upper West Side
The Upper West Side is a neighborhood in the borough of Manhattan, New York City, that lies between Central Park and the Hudson River and between West 59th Street and West 125th Street...
. It was originally the sheepfold that housed the sheep that grazed Sheep Meadow
Sheep Meadow, Central Park
The preserve known as Sheep Meadow has a long history as a gathering place for large scale demonstrations and political movements. It is currently a favorite spot for families, sunbathers, picnickers, kite flyers, and other visitors to come relax and admire the New York City skyline...
, built to a design by Calvert Vaux
Calvert Vaux
Calvert Vaux , was an architect and landscape designer. He is best remembered as the co-designer , of New York's Central Park....
in 1870. It became a restaurant as part of a 1934 renovation of the park under Robert Moses
Robert Moses
Robert Moses was the "master builder" of mid-20th century New York City, Long Island, Rockland County, and Westchester County, New York. As the shaper of a modern city, he is sometimes compared to Baron Haussmann of Second Empire Paris, and is one of the most polarizing figures in the history of...
, New York City's Commissioner of Parks.
From 1934, the landmark restaurant was managed by restaurateurs licensed by the City of New York's Park Department. In 1943 Arnold Schleifer and his nephews, Arthur Schleifer and Julius Berman, won the contract to operate the restaurant. During their tenure, the dance floor was enlarged and nightly music was enjoyed. A large outdoor patio offered dining al fresco
Al fresco dining
Al Fresco dining is eating outside . In temperate climates it is especially popular in the summer months when temperatures and weather are most favorable. It is a style of dining that is casual and often party-like in its atmosphere...
. Trees were first wrapped in the well-known twinkling lights around the property, and the Elm Tree Room was built to surround one of the city’s classic American elms. The menu was designed to be elegant but affordable for New Yorkers. Luncheon and dinner offerings changed regularly, and Mr. Berman would often add special desserts to celebrate family events, e.g., "Parfait Ruth" to honor the birth of his granddaughter.
The Berman-Schleifer family ran numerous restaurants they owned and other New York City concessions. Among these were the food venues at Orchard Beach
Orchard Beach, New York
Orchard Beach is a public beach in the borough of the Bronx in New York City. The beach is part of Pelham Bay Park and is situated on the western end of Long Island Sound...
, the Claremont Inn (1934–1948) in Riverside Park
Riverside Park (Manhattan)
Riverside Park is a scenic waterfront public park on the Upper West Side of the borough of Manhattan in New York City, operated and maintained by the New York City Department of Parks and Recreation. The park consists of a narrow four-mile strip of land between the Hudson River and the gently...
, accessed from Riverside Drive
Riverside Drive (Manhattan)
Riverside Drive is a scenic north-south thoroughfare in the Manhattan borough of New York City. The boulevard runs on the west side of Manhattan, generally parallel to the Hudson River from 72nd Street to near the George Washington Bridge at 181st Street...
, United Nations Caterers, Manny Wolf’s 49th Street Chop House on Third Avenue, and New York City's first air-conditioned restaurant, Schleifer’s Fashion Center on 7th Avenue
Seventh Avenue (Manhattan)
Seventh Avenue, known as Adam Clayton Powell Jr. Boulevard north of Central Park, is a thoroughfare on the West Side of the borough of Manhattan in New York City. It is southbound below Central Park and a two-way street north of the park....
.
In 1962, Joe Baum
Joe Baum
Joseph Harold Baum was an American restaurateur and innovator responsible for creating the country's first themed restaurants, including masterpieces such as The Four Seasons Restaurant, Windows on the World, and the restored Rainbow Room...
's Restaurant Associates purchased the Schleifer-Berman interest in the Tavern’s operation.
In 1974, Warner LeRoy
Warner LeRoy
Warner LeRoy , was a New York businessman. LeRoy was the son of film producer-director Mervyn LeRoy and Mervyn's second wife, Doris Warner, and was the grandson of Harry Warner, one of the founders of Warner Bros...
took over the restaurant's lease and reopened it in 1976 after $10 million in renovations including the addition of a glass enclosed Crystal Room which doubled the seating capacity to 800. According to city officials it was illegal but the city wanted the restaurant expanded at a time when the city was having its own financial problems did not stop the expansion. Since LeRoy's death in 2001, it was managed by his daughter, Jennifer Oz LeRoy, until its closure in 2009.
During the 1980s, the restaurant was periodically victimized by the disturbing wave of "wolf pack crime" that swept New York City. On at least one occasion, dozens of young hoodlums perpetrated a barrage of robbery and assaults against the Tavern and its patrons by swarming the parking lot and scaling the walls of the prestigious eatery before making off with purses and cash registers.
Tavern on the Green was frequented by prominent actors, musicians, politicians, and writers. Regular patrons have included former New York City Mayor Fiorello H. La Guardia, actresses Grace Kelly
Grace Kelly
Grace Patricia Kelly was an American actress who, in April 1956, married Rainier III, Prince of Monaco, to become Princess consort of Monaco, styled as Her Serene Highness The Princess of Monaco, and commonly referred to as Princess Grace.After embarking on an acting career in 1950, at the age of...
and Fay Wray
Fay Wray
Fay Wray was a Canadian-American actress most noted for playing the female lead in King Kong...
and many others. Tavern on the Green has hosted the wedding receptions of several prominent Americans, including Pulitzer Prize
Pulitzer Prize
The Pulitzer Prize is a U.S. award for achievements in newspaper and online journalism, literature and musical composition. It was established by American publisher Joseph Pulitzer and is administered by Columbia University in New York City...
-winning author Robert Olen Butler
Robert Olen Butler
Robert Olen Butler is an American fiction writer. His short-story collection A Good Scent from a Strange Mountain was awarded the Pulitzer Prize for fiction in 1993.-Early life:...
and film director Walter Hill. John Lennon
John Lennon
John Winston Lennon, MBE was an English musician and singer-songwriter who rose to worldwide fame as one of the founding members of The Beatles, one of the most commercially successful and critically acclaimed acts in the history of popular music...
was a neighbor to Warner LeRoy
Warner LeRoy
Warner LeRoy , was a New York businessman. LeRoy was the son of film producer-director Mervyn LeRoy and Mervyn's second wife, Doris Warner, and was the grandson of Harry Warner, one of the founders of Warner Bros...
and his son, Sean
Sean Lennon
is an American singer, songwriter, musician, guitarist and actor. He is the only child of John Lennon and Yoko Ono. His godfather is Sir Elton John.-Early life and education:...
, was a playmate of Warner LeRoy's son, Max LeRoy. As a result, John and Sean celebrated numerous birthdays at Tavern on the Green during the late 1970s.
In May 2008, the restaurant and the Westfield Group announced plans to open a second, 40000 square feet (3,716.1 m²) location in the Metreon
Metreon
The Metreon is a shopping center located in downtown San Francisco at the corner of 4th Street and Mission Street. It is a four-story 350,000 square foot building built over the corner of the underground Moscone Center convention center...
mall in downtown San Francisco, California
San Francisco, California
San Francisco , officially the City and County of San Francisco, is the financial, cultural, and transportation center of the San Francisco Bay Area, a region of 7.15 million people which includes San Jose and Oakland...
, in summer 2009. The plans had not materialized as of late 2009.
In June, 2008, Tavern on the Green agreed to pay $2.2 million to settle a sexual and racial discrimination lawsuit over claims by the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission
Equal Employment Opportunity Commission
The U.S. Equal Employment Opportunity Commission is an independent federal law enforcement agency that enforces laws against workplace discrimination. The EEOC investigates discrimination complaints based on an individual's race, color, national origin, religion, sex, age, perceived intelligence,...
of "pervasive harassment" of women and minority employees.
On August 28, 2009, the New York City Department of Parks and Recreation
New York City Department of Parks and Recreation
The City of New York Department of Parks & Recreation is the department of government of the City of New York responsible for maintaining the city's parks system, preserving and maintaining the ecological diversity of the city's natural areas, and furnishing recreational opportunities for city's...
announced that it had declined to renew the restaurant's license, granting it instead to Dean Poll, operator of the Central Park Boathouse. The LeRoy management was required to cease operations and remove all furnishings from the location before January 1, 2010.
In September 2009, the restaurant filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy protection in the United States District Court for the Southern District of New York
United States District Court for the Southern District of New York
The United States District Court for the Southern District of New York is a federal district court. Appeals from the Southern District of New York are taken to the United States Court of Appeals for the Second Circuit The United States District Court for the Southern District of New York (in case...
, located in New York City, citing the 2009 national financial crisis and the August 28, 2009 loss of the restaurant's operating license.
Tavern on the Green had its last seating on December 31, 2009. It auctioned off its interior decorations and closed its doors after filing for bankruptcy.
On October 15, 2010, the city re-opened the building as a visitors information center with a gift shop selling city-themed t-shirts and hats and other memorabilia. Street vendors sell food outside. Adrian Benepe, New York City Parks Commissioner, said at the opening ceremony that the future of the building remains open depending on how well the visitors center does. The glass-enclosed Crystal Room was removed, exposing the original 19th century architecture. While the original restaurant was a private establishment, the new facility is public space in a public park.
Donald Trump investment
Central Park Boathouse operator Dean Poll was given rights to reopen the restaurant but could not reach an agreement with the Hotel and Motel Trades Council, affiliated with the AFL–CIO, which represents the employees of the restaurant. In January 2011, however, Donald TrumpDonald Trump
Donald John Trump, Sr. is an American business magnate, television personality and author. He is the chairman and president of The Trump Organization and the founder of Trump Entertainment Resorts. Trump's extravagant lifestyle, outspoken manner and role on the NBC reality show The Apprentice have...
said he obtained an agreement from the union employees and that he would invest $20 million in the restaurant, including rebuilding the Crystal Room, provided he is granted a 20-year lease. He said he would keep the Tavern on the Green name. "I don't think every place needs to be called Trump," he joked. Trump earlier had completed Wollman Rink
Wollman Rink
Wollman Skating Rink is a public ice rink in the southern part of Central Park, Manhattan, New York City. The rink was opened in 1949 with funds donated by Kate Wollman who donated $600,000 for the rink to commemorate her entire family from Leavenworth, Kansas)...
(and continues to operate it) after the city for several years had been unable to repair and reopen it. Mayor Michael Bloomberg
Michael Bloomberg
Michael Rubens Bloomberg is the current Mayor of New York City. With a net worth of $19.5 billion in 2011, he is also the 12th-richest person in the United States...
and Central Park Conservancy officials have not officially taken a stance on Trump's proposal. Among the considerations is whether an upscale restaurant is needed in the park with officials praising the impact of the Shake Shack
Shake Shack
Shake Shack is a restaurant chain serving hamburgers, hot dogs, french fries, milkshakes and similar foods. There are currently eleven restaurants within the chain, six in New York City. There are two more locations opening soon: one in Grand Central Terminal, and one in Downtown Brooklyn.The...
hamburger restaurant in Madison Square Park.
Dispute over rights to restaurant's name
The rights to the name of the restaurant became an additional source of contention between the LeRoys and the city of New York during the bankruptcy court procedures in October 2009 after the LeRoys claimed the trademarkTrademark
A trademark, trade mark, or trade-mark is a distinctive sign or indicator used by an individual, business organization, or other legal entity to identify that the products or services to consumers with which the trademark appears originate from a unique source, and to distinguish its products or...
was theirs while the city challenged them. At the time the trademark was appraised at $19 million. In November 2009, Poll registered a backup name with New York State: Tavern in the Park.
In March 2010, Judge Miriam Goldman Cedarbaum
Miriam Goldman Cedarbaum
Judge Miriam Goldman Cedarbaum is a senior judge on the United States District Court for the Southern District of New York...
, of United States District Court for the Southern District of New York
United States District Court for the Southern District of New York
The United States District Court for the Southern District of New York is a federal district court. Appeals from the Southern District of New York are taken to the United States Court of Appeals for the Second Circuit The United States District Court for the Southern District of New York (in case...
, ruled that the trade name was owned by the City of New York and that Warner LeRoy had trademarked the name “fraudulently” in 1981. She wrote: “Because the undisputed facts show that the city established and continuously maintained a restaurant under the name ‘Tavern on the Green’ at the same location in New York’s Central Park since 1934, the city has a protectable interest in that name.”
Awards
Where magazine named Tavern on the Green the best restaurant on New York City's Upper West Side in 2006 and awarded it "best ambience" of any New York City restaurant four years earlier, in 2002. In 2003 and 2004, Wine SpectatorWine Spectator
Wine Spectator is a lifestyle magazine that focuses on wine and wine culture. It publishes 15 issues per year with content that includes news, articles, profiles, and general entertainment pieces...
named the restaurant's wine list its "Best Award of Excellence."
New York City Marathon
Tavern on the Green is the finish line of the New York City MarathonNew York City Marathon
The New York City Marathon is a major annual marathon that courses through the five boroughs of New York City. It is one of the largest marathons in the world, with 45,103 finishers in 2010...
. The Barilla Marathon Eve Dinner, a pre-race pasta party
Carbohydrate loading
Carbohydrate loading, commonly referred to as carbo-loading or carb-loading, is a strategy used by endurance athletes, such as marathon runners, to maximize the storage of glycogen in the muscles....
on the eve of the marathon for 10,000 guests (including registrants, who attend for free), took place at the Tavern.
In popular culture
A 1970s to 1980s FolgersFolgers
Folgers Coffee is a major brand of coffee in the United States, part of the food and beverage division of The J.M. Smucker Co.-Company history:...
coffee advertising campaign capitalized on Tavern's reputation, among other locales, in variations of an ad featuring the line: "...we’ve secretly replaced the fine coffee they usually serve with Folgers
Folgers
Folgers Coffee is a major brand of coffee in the United States, part of the food and beverage division of The J.M. Smucker Co.-Company history:...
Crystals...Let's see if anyone can tell the difference!"
Many Broadway
Broadway theatre
Broadway theatre, commonly called simply Broadway, refers to theatrical performances presented in one of the 40 professional theatres with 500 or more seats located in the Theatre District centered along Broadway, and in Lincoln Center, in Manhattan in New York City...
shows had their opening night festivities at the restaurant. The Broadway musical title of show
Title of show
[title of show] is a one-act musical, with music and lyrics by Jeff Bowen and a book by Hunter Bell. The show chronicles its own creation as an entry in the New York Musical Theatre Festival, and follows the struggles of the author and composer/lyricist and their two actress friends during the...
includes a line in the song "Part of it All": "Ducking out of the theatre before the show's finale to get to the opening night at Tavern on the Green!" The Tavern also makes its way into popular culture in several movie appearances, including Beaches
Beaches (film)
Beaches , is a 1988 American comedy-drama film adapted by Mary Agnes Donoghue from the Iris Rainer Dart novel of the same name...
, Edward Scissorhands
Edward Scissorhands
Edward Scissorhands is a 1990 romantic fantasy film directed by Tim Burton and starring Johnny Depp. The film shows the story of an artificial man named Edward, an unfinished creation, who has scissors for hands. Edward is taken in by a suburban family and falls in love with their teenage daughter...
, Ghostbusters
Ghostbusters
Ghostbusters is a 1984 American science fiction comedy film directed by Ivan Reitman and written by Dan Aykroyd and Harold Ramis. The film stars Bill Murray, Dan Aykroyd, Sigourney Weaver, Harold Ramis, and Rick Moranis and follows three eccentric parapsychologists in New York City, who start a...
, Made
Made (2001 film)
Made is a 2001 film written and directed by Jon Favreau. It stars Favreau, Vince Vaughn, Peter Falk, and Sean Combs.-Plot:Bobby has ties to the local mafia boss, Max, but works as an honest mason for Max's construction projects. He fights in amateur boxing matches on the side, but his career is...
, Requiem for a Dream, Stella
Stella (1990 film)
Stella is a 1990 American drama film produced by The Samuel Goldwyn Company and released by Touchstone Pictures. The screenplay by Robert Getchell is the third feature film adaptation of the 1920 novel Stella Dallas by Olive Higgins Prouty....
, The Out-of-Towners
The Out-of-Towners (1970 film)
The Out-of-Towners is a 1970 comedy film written by Neil Simon, directed by Arthur Hiller, and starring Jack Lemmon and Sandy Dennis. It was released by Paramount Pictures on May 28, 1970....
and Wall Street. It also has been featured in television shows such as elimiDATE
ElimiDATE
elimiDATE was a television dating reality show in which one contestant chooses between four contestants of the opposite sex by eliminating them one by one in three total rounds...
and Live with Regis and Kelly
Live with Regis and Kelly
Live! with Kelly is a syndicated American television morning talk show, hosted by Kelly Ripa. The show has aired since 1983 in New York City and 1988 nationwide. Tony Pigg has been the show's announcer since its inception...
. The film The Flintstones
The Flintstones (film)
The Flintstones is a 1994 American live-action comedy film based on the Hanna-Barbera cartoon television series of the same name about a Stone-Age man, his family and his best friend. The film was directed by Brian Levant, written by Tom S. Parker, Jim Jennewein and Steven E...
(1994
1994 in film
1994 was a significant year in film.The top grosser worldwide was The Lion King, which to date stands as the highest-grossing traditionally-animated film of all time...
) parodied the restaurant in one scene as "Cavern on the Green".
Tavern on the Green is cited in at least two popular songs. The restaurant is mentioned by the hip-hop group Nice & Smooth
Nice & Smooth
Nice & Smooth was an East Coast hip hop duo from New York that consists of Greg Nice and Smooth B . The duo released four albums from the late 1980s to the mid 1990s...
in the song "Sometimes I Rhyme Slow," on their album Ain't a Damn Thing Changed
Ain't a Damn Thing Changed
Ain't a Damn Thing Changed is the second album from the East Coast hip-hop duo Nice & Smooth.Released on Def Jam Recordings sub-label RAL Records, it became more successful than its first album, Nice & Smooth, with the stand-out track "Sometimes I Rhyme Slow" becoming a minor hit...
: "I go to Tavern on the Green and have a glass of wine..." It is also mentioned by rapper
Rapping
Rapping refers to "spoken or chanted rhyming lyrics". The art form can be broken down into different components, as in the book How to Rap where it is separated into “content”, “flow” , and “delivery”...
Black Rob
Black Rob
Black Rob is a rapper who was formerly signed to Bad Boy Records.-Music career:Black Rob began associating with the label as early as 1996, appearing on the Bad Boy remix to 112's "Come See Me"...
in the song "24 Hours to Live" on Mase
Mase
Mason Durell Betha , better known by stage name Mase who was previously known as Murda Ma$e, is an American rapper, songwriter, actor and inspirational speaker...
's album Harlem World
Harlem World
Harlem World is the critically acclaimed multi-platinum debut album by Harlem rapper Mase, released October 28, 1997.-Background:Seen as Puff Daddy's new protege since the passing of The Notorious B.I.G., Mase rose to fame after being a member of Children of the Corn with fellow Harlem rappers Big...
, in which Black Rob says that, if he had only 24 hours to live, he would: "Get them cats I wanted to get, since the Tavern on the Green robbery in '86."
In a 30 Rock
30 Rock
30 Rock is an American television comedy series created by Tina Fey that airs on NBC. The series is loosely based on Fey's experiences as head writer for Saturday Night Live...
web exclusive titled "More Donaghy Secrets Uncovered", Jack Donaghy
Jack Donaghy
John Francis "Jack" Donaghy is a fictional character on the NBC sitcom 30 Rock. He is the Vice President of East Coast Television and Microwave Oven Programming for General Electric and later Kabletown....
's assistant, Johnathan, reveals that Tavern on the Green calls him every night to see if he would like a reservation.
An episode of Earth: Final Conflict
Earth: Final Conflict
Earth: Final Conflict is a Canadian science fiction television series based on story ideas created by Gene Roddenberry, and produced under the guidance of his widow, Majel Barrett-Roddenberry. It was not produced, filmed or broadcast until after his death...
features the protagonist realizing his memory has been tampered with to include a nonexistent girlfriend, when he finds pictures of himself celebrating a certain birthday at home with his family, when he remembers taking the girlfriend to Tavern on the Green.
The Tavern was parodied in two episodes of Futurama
Futurama
Futurama is an American animated science fiction sitcom created by Matt Groening and developed by Groening and David X. Cohen for the Fox Broadcasting Company. The series follows the adventures of a late 20th-century New York City pizza delivery boy, Philip J...
titled "The Late Philip J. Fry
The Late Philip J. Fry
"The Late Philip J. Fry" is the seventh episode of the sixth season of the animated series Futurama. It originally aired on Comedy Central on July 29, 2010. In the episode, Fry attempts to make it on time to a birthday dinner date for Leela. He is sidetracked by Professor Farnsworth and Bender,...
" and "A Leela of Her Own
A Leela of Her Own
"A Leela of Her Own" is the sixteenth episode in the third season of the animated series Futurama and is a homage to A League of Their Own directed by Penny Marshall. It originally aired in North America on April 7, 2002...
," which both featured the "Cavern on the Green" restaurant in New New York City.
The Tavern featured prominently in the 2011 film, Mr. Popper's Penguins
Mr. Popper's Penguins (film)
Mr. Popper's Penguins is a live-action family comedy film distributed by 20th Century Fox starring Jim Carrey, based on the children's book of the same name. The film was originally slated for a release on August 12, 2011, but was moved up to June 17, 2011....
, which recreated the defunct restaurant during its heyday. Jim Carrey
Jim Carrey
James Eugene "Jim" Carrey is a Canadian-American actor and comedian. He has received two Golden Globe Awards and has also been nominated on four occasions. Carrey began comedy in 1979, performing at Yuk Yuk's in Toronto, Ontario...
plays a real estate professional attempting to purchase the restaurant from its owner, played by Angela Lansbury
Angela Lansbury
Angela Brigid Lansbury CBE is an English actress and singer in theatre, television and motion pictures, whose career has spanned eight decades and earned her more performance Tony Awards than any other individual , with five wins...
, on behalf of owners who wish to tear it down. The film references Donald Trump
Donald Trump
Donald John Trump, Sr. is an American business magnate, television personality and author. He is the chairman and president of The Trump Organization and the founder of Trump Entertainment Resorts. Trump's extravagant lifestyle, outspoken manner and role on the NBC reality show The Apprentice have...
's later attempts to buy the restaurant in order to reopen it, as well as the restaurant's importance to the culture of New York.
External links
- Tavern on the Green profile and articles at The New York Times.
- "Jennifer Oz Leroy: Restauratrice in the Green," WomensBiz.us.
- "Tavern on the Green preps for final service", Associated PressAssociated PressThe Associated Press is an American news agency. The AP is a cooperative owned by its contributing newspapers, radio and television stations in the United States, which both contribute stories to the AP and use material written by its staff journalists...
via Crain's New York Business. WebCitataion.org