NEW YORK, NY – Buddakan, unquestionably one of New Yorks chicest restaurants, opened its doors to us to host #dininginthespotlight, in true style.
Named one of “America’s Top 50 Restaurants” by Travel + Leisure magazine and one of the top new restaurants by Zagat Survey 2007, Buddakan attracts an all-star clientele with its modern Asian cuisine and dramatic atmosphere.
For Buddakan New York, interior designer Christian Liaigre created a sensual space that is both inviting and surreal – surely, one of the most outstanding restaurant designs in the last 25 years. The industrial façade with its dark, raw exposed brick, has been left to contrast with the restaurants interior – a majestic and mysterious masterpiece. The 16,000 square foot restaurant seats 320 people in several areas, each with its own individual ambiance. At the center is a chandelier-lit, opulent dining room that contains a central, communal dining table and leads to intimate dining areas, as well as The Golden Library – a private room with glowing walls lined with golden books.
Buddakan’s decorative theme parallels the menu concept; which is Chinese meets Parisian meets industrial New York City. Reproductions of Renaissance Bacchanal paintings and Buddha icons hang next to Louis XIV curiosity cabinets. The building’s structures, including the porcelain vase-shaped doorways, and traditional Chinese screen windows, further the Asian art theme.
Christian Liaigre is one of the world’s leading interior designers, having designed New York’s Mercer Hotel, London’s world-famous Hakkasan restaurant, Marc Jacobs stores, and fashion brand Kenzo’s Paris office. He has been commissioned by style luminaries including Calvin Klein, Karl Lagerfeld, and Francois Nars to design private residences all over the world. Liaigre’s décor is to be complimented by Fabien Baron’s creative direction. Baron, a renowned artistic director in the fashion industry, has taken the role of tying together the conceptual themes of Buddakan and unifying everything from furniture and flatware, to menus and the logo.
Buddakan is one of two restaurants Stephen Starr, owner of the acclaimed Starr Restaurant Organization opened in New York City’s meatpacking district in 2006, the other being contemporary Japanese gem Morimoto. A master of ultra‑chic concepts and sensational interior design, Starr has taken Philadelphia’s dining scene to exciting new heights with his successful group of restaurants that includes: Jones, a casual comfort-food restaurant and lounge, the Nuevo Latino Alma de Cuba, the ever‑popular Continental Restaurant and Martini Bar, the breathtaking Moroccan fantasy Tangerine, and the futuristic Asian Pod.
Buddakan offers modern Asian cuisine rooted in Chinese and South East Asian fare. Starr has named Lon Symensma the executive chef. The charismatic, young chef previously managed the kitchens of Spice Market, Yumcha and Jean-Georges and has now worked with the Starr Restaurant Organization for two years.
Buddakan is located at 75 Ninth Avenue at 16th Street in New York City.
For reservations call 212-989-6699.
Buddakan seats 260 in the restaurant and 60 in the lounge.
The Buddakan dining room is open for dinner, Sunday through Wednesday, 5pm to midnight and Thursday through Saturday, 5pm to 1am. The cocktail lounge is open Sunday through Thursday until 2am and Friday and Saturday night, from 5pm until 3am.
Buddakan is available for private events.
