Times Square to Become a Restaurant?

by Bill Sertl, Posted Mar 30th 2011 @ 1:00PM

Times Square, New York City Photo: snorpey, Flickr

Grab a seat in the open-air restaurant, unfold your napkin and take a leisurely look at the specials on the menu the waiter has just handed you. But be careful not to get sideswiped by the M7 bus as it zips down Broadway on its way through Times Square. No kidding, folks, New York's famous Crossroads of the World-the scene of so many ball-dropping New Year's Eve parties-might sport a 100-seat restaurant by summer, complete with waiter service.

According the New York Daily News, the idea comes from the Times Square Alliance, an association of local businesses, and the plan is to seek out interested parties, perhaps from restaurants in the immediate neighborhood. If the idea sounds extreme at first, consider that much of Times Square-at least three full blocks-is now mostly closed to cars, thanks to efforts, not always popular (especially with cab drivers), by Mayor Michael Bloomberg, who is also pushing hard for more bike lanes in the city. By the time you're ready to dine, though, traffic won't be the major problem. But August heat and humidity might be, that is, if the plan gets off the ground by then. (Our advice? Don't hold your polluted breath.)

Filed Under: Food News, Restaurants
Tags: times square, times square restaurant

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Reader comments (Page 1 of 1)

3-30-2011 @4:38PM Jim said... Oh rats. I thought they were bringing back the porn shops and movies.
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3-30-2011 @7:15PM ben said... They did. Guiliani cleaned it up and Bloomberg brought them back along with the strip clubs and 11 ave. hookers! nice job Mike!

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3-31-2011 @4:10AM nancy said... You said it baby RATS!!! I can't wait for this. Let's give all of these people who have destroyed NYC a taste of NYC. Rats are part of NYC as are pigeons. The art and music are all gone and all the edge are gone, erased by hords of people who had no idea what it was to live in New York but came anyway. And with that they brought the places they just left. They didn't want to live as New Yorkers live, they wanted to live in what they see on horrible tv shows. Tv shows are not reality folks. You have succeeded in destroying New York. Now it's a big suburban, overpriced nightmare. PLEASE, SERVE FOOD IN TIMES SQUARE. WATCH OUT FOR THE RATS! THEY ARE HUUUUUUGE!!!!

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3-30-2011 @9:48PM loufalce said... Bland, touristy, Disney-esque and Bloomberg approved. Thumbs down. Bring back the `deuce!
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3-31-2011 @12:44PM gobo said... The "deuce"? You mean poop? Where but NYC would you find people who dislike cleanliness and a nice environment and long for the days of dirt and grunge?

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3-30-2011 @5:30PM John said... Those of us who live in actual CITIES have enjoyed outdoor dining for years. If you don't like it, stay in the suburbs.
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3-30-2011 @7:32PM mike said... new york.........................new york!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
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3-30-2011 @8:35PM vicki said... i thought the article would have said a decompensated schizophrenic urinating next to the Naked cowboy
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3-30-2011 @8:44PM Tim said... Great Idea, I love it... NYC should allow many more resturants to open outdoor dinning areas. And sidewalk cafe's...
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3-30-2011 @8:57PM LPStarChaser said... Wasn't there a restaurant named "Lindy's" on (or near) Times Square? They were famous for their Cheesecake and the temperaments of their wait-staff. Many a joke and a number of books were written concerning these characters, actors waiting for their big break on Broadway.
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