Balthazar (restaurant)

For the restaurant in Australia, see Balthazar (Perth restaurant).

Balthazar is a French brasserie restaurant located at 80 Spring Street (between Broadway and Crosby Street) in SoHo in Manhattan, in New York City.^[4] It opened on April 21, 1997, and is owned by British-born restaurateur Keith McNally.^{[4][5][6][7][8]: 182}

Balthazar
Balthazar's SoHo location
Restaurant information
Established	April 21, 1997; 27 years ago (April 21, 1997)
Owner(s)	Keith McNally
Food type	French brasserie
Dress code	Chic[1]
Street address	80 Spring Street (between Broadway and Crosby Street) in SoHo in Manhattan
City	New York
County	New York
State	New York
Postal/ZIP Code	10012
Country	United States
Coordinates	40.722712°N 73.998159°W / 40.722712; -73.998159
Reservations	Recommended[2]
Other locations	Balthazar Boulangerie 8 Russell Street (corner of Wellington Street) Covent Garden London WC2B 5HZ [3]
Website	Official website

McNally also owns Pastis, Cafe Luxembourg, Lucky Strike, the Russian-themed bar and restaurant Pravda, Odeon in Tribeca, and Schiller's Liquor Bar on the Lower East Side.^[7][9][10] Balthazar Bakery was later opened at 80 Spring Street.^[11] McNally opened Balthazar in the theatre district in Covent Garden in London, in February 2013.^[12]

Description

The French onion soup at Balthazar

Among its dishes are steak au poivre, steak frites, short ribs, beef stroganoff, duck confit, butternut squash, skate, and French onion soup.^{[1][5][13][14][15]} Balthazar typically serves around 1,500 guests a day, and its most popular dish is steak frites; the restaurant can sell 200 per day. Out of more than 200 employees, two full-time prep cooks are required just to handle potatoes for frying.^[16] It is also known for its raw bar.^{[17][18][8]: 468} The head chef is Shane McBride,^[16] who was preceded by Lee Hanson and Riad Nasr.^[19]

The SoHo building that houses Balthazar used to be occupied by a tannery.^[16] Balthazar's design was intended to resemble that of a brasserie, with high-backed red leather banquettes, scarred and peeling brass oversize mirrors, high tin ceiling, scuffed tiled floor, faded saffron yellow walls, large windows, and antique lighting.^{[1][2][15][17][18][20][21][22][8]: 182} The restaurant seats 180 people.^[16] Balthazar is also known for celebrity-watching; in 2012, Fodor's ranked it # 1 in New York City in that category.^[23][24]

In 2013, Zagat's gave Balthazar a food rating of 24 (out of 30), a decor rating of 24, and ranked it the second best French brasserie restaurant in New York City.^[4] That year, the New York Daily News rated its French onion soup the second-best in the city.^[13]

Balthazar made headlines in 2022 when comedian and actor James Corden was banned from the restaurant by owner Keith McNally, after reportedly being "abusive" and "extremely nasty" to staff. The ban was later rescinded after Corden apologised to McNally in private and in public, admitting that he had been "ungracious."^[25][26]

In popular culture

Balthazar is featured in the 2009 autobiography Under the Table: Saucy Tales from Culinary School, by Katherine Darling (Simon & Schuster),^[27] in the 2010 novel The Associate, by John Grisham (Random House),^[28] in the 2010 novel Something Borrowed, by Emily Giffin (Macmillan),^[29] in the 2010 novel 36 Arguments for the Existence of God: A Work of Fiction, by Rebecca Goldstein (Random House),^[30] in the 2011 juvenile fiction novel Holiday Spirit, by Zoe Evans (Simon & Schuster),^[31] in the 2011 autobiography Innocent Spouse: A Memoir, by Carol Ross Joynt (Random House),^[32] and in the 2012 novel The Stolen Chalice, by Kitty Pilgrim (Simon & Schuster).^[33] In November 1999, comedian and actor Jerry Seinfeld proposed to Jessica Sklar at Balthazar.^[34] As the ultimate tribute, shortly after opening it was parodied as the blazing hot über-cool “Balzac” in the fifth episode of the first season of Sex and the City, entitled “The Power of Female Sex.”

See also

• Jesse Dunford Wood, a chef at Balthazar

References

1. Eve Zibart (2010). The Unofficial Guide to New York City. John Wiley & Sons. ISBN 9780470637234. Retrieved February 4, 2013.
2. Gerber, Suzanne; McCartney, Paul (2004). Vegetarian New York City: The Essential Dining, Shopping, and Lodging Guide. Globe Pequot. ISBN 9780762728527. Retrieved February 4, 2013.
3. Kerstin Kühn (January 14, 2013). "Former Marco Pierre White head chef Robert Reid appointed executive chef of Balthazar". Caterer and Hotelkeeper. Retrieved February 8, 2013.
4. Balthazar | Manhattan | Restaurant Menus and Reviews. Zagat. Archived from the original on February 26, 2011. Retrieved February 4, 2013.
5. Richard Saul Wurman (2008). Access New York City 13e. HarperCollins. ISBN 9780061350375. Retrieved February 6, 2013.
6. Gael Greene (May 19, 1997). "A Kiss-Kiss Before Dining". New York Magazine. Retrieved February 4, 2013.
7. DiGiacomo, Frank (May 19, 1997). "The Observatory: Bistro of Burden". The New York Observer. ISBN 9780061959660. Retrieved February 6, 2013.
   in The New York Observer (2009). The kingdom of New York : knights, knaves, billionaires, and beauties in the city of big shots. HarperCollins e-books. p. 133. ISBN 9780061959660. OCLC 525290598.
8. Lande, Nathaniel; Lande, Andrew (2008). The 10 Best of Everything, Second Edition: An Ultimate Guide for Travelers. National Geographic Books. ISBN 9781426202278. Retrieved February 4, 2013.
9. Let's Go Inc. (2008). Let's Go New York City; 17th Edition. Macmillan. ISBN 9780312385804. Retrieved February 6, 2013.
10. Richard David Story (August 2000). "travel eastern standard". Los Angeles Magazine. Retrieved February 6, 2013.
11. Jeffrey Steingarten (2008). It Must've Been Something I Ate: The Return of the Man Who Ate Everything. Random House. ISBN 9780307486448. Retrieved February 6, 2013.
12. Yumi Matsuo (September 26, 2012). "Why We Can't Wait For Keith McNally's Balthazar To Open In London". Guestofaguest.com. Retrieved February 8, 2013.
13. Osterhout, Jacob E. (January 13, 2013). "Best of New York: French Onion Soup". New York Daily News. Retrieved February 8, 2013.
14. Jeryl Brunner (2011). My City, My New York: Famous New Yorkers Share Their Favorite Places. Globe Pequot. p. 61. ISBN 9780762777167. Retrieved February 4, 2013. spring street balthazar.
15. Ed Levine (1997). New York Eats (More): The Food Shopper's Guide To The Freshest Ingredients, The Best Take-Out & Baked Goods, & The Most Unusual Marketplaces In All Of New York. Macmillan. ISBN 9780312156053. Retrieved February 4, 2013.
16. Staley, Willy (October 17, 2013), "22 Hours in Balthazar", The New York Times
17. Anita Gates (2008). The Complete Idiot's Guide to New York City. Penguin. ISBN 9781440653322. Retrieved February 4, 2013.
18. Greenfield, Beth; Reid, Robert (2004). New York City. Lonely Planet. ISBN 9781741041231. Retrieved February 6, 2013.
19. Michael Kaminer (August 29, 2012). "Restaurant review: Balthazar". NY Daily News. Retrieved February 4, 2013.
20. Gael Greene (2006). Insatiable: Tales from a Life of Delicious Excess. Hachette. ISBN 9780759515338. Retrieved February 4, 2013.
21. Reid Bramblett (2003). Frommer's Memorable Walks in New York. John Wiley & Sons. ISBN 9780764556418. Retrieved February 4, 2013.
22. Jesse Angelo (May 30, 1999). "'STRETCHING' THE PARKING; RULES IN SOHO". New York Post. Archived from the original on February 16, 2013. Retrieved February 4, 2013.
23. Ben Ammar (August 30, 2004). Traveling The Tennis Tour: The Men's Professional Tour. ISBN 9781581125313. Retrieved February 6, 2013.
24. Fodor's (2011). Fodor's New York City 2012. Random House. ISBN 9780307928641. Retrieved February 6, 2013.
25. "Comedian James Corden apologises after Balthazar restaurant ban". BBC News. October 18, 2022. Retrieved November 3, 2022.
26. "James Corden tells viewers he was 'rude' to restaurant server". BBC News. October 25, 2022. Retrieved November 3, 2022.
27. Katherine Darling (2009). Under the Table: Saucy Tales from Culinary School. Simon & Schuster. ISBN 9781416565277. Retrieved February 6, 2013.
28. John Grisham (2010). The Associate: A Novel. Random House. ISBN 9780307576156. Retrieved February 6, 2013.
29. Emily Giffin (2010). Something Borrowed. Macmillan. ISBN 9781429904605. Retrieved February 6, 2013.
30. Rebecca Goldstein (2010). 36 Arguments for the Existence of God: A Work of Fiction. Random House. ISBN 9780307378903. Retrieved February 6, 2013.
31. Zoe Evans (2011). Holiday Spirit. Simon & Schuster. ISBN 9781442433632. Retrieved February 6, 2013.
32. Carol Ross Joynt (2011). Innocent Spouse: A Memoir. Random House. ISBN 9780307592125. Retrieved February 6, 2013.
33. Kitty Pilgrim (2012). The Stolen Chalice: A Novel. Simon & Schuster. ISBN 9781439197288. Retrieved February 6, 2013.
34. Jerry Oppenheimer (2010). Seinfeld: The Making of an American Icon. HarperCollins. ISBN 9780062030818. Retrieved February 6, 2013.

External links

• Official website
• Balthazar locations
• McNally, Keith; Nasr, Riad; Hanson, Lee (2003). The Balthazar Cookbook. Clarkson Potter/Publishers. ISBN 978-1-4000-4635-5.