Posted Yesterday, 1:59 AM
|
 |
New Yorker for life
|
|
Join Date: Jul 2001
Location: Borough of Jersey
Posts: 56,854
|
|
https://nypost.com/2026/07/23/real-estate/polo-bar-will-leave-its-nyc-location-for-free-rent/
Famed Polo Bar will leave its iconic NYC home for free rent — risking its exclusivity
By Mary K. Jacob and Kyra Breslin
July 23, 2026
Quote:
This is an offer that could not be refused.
After more than a decade as one of New York’s most impossible tables to book, Ralph Lauren’s Polo Bar is leaving the wood-paneled Midtown perch that made it a fixture of the city’s high-society scene, The Post has confirmed.
Related Companies has secured a deal to relocate the see-and-be-seen restaurant into a 53-story office tower it’s building four blocks north at 625 Madison Ave., according to a person familiar with the leasing negotiations. What’s more, Related is sweetening the deal with a rent break that could stretch on for years, according to a separate person familiar with the matter.
The developer has offered Polo Bar at least two years of free rent to make the move, the source said, as part of a broader push that also includes courting the restaurant’s parent company to expand into Palm Beach, all on the heels of Ralph Lauren’s recent Polo Bar opening in London.
This move will take Polo Bar out of its current home just off Fifth Avenue, where it has operated since 2015, and into the ground floor of a brand-new tower expected to be completed in the summer of 2029.
|
Quote:
Polo Bar has drawn a steady stream of famous faces through its equestrian-lined dining room, from Taylor Swift and Travis Kelce to the Kardashians. The restaurant has also become a favorite among fashion and entertainment circles.
News of the possible move has already rippled through the exclusive circle of regulars who treat a Polo Bar table as a status symbol more than a meal.
Penn Portman, who recently celebrated a birthday at the restaurant, said she would welcome a change of address if it came with better odds of getting a table.
“If another location helps being able to get reservations easily, I’m extremely down,” Portman, who is in her 30s and resides on the Upper East Side, told The Post.
|
Quote:
Landing a table at Polo Bar has become its own small industry of insider knowledge.
Regulars describe a routine in which hopefuls call the restaurant, are told they would check availability and then Google the person before a reservation is confirmed — with availability tightening further as the restaurant’s profile has grown.
Some diners say the best odds come from calling first thing on Tuesday mornings, when same-day cancellations are confirmed and slots can open up.
Employees of Ralph Lauren and Polo brands are also known to have an easier path to a table, according to people familiar with the reservation process, who said openings are sometimes offered informally to those connected to the company.
|
Quote:
Molly Friedman, 34, a longtime New Yorker and Polo Bar regular who lives near the restaurant’s current location, said she typically gets her reservations through a family connection rather than calling in cold.
“Because of my uncle I always go with him,” Friedman said of the business strategist and former Estée Lauder executive John Demsey. “Or I would get him to make [a reservation] for me.”
Friedman said she is skeptical the move would preserve what makes the restaurant special in the first place, describing the downstairs space as central to its appeal.
“The point of the downstairs is that it is like a cave … sexy and it brings so many personalities,” Friedman told The Post. “I feel like if they cater to the office type I’m not sure what vibe that’s going to bring. Obviously they will make it stunning and the food will be great. But [it’s] all about the mood.”
|
__________________
NEW YORK is Back!
“Office buildings are our factories – whether for tech, creative or traditional industries we must continue to grow our modern factories to create new jobs,” said United States Senator Chuck Schumer.
|
Prev
Linear Mode
