None of the big restaurants near Lincoln Center that went dark over the past year and a half closed for good. Each one came back in a larger space. Daniel Boulud merged three restaurants into one at 1900 Broadway. La Pecora Bianca took over the old Rosa Mexicano space at 61 Columbus Avenue and turned it into the chain's largest location. Rosa Mexicano moved one block north into a bigger room. So the blocks between West 62nd and West 64th Streets have more seats, more bars and more square footage than they had in 2024.
The larger rooms explain why this fall has felt half-finished to anyone trying to book dinner before a performance. Big restaurants open in stages. The doors opened in October. Lunch and sidewalk tables are scheduled for later, and the pre-theater express menu announced in September has no launch date.
Three Addresses, Each Larger Than Before
| Address | Previous occupant | Now | Scale |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1900 Broadway at W. 64th St. | Boulud Sud, Bar Boulud, Épicerie Boulud | Brasserie Boulud, with Épicerie Boulud and Bar Viv | More than 10,000 sq ft over two floors |
| 61 Columbus Ave. at W. 62nd St. | Rosa Mexicano, close to 25 years | La Pecora Bianca Lincoln Square | 8,000 sq ft, more than 250 seats, two floors |
| 44 W. 63rd St., The Empire Hotel | Ed's Chowder House, closed 2018 | Rosa Mexicano, since Sept. 10, 2025 | Expanded dining areas, multiple bars |
The third row comes first in the story. When Rosa Mexicano left 61 Columbus in September 2025, a representative told West Side Rag that the reason was simple: "more space was needed." The restaurant moved into The Empire Hotel. The Lincoln Square Business Improvement District described the new room as having "expanded dining areas, multiple bars, vibrant event spaces, and a refreshed design." That room had been empty since Ed's Chowder House closed in 2018.
So Rosa Mexicano's departure from Columbus Avenue was really an expansion, and it freed the corner for La Pecora Bianca. Mark Barak first presented his plans for the space to Community Board 7's Business & Consumer Issues Committee in June 2024. At the time he expected to open in late 2025, according to I Love the Upper West Side. The date slipped to Monday, Oct. 19, 2026, which Barak confirmed to the site and to West Side Rag.
Across Broadway, Boulud's three restaurants closed in the summer of 2025. A spokesperson's statement to West Side Rag said that "after two decades of success on the Upper West Side with his three restaurants across from Lincoln Center … Daniel Boulud has decided to boldly combine the spaces into one spectacular dining destination." Rockwell Group designed the new room, which covers more than 10,000 square feet on two floors.
Brasserie Boulud Opened in Stages
The opening date was the first thing to move. West Side Rag reported a planned opening of Sept. 17. The restaurant actually opened on Oct. 8, according to Time Out New York and the Lincoln Square BID.
The September announcement described a full-day operation: breakfast, lunch and dinner, morning coffee and croissants to eat in or take out, and pre- and post-theater express menus. As of the New York Post's Oct. 21 review, the main room served dinner only. Lunch was not expected until November and outdoor seating not until spring. The menu was entirely à la carte, and Boulud told the Post that a prix-fixe option might be added "based on sales."
For a Lincoln Center evening, the express menu is the piece that matters most, and it hasn't launched yet. The Infatuation still recommends the brasserie for pre-theater dining. With an all à la carte menu, the pace of the meal depends on what you order.
Here is how the complex is divided right now, based on the opening-week schedule Time Out published and the Post's later update:
- Épicerie Boulud: Tuesday through Sunday, 7 a.m. to 6 p.m. It serves morning pastries and coffee, then sandwiches and salads. For now, this is the daytime part of the address.
- The main dining room: Dinner Tuesday through Sunday, listed at opening as 4:30 to 10:30 p.m. Reservations are on Resy. The Post later reported that hours were under review, with last orders at 11 p.m. on weeknights and 11:30 p.m. on Saturday. It is closed Mondays.
- Bar Viv: Listed at opening as 4 p.m. to midnight. The Post describes it as a moody 40-seat lounge that takes no reservations. It is named for the late Vivian Milstein, a major supporter of Lincoln Center and the mother of building owner Philip Milstein. "It's an adult bar, no children, no dogs," Boulud told the paper.
- Downstairs: Three private dining rooms for celebrations and business dinners.
Christina D'Angelo is the executive chef. The Post singled out several early dishes: boudin blanc and merguez sausages at $25 each, a lobster soufflé at $35, duck à l'orange at $37, and pastry chef Katalina Diaz's tarte tatin made with Honeycrisp apples and Calvados. The cheddar "burger classique" is $25, and the Post noted it costs a dollar less than the burger at The Smith down the block. Time Out adds seafood towers, French onion soup, steak frites and the return of the DB Burger. Seasonal specials range from Dover sole to duck pie. The main room centers on a 25-seat oval bar with a zinc top, surrounded by leather booths and banquettes.
La Pecora Bianca Fills a Different Part of the Day
Two blocks south, La Pecora Bianca's schedule covers the hours the brasserie doesn't serve yet, at least on weekdays. The restaurant's Lincoln Square page lists these hours:
- Monday through Thursday, 11:30 a.m. to 11 p.m.
- Friday, 11:30 a.m. to midnight
- Saturday, 4 p.m. to midnight
- Sunday, 4 to 10 p.m.
So weekday lunch near Lincoln Center now means La Pecora Bianca or the Épicerie counter. On Mondays, when Brasserie Boulud is closed, La Pecora Bianca is open from late morning to 11 p.m. Neither restaurant serves a weekend daytime meal in its main dining room. Reservations are on OpenTable.
This is the second La Pecora Bianca on the Upper West Side, after 359 Columbus Avenue at West 77th Street, which opened in 2022. The Lincoln Square location carries the chain's standards, including rigatoni vodka, whipped ricotta toast and chicken parmesan. It also has several dishes Barak described to West Side Rag as exclusive to this location: mafaldine with roasted butternut squash, brown butter and crispy sage; trecce with braised short rib ragu; local burrata with stone fruit agrodolce; and an autumn pizza with delicata squash, speck, ricotta, fontina and sage. Outdoor seating is planned for the spring.
That makes two large dining rooms on the same few blocks, both planning to put tables outside next spring. The sidewalk between West 62nd and West 64th Streets will look different by then too.
The Smaller Openings Are on Columbus and the Side Streets
While the two big rooms took over the Broadway and Columbus Avenue corners, a group of much smaller places opened or signed leases a few blocks north. They serve a different meal: something quick that doesn't need a reservation.
Lucia Pizza opened at 159 Columbus Avenue, between West 67th and West 68th Streets, on Oct. 5. Co-owner Dylan Schwartz also co-owns the brand's Upper East Side shop.
Wu's Dynasty began regular service in early September at 208 West 70th Street, between Amsterdam and West End Avenues. Owner Derek Wu was previously a founder and manager of Wu's Wonton King.
Kine Musubi held a soft opening on Sept. 24 at 128 West 72nd Street. Co-founder Chi Ian Chan grew up in Hawaii and previously ran a pop-up at Sushi Nonaka.
Three more are coming but don't have firm dates:
- Café Alon, a kosher café and bakery from Israeli restaurant operator Ofer Puder, is expected at 200 West End Avenue between West 69th and West 70th Streets sometime in November.
- Edith's Sandwich Counter has signed a lease at 186 Columbus Avenue, between West 68th and West 69th Streets, in the former Francesco's Pizza space. Elyssa Heller founded Edith's in 2020 as a pandemic pop-up in Greenpoint, and it now has shops in Williamsburg, Tribeca and the West Village. The New York Times named its bacon, egg and cheese on a bagel one of "the 57 sandwiches that define New York City."
- Mimi's, an Australian-style frozen yogurt shop that makes its yogurt with Greek yogurt, kefir, cane sugar and locally sourced fruit, has signed a lease at 221 Columbus Avenue at West 70th Street. Its three other New York locations are self-serve and known for long lines.
Large, multi-room operations hold the corners facing the plaza, while small counters and takeout shops fill the Columbus Avenue storefronts in the high 60s and the side streets near West 70th.
What Changes Between Now and Spring
Brasserie Boulud's lunch service is expected in November, and Café Alon is expected that month too. Boulud has said only that a prix-fixe option might be added depending on sales, and no date has been given for the pre-theater express menu announced in September. In spring, both large rooms plan to add outdoor seating along Broadway and Columbus Avenue. Until then, a weekday meal before a Lincoln Center performance comes down to three practical choices: a reservation at Brasserie Boulud, a seat at La Pecora Bianca, or arriving early enough to get into Bar Viv.
If you're weighing how these blocks are changing, or what an apartment within walking distance of Lincoln Center offers at this point in its restaurant cycle, I'd be glad to walk the neighborhood with you. Reach out to Jeffrey Goodman and Let's Connect.
