Wall Street Makes Restaurants Right For Small Meetings
<B>Wall Street Makes Restaurants Right For Small Meetings</B>
By Frank Rosci
New York's Wall Street and vicinity is a haven for upscale restaurants, a number of which often host small corporate meetings. A prominent one that has built a notable reputation as a prime site for small meetings is Windows on the World, situated on two acres high above Lower Manhattan on the 106th and 107th floors of One World Trade Center.
"Corporate groups from Wall Street and the local market, or with a need to address a local market, often hold meetings and other functions in the two restaurants at Windows on the World," said Robert Goode, catering sales manager. "Groups can get away from the office, but still be close to the office."
The two restaurants onsite are Windows on the World-the Restaurant, with a seating capacity of 240 diners, and the smaller Wild Blue, which accommodates up to 60 people. Companies that have met in the restaurants include Morgan Stanley Dean Witter, JP Morgan, Merrill Lynch, American Express and a host of others, Goode said. About 10 percent of all meetings held at Windows on the World are for fewer than 100 attendees, he added.
Karen Shackman, president of Shackman Associates International in New York, has arranged a combination breakfast and meeting at the site. "Groups like it because of where they are, taking in the fabulous scene and setting, and it's a very user friendly venue that provides good accessibility for corporations located downtown, including in Battery Park," she said.
For his groups of 20 to 400 people, Anthony Napoli, president of Briggs Red Carpet Associates Inc. in New York, uses the space because it is "impressive in flexibility, because of the many ways it can be configured; and dramatic, especially at night because of the incredible view it offers with the lights of the city below."
Another exceptional meeting site in the Wall Street area is City Hall Restaurant, four blocks from the city's similarly named seat of government. It is located in the heart of New York's fashionable TriBeCa district, where chef/owner Henry Meer has crafted a meeting/function space that takes full advantage of the historic 1863 landmark building it occupies. "City Hall is about New York, about its history and its present," said Meer. "Thanks to the strong economy, companies in the City are courting each other more than ever and meeting more than ever, and we have the ideal space for them to conduct business."
Groups, including a who's who of banks and financial firms, law firms and management consulting companies, have discovered a noise-muting ceiling treatment, well-spaced tables and two private rooms, the Rose Room for up to 30 people seated and the Granite Room for up to 90 people seated. Meeting space is equipped with ISDN lines, Meer said. As for cost, how the rooms are used determines that, he added.
At Morton's of Chicago in downtown Manhattan, located at 90 West Street, a few blocks from Wall Street, meeting groups will find three of the company's private, signature boardrooms that seat 18, 24 and 40 guests, respectively, as well as a 130-seat dining room, said Constance Kazee, sales and marketing manager. "A variety of corporate groups use the boardrooms for a variety of meetings as a perfect alternative to traditional meeting and banquet facilities," she said. Morton's also offers audiovisual equipment, Kazee added.
The Hudson River Club at 4 World Financial Center is known for its ambiance and appeal to corporate groups, which hold hundreds of meetings and other events there each year. "We offer groups two rooms as meeting space: The Wine Room accommodates up to 30 people and the River Room up to 120," said Claudia Dattoma, director of banquet sales and catering. "Price depends on the size of the group, duration of the meeting and menus selected since groups usually combine a meeting with a meal function." In addition to the landside space, groups also meet aboard the Club's Entrepreneur II, an elegantly appointed, 130-ft. ocean-going motor yacht that features its own helipad and accommodates up to 150 guests, said Brittney Pearce, director of sales for the yacht.
A relatively new player in the restaurant meeting arena is the recently opened Regent Wall Street, with room capacities ranging from 20 to 200 attendees. Interest in group meetings at the hotel's restaurant--55 Wall--and function rooms is building rapidly, said Rose Genovese, director of sales and marketing, especially now that nine meeting rooms, including a former bank vault and a boardroom, complete with private terrace, have been opened. "As groups continue to become more familiar with the hotel and what it offers," she said, "we will look to extend even more meeting activity to the restaurant.