Midtown Restaurants Reopen After Monthslong Closures

MIDTOWN MANHATTAN, NY — At least three popular Midtown eateries have announced plans to reopen after extended closures during the winter, signaling optimism that crowds will return to the neighborhood amid warm weather and the vaccine rollout.

Don't Tell Mama, the famed Hell's Kitchen nightclub, told patrons last week that it would open its club doors again on West 46th Street's Restaurant Row, after having been open for only sidewalk dining during the fall and winter.

A few doors down, Becco, the Italian restaurant run by the chef Lidia Bastianich and her son, welcomed back customers after its own extended closure.

Meanwhile, the fast-casual store Mulberry and Vine announced Sunday that it would reopen its space at 644 Lexington Ave., near East 55th Street, on April 14. The eatery closed its five New York City locations in November, suffering from a steep drop-off in traffic due to the departure of office workers.

Earlier this month, Mayor Bill de Blasio announced that tens of thousands of city workers would return to their offices in May. Another recent study found that 500,000 Manhattan workers expected to return to their offices by this fall — a ray of hope for Midtown businesses that have dealt with an emptied-out neighborhood since the onset of the pandemic.