Met Museum To Open New Sidewalk Cafe, Free Bike Valet

UPPER EAST SIDE, NY — As if its world-class collection were not enough, the Metropolitan Museum of Art is has announced two new draws for the coming summer: a new sidewalk cafe and a free bike valet service.

The "Plaza Café," operated by Bon Appétit, opened Thursday on the Met's Fifth Avenue plaza near East 83rd Street.

Perfect for a meal near the museum steps or for "an impromptu Central Park picnic," the cafe will serve grab-and-go food including sandwiches, house-made lemonade and iced tea, and fruit ice pops by the Brooklyn company Peoples Pops.

Feeling peckish on the plaza? Introducing The Plaza Café

Stop by for sandwiches, snacks, and light refreshments—plus frozen ice pops from Brooklyn-based company @peoplespops.

Learn more: https://t.co/PCL3E1hP4g pic.twitter.com/jodb1GvrBL
— The Metropolitan Museum of Art (@metmuseum) May 27, 2021

Museum members will get a 10 percent discount at the cafe.

It will be open 11 a.m. to 4 p.m., Thursday–Monday through Sept. 5.

Meanwhile, the Met also announced on Thursday the return of its complimentary bicycle valet, which is sponsored by the street-safety group Transportation Alternatives.

First piloted last fall, the valet will be open every Saturday and Sunday from Memorial Day weekend through Labor Day, including holiday Mondays and July 5.

Visitors who want to check their bikes will be met by Transportation Alternatives staff in a tent on the Fifth Avenue plaza near 83rd Street, the museum says.

TA's Bike Valet is now live at the @metmuseum reopening! Come by the north plaza and park your bike with ease while you enjoy everything the Met has to offer. For hours and location please visit https://t.co/imcyLtP9iC pic.twitter.com/j7t2HAA4jg
— Transportation Alternatives (@TransAlt) August 31, 2020

"New Yorkers surely need no additional reasons to visit The Met, but we hope free and convenient bike parking, and enjoying food and beverage on our iconic plaza will further enhance a Museum visit," said Ken Weine, the Met's vice president for external affairs, in a statement. "Come for the art, by bike if you’d like, and stay for the Plaza Café."

The Met, which reopened on Aug. 29 after a five-month pandemic closure, is open Thursday–Monday from 10 a.m. to 5 p.m.