A Splashy Seafood Brasserie Opens Today Inside the Renovated W Union Square Hotel | Eater NY

"Inside the newly renovated W New York – Union Square hotel, this daylight-filled seafood brasserie from John McDonald’s Mercer Street Hospitality arrives as one of his most ambitious projects, more than three years in the making alongside the hotel’s $100 million overhaul. Designed by David Rockwell and the Rockwell Group, the 125-seat space leads guests through arches to a zinc-topped, wood-paneled bar and a dining room centered on a dramatic raw bar with mirrored towers, scallop tiles, midnight blue banquettes, and a whimsical sea mural by Brooklyn’s En Viu. Chef John Villa—whose Judson Grill earned two New York Times stars and whose Pico drew three—oversees an opening menu focused on oysters, crudo, and shrimp cocktail, plus cured and smoked Spanish mackerel with extra-virgin olive oil and colatura; olive oil–poached swordfish with baby carrots and artichoke; roasted branzino with salsa verde and charred chicories; seared tuna au poivre with triple-cooked fries; pastas like spicy lobster cavatelli and corn ravioli; and a standout duck à l’orange, with a roving dessert cart to follow. Cocktails range from the Seahorse Martini (gin, Lillet, Chartreuse) to the Ideal Unwind (tequila, strawberry, dry curaçao, sparkling wine). Distinct from the subterranean, buzzy sushi-and-seafood lair of sibling Lure Fishbar, this spot offers a broad, seasonal menu in a sunlit dining room steps from the Union Square Greenmarket, set in the landmark Guardian Life building that once housed Todd English’s Olives; it’s open for dinner now, with lunch to follow soon." - Melissa McCart