windows on the world
Memorial park · Financial District ·
Iconic restaurant offering sixty-mile vistas and an otherworldly atmosphere
Iconic restaurant offering sixty-mile vistas and an otherworldly atmosphere
"A high-profile restaurant formerly located at the World Trade Center where Inez served as beverage manager and which profoundly affected her life and career after the 2001 attacks; she and her then-colleagues were off premises that day yet lost many coworkers, an experience that influenced her subsequent move back to her hometown and the eventual founding of the Tarboro bistro." - Jenn Rice
"Perched on the 107th floor of the North Tower and opened in 1976, this lofty restaurant offered breathtaking, sixty-mile vistas — Manhattan, bridges, the Statue of Liberty, and even distant Highlands and ocean — and an almost otherworldly atmosphere of high-contrast light, muted sound, and wind howls that made the city below look like a toy. Conceived by restaurateur Joe Baum as a glamorous, international dining destination and an antidote to a rougher city street life, it grew into the highest-grossing restaurant in the country over its 25-year run and became a symbol of New York’s grandeur. Its creation was a monumental logistical and design effort: Baum assembled a small, driven team to imagine multiple eateries and bars on the floor, oversaw dozens of contractors for interiors, and fought a crucial battle to widen narrow architecturally prescribed windows so diners could truly take in the views. The operation also depended on an extensive, below-ground kitchen system to feed building tenants and guests daily. The restaurant’s success and cultural stature were forever marked by tragedy when 73 employees were lost on September 11, 2001, an event that casts a long shadow over its legacy." - Tom Roston
"I saw that a new book chronicles the life of Windows on the World, the former Twin Towers restaurant." - Stefanie Tuder
"A prominent restaurant where he taught an interactive tequila class on the night of September 10, 2001, an event whose aftermath and the broader tragedy of 9/11 became a significant point of reflection in his writing and career." - Grub Street
"Windows on the World was the highest-grossing restaurant in the country and was preparing for its triumphant, twenty-fifth anniversary party in October. The responsibility for the celebration would fall on the shoulders of chef Lomonaco. The restaurant annually served hundreds of thousands of New Yorkers and visitors, putting on a massive and intricate high-wire act for two and a half decades. It had a diverse staff from over two dozen countries, was known for its good tips, and was a place where staff treated each other like family." - Tom Roston
Gael D.