The Judges Awards

09.3 New York

Despite its difficult entry into the 21st century, the city that never sleeps has regrouped, found its rhythm and hit back with a rather different design agenda. Once driven by excess, New York has entered an era of austerity. Shops have closed and restaurants have lost their leases, yet thanks to cheaper rents and a greater appreciation of quality over quantity, New York has never felt more compelling. Retail-wise, spaces such as Dossier, Partners & Spade and Bird are blurring the boundaries between store and gallery, while the city's restaurants are also focusing on smart concepts, from Graydon Carter's return to a glam, 1930s vibe at the Monkey Bar to the Ace Hotel's bar, filled with carefully curated vintage American furnishings. Many new architectural developments may have been stalled by the recession, but there have been impressive additions to the cityscape – André Balazs' Standard, the Cooper Square Hotel and the Museum of Arts and Design have made an impact, while residential projects from Annabelle Selldorf, Shigeru Ban and Jean Nouvel are in progress on the West Side of Manhattan. It is this area that has seen the biggest change, with the recent opening of the High Line, the city's dazzling new public park.

Bars & restaurants: 10 Downing Food & Wine; Scarpetta; DBGB; Co; The Monkey Bar at the Hotel Elysée
Hotels: The Ace Hotel; The Standard; The Greenwich Hotel; The Cooper Square Hotel
New architecture: Allied Works Architecture's Museum of Arts and Design (MAD); upcoming residential projects from Annabelle Selldorf, Shigeru Ban and Jean Nouvel
Shops: Revitalised Christopher Street shopping area; Dossier concept store in Fort Greene; Partners & Spade in NoHo; Bird in Williamsburg

View more images

Categories