Manhattan’s Upper West Side is not often associated with experimental design or dynamic nightlife for that matter, but at the recently opened Asset, a design-driven restaurant and bar – which also comes equipped with a DJ booth – surprises abound.
Situated on Columbus Avenue, the space, which was formerly a retail store, has been transformed into a rhythmic amalgam of light oak, industrial metal and soft upholstery to recall the palimpsest nature of architecture in New York. Designed by the firm Bates Masi, the multi-level space was conceived in ode to the multiple layers of construction that underscores the site. The firm 3D scanned the building to uncover vaults of expanded metal lath – a feature it reintroduced to help breakdown the interior into a more intimate scale. A dramatic U-shaped double staircase serves as a bold anchor to the space, while also bringing a sense of delicacy with its accompanying guardrail and metal mesh siding.
Spread across 5,000 sq ft and armed with 220 seats in the dining room, and a 24-seat bar by its entryway, Asset doesn’t hold back on the punches. Accompanied by a menu that reinterprets classic American dishes for brunch, dinner and late-night, it exudes an elevated yet welcoming allure that will appeal to both neighbourhood locals and visitors alike.
INFORMATION
ADDRESS
329 Columbus Ave
New York
-
How Ichio Matsuzawa designed the almost-invisible bar defining Art Week Tokyo 2025During the art fair’s latest instalment, Wallpaper* met the Japanese architect to explore architecture as sensation, not structure
-
The story behind rebellious New York fashion label-cum-art collective, Women’s History MuseumMattie Barringer and Amanda McGowan’s multidisciplinary label has been challenging fashion’s status quo for the past decade. As they open a new exhibition at Amant, Brooklyn, the pair sit down with Wallpaper* to discuss their provocative approach
-
Mark+Fold Turns 10 with first Shoreditch pop-upBritish stationery brand Mark+Fold celebrates ten years in business with a Brick Lane pop-up featuring new products, small-batch editions and conversations with creatives
-
Dior’s new Beverly Hills dining salon raises the bar for couture cuisineFrom Peter Marino’s onyx bar and faceted mirrored walls to Nicole Wittenberg’s vast, immersive botanical canvas, Dior’s first restaurant outside Paris is here
-
This new Los Angeles restaurant is a mischievous blend of dive bar and 'psychedelic honky tonk'At Marvito, small-batch tequila and a classic rock soundtrack create a delightfully nostalgic night out
-
Fantasy – and incredible seafood – await at Carbone Riviera, now open at the Bellagio in Las VegasInterior design powerhouse Martin Brudnizki drew on the Côte d'Azur and Picasso’s ceramics for Major Food Group’s latest Sin City outpost
-
At Café Zaffri in New York, history is served with a rebellious streakThe team behind Raf's unveils a new Union Square haunt that dishes up redefined Levantine cuisine in a reimagined Old New York dining room
-
Welcome to Polymath Park, where you can spend the night in a Frank Lloyd Wright masterpieceA pair of determined Wright devotees have turned four endangered modernist houses into an overnight design retreat
-
Faena New York just landed in the Big Apple – and it's an excuse for a good timeArgentine hotelier Alan Faena’s first New York address serves up high-octane hospitality with a dash of leopard print
-
These vintage American motels will have you longing for the open road‘Vintage Motels’ documents how the humble roadside stopover has evolved into a design-led destination for a new generation of travellers
-
At Duryea’s Sunset Cottages in The Hamptons, it’s all about stillness and open horizonsA beloved Hampton restaurant becomes a tucked-away retreat set on a windswept bluff above Fort Pond Bay in Montauk
