Two New York City eateries owned by restaurateur Danny Meyer will shutter this month as the historic hotel they’re housed in clears out to accommodate asylum seekers.
The Redbury Hotel, a landmark hotel in NoMad, began housing migrants earlier this month as the city flounders trying to house over 57,000 asylum seekers each night.
The Union Square Hospitality Group — run by Meyer — announced Friday that Marta and Maialino (vicino), which are located in the Redbury, will have their last service on August 25, Eater reported.
While a spokesperson initially said that the migrants’ makeshift accommodations would not impact operations at either restaurant, the group issued a statement Friday sharing news of the change.
“We are disappointed to announce that Marta and Maialino (vicino) will be ceasing operations at the Redbury,” the statement read.
“As tenants of the Redbury, our two restaurants, which occupy the lobby floor, have been eagerly anticipating the hotel’s full post-pandemic reopening. Now, as the Redbury partners with the City to house asylum seekers, it’s become clear that the timeline for that reopening has been extended indefinitely.”
The statement continued: “While we admire and respect the Redbury’s decision, the viability of our business relies significantly on hotel-related F&B operations, including event venues and the lobby bar, spaces that are now unavailable for our use.”
“We remain fully supportive of the Redbury’s initiative and will continue advocating for policy change that expedites work permits for asylum seekers.”
Maialino, a restaurant and wine bar that previously operated out of the Gramercy Park Hotel, began doing business out of the Redbury last fall as Maialino (vicino).
The second restaurant, Marta, a pizzeria, opened in 2014 when the Redbury was the Martha Washington Hotel. In 2015 the hotel was bought for $158 million and renamed the Redbury.
It was not immediately clear whether the two restaurants would reopen in new locations.
The unfortunate news for New York City foodies comes as Mayor Eric Adams’ administration struggles to keep up with the flood of migrants who have left the Big Apple at its breaking point.
Adams announced earlier this month that the migrant crunch is expected to cost an overall whopping $12 billion for the next three years.
A state source also told The Post that taxpayers would have to shell out $20 million a month — or $10,000 per asylum-seeker — to house 2,000 migrants on Randall’s Island.
The recent influx has spilled out into city streets, including in Manhattan, where dozens of migrants were forced to sleep on the sidewalks outside the Roosevelt Hotel in Midtown when the makeshift intake center became full.
Meanwhile, Hochul had promised to add Floyd Bennett Field, a former military airbase in Brooklyn, to the list of state-funded shelters — but White House officials refused to sign off on the plan, issuing her a major blow.
