CBRE survey finds ‘observably livelier’ streets in Downtown and Midtown due to restaurant boom

Scores of new restaurant leases are “restoring vibrancy” to midtown and downtown, according to a new CBRE survey.

Citing “observably livelier” streets over the summer, the study argued that over 100 recently-signed eatery leases boded well for the districts’ future.

The restaurant boom is undeniably good news in Times Square, parts of East Midtown and Midtown South (which the report doesn’t include), where more employees are 
going back to their desks – if not yet on Fridays.

CBRE noted that numerous Lexington Avenue restaurant launches “parallel the strong Park Avenue office market,” where availability is a mere 10.7% compared with the midtown average 19.6%.

Many of the planned openings were first reported in this column.

They include Jean-Georges Vongerichten’s Four Twenty Five at, appropriately, 425 Park Ave.; Simon Kim’s Asian-inspired venues at 550 Madison Ave.; Michael White’s Italian one at 520 Madison Ave.; and David Burke’s Park Avenue Kitchen at 277 Park Ave.

So many new restaurants are due to open in the next six months that they’re hard even for a  long-time industry-watcher to keep track of.

The onslaught’s underway.

Monte Carlo-based Rampoldi at 49 W. 64th St. and chef Franklin Becker’s Point Seven in the Met Life Building, big places both, launched last week, following the reborn Delmonico’s at 56 Beaver St. in FiDi.  

In the works are giant Taiwanese spot Din Tai Fung in the former Mars space at 1633 Broadway; Simon Oren’s Acadia at 101 W. 57th St.; and Aqua Group’s massive, Italian-Japanese combo at 902 Broadway in Nomad

But CBRE also notes that new eateries have yet to restore as much “vibrancy” downtown, where office availability is a frightening 28%.