550 Madison

550 Madison Avenue, the 1984 postmodern tower by Philip Johnson and John Burgee, has reopened its lower floors as a multi-level dining destination from Simon Kim's Gracious Hospitality Management, designed by Rockwell Group. Bar Chimera, on the ground floor, is conceived as an extension of the building's public plaza, organising three distinct bar environments dedicated to martinis, wine, and whiskey, paired with a brasserie-style food menu and anchored around a live pine tree and a water basin. Cote 550, a subterranean outpost of Kim's Michelin-starred Korean steakhouse, occupies the level below. A mezzanine omakase counter from three-Michelin-star chef Masahiro Yoshitake, Sushi Yoshitake, is scheduled to follow later this fall. Rockwell Group's interiors lean on the landmark's existing palette and geometry rather than replacing them.