Eating Good At The Cooper Square Hotel

The Cooper Square Hotel will soon be joining the rest of the Bowery Hotel Gang. Our Gawking friends announced some details involving the CSH's entertainment venues, but they missed out on some of the fantastic back story. Thankfully, a little birdy filled us in:

I happened to speak to one of Meridian Restaurant Group's partners last winter. Meridian(separate from chef/partner Govind Armstrong) is best known for LA's Table 8, opening Rok Bar LA (a tremendous failure) and L Scorpion Tequila Bar, both in Hollywood. Said partner told me he was opening a restaurant at the New Cooper Square Hotel with 'celebrity chef' (and Applebee's pitch man) Tyler Florence. That deal may have fallen through. Govind Armstrong has more appeal as a star chef, although he is much better known on the West Coast. He recently opened Table 8 in Miami for Meridian in a shitty space at the new Regent Hotel between Ocean and Collins, and it opened to tepid reviews. Best bet is Meridian is opening Table 8 NYC at the new Cooper Square Hotel and not just a Govind Armstrong restaurant.

While the pending opening of Table 8 NYC is exciting, we can't help but weep for the lost potential of a Tyler Florence space. Imagine, being able to sit in a new hotel's lobby and taste the tv star's take on riblets, wings and other Applebee's favs. That's what eating good in the neighborhood is all about!