Motek owner expanding empire with multiple…
Happy Corner Hospitality, which has conquered multiple Manhattan neighborhoods, will next smile on Midtown Madison Avenue.
The restaurant group based by Charlie Levy not too long ago opened its Miami-born, Mediterranean/Middle Eastern flagship, Motek, at 60 W. 57th St. on the throbbing southeast nook of Sixth Avenue.
And he’ll soon carry another Happy Corner model, Yalla Motek, to 366 Madison Avenue at East forty sixth Street in the center of one of metropolis’s most prestigious industrial corridors.
Charlie Levy is bringing Yalla Motek to 366 Madison Ave. at East forty sixth Street, the center of one of metropolis’s most prestigious industrial corridors. Courtesy of Motek
Motek at 60 W. 57th occurs to stand across the intersection from another standard Med/Mideast spot, Simon Oren’s Acadia on the northwest nook. Each place presents a kaleidoscopic sampling of the sunny cuisines of Israel, Lebanon, Morocco, Turkey and neighboring lands.
Motek took over the space long occupied by Rue 57, which closed 18 months in the past. The proximity of Motek to Acadia doesn’t faze Levy at all.
“Each side of any Manhattan block is two different worlds,” he chuckled.
Levy understands the significance of a good lease. His blended rent for almost 7,000 sq. ft on two ranges is $300 per sq. foot — not peanuts, but a relative discount.
He’s plugged in to public style, too. Motek presents a crowd-pleasing array of small and large, seed oil-free dishes including mezzes, hummus dips, “street food” like crispy chicken schnitzel, garden plates, kebabs, uncooked and cooked fish and even beef-and-lamb steakhouse choices.
Motek at 60 W. 57th St. took over the space long occupied by Rue 57, which closed 18 months in the past. Steve Cuozzo/NY Post
Motek presents a crowd-pleasing array of small and large, seed oil-free dishes including mezzes, hummus dips, “street food” like crispy chicken schnitzel, garden plates, kebabs, uncooked and cooked fish and even beef-and-lamb steakhouse choices. Steve Cuozzo/NY Post
The latest Motek follows the first one at always jammed 928 Broadway in Flatiron, where crowds spill onto the sidewalk, and a more not too long ago launched second outpost at 184 Bleecker St. – the previous Cafe Figaro location — in the West Village.
The next one, opening in 2027, will likely be at 2178 Broadway at 77th Street on the Upper West Side, changing longtime tenant Serafina. Yet another Motek is coming to 80 N. Seventh St. in Williamsburg, Brooklyn.
Levy grew up in Israel but is aware of the Big Apple properly.
A rendering of the Madison Avenue location. Courtesy of Motek
Rendering of Yalla Motek at 1147 Broadway, which is able to open Jan. 1. Courtesy of Motek
A rendering of Sesame Kitchen in Battery Park. Courtesy of Motek
“I lived for 25 years at Eighth Avenue and 57th Street,” he said — an expertise that taught him the worth of prime places.
Levy’s empire is growing on other Manhattan fronts, as properly.
His more informal spot, Yalla Motek, will open Jan. 1 at 1147 Broadway — the first of what Levy hopes will likely be 20 in the Big Apple.
And in another growth, Happy Corner will roll out a new model, Sesame Kitchen, in Battery Park.
Levy also has his eye on the Upper East Side, too – “But not yet,” he said.
“We have enough to do now.”
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