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A pink-themed restaurant designed to dazzle social media returns to Lower Manhattan
By
Precious Fondren
Published Jan 10, 2024
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By
Precious Fondren
Published Jan 10, 2024
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Think pink?
If the "Barbie" movie left you tired of seeing pink, you may want to avoid Pier 15 at Watermark for the next few months.
The pop-up restaurant near the South Street Seaport will transform the space into a sea of pastel pink, red and fuchsia — including heart-shaped lights, tablecloths and the food.
Now in its second year, Pink Pier is serving a three-course meal in a heated pink igloo with pink food: a charcuterie board appetizer, a main dish and dessert.
There’s also a disco-themed dance floor, a pink lounge, disco balls and a life-size “Sweethearts” box photobooth.
The exterior of a private igloo
Courtesy of Watermark
“The world went pink with the 'Barbie' movie and a lot of other experiences started being pink this year,” said James Belakh, creative director of Merchants Hospitality, which operates the Pink Pier. “We were the trailblazers in the pink curation of events in New York.”
For folks who don’t want to dine but do want the selfies, this year there are general admission tickets to explore the space without having a meal.
If the experience sounds over the top, or photogenic, or created to please the algorithms of Instagram or TikTok, that’s all by design.
One of the main goals, said Belakh, is to ensure social media users have something to post from the moment they step in.
Courtesy of Watermark
Rick Camac, director of Industry Relations at the Institute of Culinary Education, said places like Pink Pier rely on social media attention because it’s become an important way of getting the public excited about what's happening at a restaurant.
“The days of walking up and down the streets looking for an interesting place to go have been over for many years,” he said. “Today I think a lot of us take our cues from social media almost exclusively, especially if you're in a certain demographic.”
Camac said he thinks Pink Pier and similar venues will continue to pop up over the city, and when they do, they'll need a presence on sites like Instagram to stand out among their competitors.
“You've got to get in that game and you've got to try to make things happen,” he said.
Courtesy of Watermark
But Camac said he would not be dining at Pink Pier.
“I think there's something for everyone,” he said. “I try to stay away from the places that most of the tourists will go and the piers are full of that.”
For those who head downtown, Belakh said this year’s experience will be “next level” compared to last year’s.
Pink Pier opens Thursday, Jan. 11 and runs through March 31. General admission tickets start at $17. Tickets for a table for two start at $80. For more information visit here.
Tagged
food
new york city
Precious Fondren
Precious is a former WNYC & Gothamist culture reporter.
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Gothamist is funded by sponsors and member donations
Gothamist is funded by sponsors and member donations
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