Gothamist
A non-profit newsroom, powered by WNYC.
Gothamist
Listen Live
Arts & Entertainment
Photos From NYC's Only Revolving Restaurant
By
Jen Carlson
Published Jul 15, 2016
Modified Jul 15, 2016
Share
FacebookTwitterRedditEmail
Never miss a story
Email address
By submitting your information, you're agreeing to receive communications from New York Public Radio in accordance with our Terms .
View all 12
By
Jen Carlson
Published Jul 15, 2016
Modified Jul 15, 2016
Share
FacebookTwitterRedditEmail
We rely on your support to make local news available to all
Make your contribution now and help Gothamist thrive in 2026. Donate today
Gothamist is funded by sponsors and member donations
The views around New York City—whether you're on the ground or 100-floors over it, whether you're a tourist or native—are spectacular to behold, and you don't need to be an urban explorer leaning precariously over a ledge to enjoy some of the best ones. We've been visiting some of the highest legally-accessed views around Manhattan, previously making stops at 1WTC, the Top of the Rock, the tallest hotel rooftop lounge in the city, and the New Museum's terrace. Now, we're heading back to Midtown where, did you know?, there's a rotating restaurant 48 floors above Times Square.
The View is New York’s only revolving rooftop restaurant and lounge, taking you on a 360° turn every hour, delivering the most striking changing views if you head over there just before sunset. They open at 5 p.m. (and remain open until about 1:30 a.m. on weekdays, 10 or 11 p.m. on weekends), and on Sunday they offer brunch from 10 a.m. to 1:30 p.m. You can find it on the 48th floor of the Marriott Marquis in Times Square.
The View was designed by John Portman and opened in 1985. At that time, Windows on the World—located on the 106th and 107th floors of the North Tower of the World Trade Center—had already been opened nearly 10 years. That could have been one reason The View seems to have been overlooked in the NY Times dining section, though curiously enough in 1986 they took a trip to Stamford, CT to dine at their Marriott's rotating restaurant.
In 2005, however, Charles McGrath did mention The View in the Paper of Record, declaring: “The only place where you can pretend to be a tycoon and sip a martini while looking down on the city is The View, the cocktail lounge at the top of the Marriott Marquis, a space so unglamorous that it makes you understand the current fashion for hanging out not at the tops of buildings but in their atriums.” It should be noted this was before the restaurant's redesign, though he's right, it's no Cloud Club (but that place didn't rotate).
Tagged
legal highs
rotating restaurant
the view
original
Jen Carlson
Jen Carlson is a former WNYC and Gothamist editor.
Read more
Gothamist is funded by sponsors and member donations
Gothamist is funded by sponsors and member donations
MORE arts-entertainment
Inside a photographer's journey to visit every neighborhood in New York City
What do you see when you record the whole of the boroughs?
By
Sonia Rao
Published Oct 5, 2026
Banned books and Winnie the Pooh: October in NYC libraries
It's a busy month at the branches.
By
Alec Hamilton
Arts & Entertainment
Banned books and Winnie the Pooh: October in NYC libraries
It's a busy month at the branches.
By
Alec Hamilton
NYC music in October: The Strokes, a Blink-182 cover band, and Polish experimentalism
By
Hank Shteamer
Are you a New Yorker? The Department of New Yorker Verification will now decide.
By
Hannah Frishberg
In the mood for a pastoral autumn experience? Try Queens.
By
Elizabeth Shwe
and
James Ramsay
Never miss a story
Catch up on the most important headlines with a roundup of essential NYC stories, delivered to your inbox daily.
Sign upEmail address
By submitting your information, you're agreeing to receive communications from New York Public Radio in accordance with our Terms .