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New York museum presents food, ambiance from heyday of famous financier
NEW YORK - With a nod to history, the Morgan Library & Museum, former home of famed financier Pierpont Morgan, reopened here April 29 after a three-year expansion and renovation that included a revamping of the facility's dining areas, which are run by Restaurant Associates Managed Services, a division of Charlotte, N.C.-based Compass Group PLC.
The redesign, under the direction of renowned architect Renzo Piano, features two dining rooms, the 42-seat Morgan Dining Room and the 58-seat Morgan Café, that, while modernized, barkens back to the classic New York styles of the late 19th and early 20th centuries.
The main objective of the project, which Brian Regan, the library/museum's deputy director, said cost approximately $105 million to complete, was to maintain the structure's authenticity while giving the interior a much needed face-lift. Pierpont Morgan originally built the structure in 1857 and turned it into a library in 1902. This latest expansion added 75,000 square feet to the existing space.
"We really started planning this very significant addition and renovation to the Morgan about five years ago," he said. "It was very important to us that we maintain some form of dining amenity for our visitors.
"As we started fitting the spaces together, we had one of those a-ha moments where we realized the Morgan family actually...