Iconic Power Lunch Spot Freds Will Survive the Downfall of Barneys

Barneys restaurant Freds will stay open despite the store’s liquidation

Though iconic luxury retailer Barneys was sold on Friday to a company that plans to close all stores, somehow its restaurant Freds will survive. An auction last week gave a licensing firm control of Barneys for $271 million, with plans to close all seven store sand license the name to Saks Fifth Avenue, which will one day house satellite Barneys boutiques. The Madison Avenue flagship will close come February, instead being used as a “venue for temporary art exhibits and other, non-Barneys-related ‘experiential’ events,” the Post reports.

Freds will remain open as a part of this new “experiential” venue, and the new company even plans to license out the Freds name to luxury developments abroad. Freds has been a Barneys signature since 1996, known for its iconic chopped chicken salad with Bibb lettuce, avocado, onions, tomatoes, string beans, and pears with Dijon mustard balsamic dressing. Over the years, celebrities and politicians have flocked to Freds, including Martha Stewart, Laura Bush, Bruce Springsteen, Rudolph Giuliani, and Hugh Grant. But the longtime chef recently left to open his own restaurant near Madison Square Park.

Street food vendors might become a lot more common

New legislation could uncap the number of street vendors allowed in NYC, if passed. Queens state senator Jessica Ramos has proposed a bill that would uncap the number of sidewalk food carts, which is currently restricted to about 5,000. Ramos argues that the restrictions hurt small business owners, particularly those of color, with unnecessary criminal penalties. But opponents say increasing the number of street vendors will hurt existing brick-and-mortar restaurants. The proposal will be considered in January.

In other news

— New York magazine critic Adam Platt found lots to like at the “palatial” Midtown Chinese restaurant Hutong, particularly the kou shui chicken, rosé-Champagne-colored shrimp dumplings, and xiao long bao (soup dumplings).

— Popular Lower East Side Vietnamese restaurant Pho Grand has reopened after a summer-long hiatus.

— For Junior’s 69th anniversary tomorrow, the cheesecake-famous diner is discounting its famous cake: A slice is 69 cents, a regular cheesecake is $9.50, and a large is $19.50. Plus, all cheesecakes online are $9.50 off, according to a rep.

— Nope: