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The first phase of a major multi-part French restaurant project arrives in the form of ONE65 Patisserie on Thursday, May 16. And while the first floor pastry shop is likely to be impressive — expect very pretty chocolate bon bons and traditional croissant — it’s just the beginning of a six-story endeavor (basically a layer cake of French eating) that’s years in the making.
To recap: ONE65, named for its Union Square address 165 O’Farrell, is a partnership between James Beard-award winning chef Claude Le Tohic (Joël Robuchon at the MGM Grand) and the Alexander’s Steakhouse team. D-Scheme Studio redesigned the entire tall but narrow beaux arts building, constructed in 1908 as the Orpheum annex Hotel.
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At ONE65, things start on the ground floor patisserie, a second floor given over to production space, a third floor restaurant called ONE65 Bistro & Grill, a fourth floor bar and lounge called Elements, and a fifth and sixth floor fine-dining restaurant called O’ by Claude Le Tohic. It’s a scheme that’s something in the vein of the Eataly chain or China Live, the multi-story Chinatown project with a casual restaurant, a bar above it, and a high-end restaurant on top of that.
On a walkthrough of the ONE65 space last fall, chef Le Tohic described the patisserie as a home for petit gâteaux, pastry, quiche, and morning coffee. Above it, on the second floor, customers can see where their pretty sweets are made, courtesy of a glass-walled chocolate room. “Chocolate is something people like to see,” Le Tohic said.
Shortly after ONE65 Patisserie makes its grand entrance, Elements will follow suit. Beverage director Trevin Hudgins describes that bar and lounge as “darker, sexier, and more metropolitan,” than the rest of the project.
Stay tuned for more as ONE65’s many elements come together in the weeks ahead.
