NYCReview
photo credit: Teddy Wolff
Legacy Records
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When you were young and you knew your multiplication tables, people clapped for you. But now that you have a bank account and fewer favorite dinosaurs, people just expect you to be impressive on a daily basis. Such is life as an adult - and, if Legacy Records were a person, it would probably relate.
Legacy Records is the latest place from the people behind Charlie Bird and Pasquale Jones, two of our favorite restaurants in the city. Unlike those downtown spots, however, this place is in a fancy new condo building in Hudson Yards, a neighborhood that’s about one RoboCop away from feeling dystopian. The restaurant itself is huge and expensive-looking, and, much like a fully-grown person with a job and a phone bill, it inspires certain expectations. As long as you’re willing to spend some money, however, Legacy Records will easily meet them.
The menu here is similar to what you’ll find at Charlie Bird and other places that want to be like Charlie Bird, which is to say: pasta, crudo, duck, and steak. If that sounds boring, that’s because it usually is - but when the formula is this well-executed, it’s hard to complain. The roasted duck is one of the best dishes made from that bird in the city, the pastas are more complex than what you’ll find at most Italian restaurants, and the crudo sampler will make you feel like you’re at a dinner party hosted by Poseidon. It comes with five different types of raw seafood like scallop and tuna belly, and it’s one of the better ways to spend $25 on yourself.
photo credit: Teddy Wolff
As for the space, it’s opulent. The floors are a mix of tile and hardwood, there’s a horseshoe bar that looks like it belongs on a 100-foot yacht, and the tables are all topped with leather - which, apparently, is something that you can do with tables. The ceilings are also so high it’ll make you want to Google the cost of vertical real estate, and the green-and-gold color scheme has a vaguely country-club-designed-by-Wes-Anderson feel to it. Despite all of this, however, Legacy Records isn’t quiet or stuffy.
The service is friendly, the old-school hip hop soundtrack is louder than you expect from a place where you can buy a magnum of vintage Krug, and the host won’t check to see what kind of shoes you’re wearing. And, in that sense, this place has retained a lot of the DNA of its downtown predecessors. The only real difference is: it isn’t as small or charming, and all the little extras like the excellent wine list feel less surprising. Essentially, Legacy Records is the grown-up version of a cool downtown restaurant - but, fortunately, it’s still capable of surpassing expectations.