Vornado Realty Trust and LeFrak have finalized an agreement with French Vietnamese restaurant concept Le Colonial to open a new location at 50 W. 57th Street in Manhattan, bringing the brand back to New York City. The restaurant is planned to debut in summer 2027, reestablishing Le Colonial’s presence in the market after a multiyear absence.
The new Le Colonial will occupy 9,600 square feet under a 15-year lease on West 57th Street between Fifth and Sixth Avenues. Plans call for approximately 215 seats across indoor and outdoor dining areas, along with a full bar and lounge and dedicated private dining space. The configuration is intended to accommodate both destination dining and more intimate, event-driven use cases within the same footprint.
In addition to the restaurant lease, Le Colonial has executed a companion office lease in the same building to house its New York City offices on the seventh floor. While the size and terms of the office space were not disclosed, consolidating restaurant and office functions in one address positions the brand to manage its New York operations from a single location on West 57th Street.
Le Colonial was founded in 1993 by restaurateur Rick Wahlstedt and partners, initially introducing New York City diners to an upscale take on French Vietnamese cuisine. Over the past three decades, the concept has expanded beyond New York, adding locations in Chicago, Houston, Atlanta, Lake Forest, Delray Beach, Naples and Denver. The new Manhattan lease marks a return to the city where the brand first established its fine dining identity.
Le Colonial was represented in the lease negotiations by Gary Trock of Retail Advisory Services. Vornado handled its side of the transaction in-house, with a team led by Jason Morrison, senior vice president of retail leasing at Vornado. Financial terms of the agreements were not disclosed.
