City Hall

City Hall, a classic New York restaurant operated by Chef/Owner Henry Meer, serves an exquisite American cuisine including steaks, fresh lobster and an oyster bar to please all. Housed in a 19th century cast-iron building, City Hall is reminiscent of the grand restaurants that once graced the cobble stoned streets of gaslight New York. The main dining room is a vast and airy 3,500-square-feet with a 15-foot ceiling, as well as cast iron columns, windowed arches and black steel chandeliers. A carlyle-style banquette forms the centerpiece of the room with a series of cozy booths ringing the perimeter. The east side of the room features the oyster bar, where the savory pan-roasts and gorgeous plateaus are prepared, while a semi-open kitchen provides a glimpse of the uniquely kinetic choreography performed in the preparation of fine food.

High on the cream-colored walls the room is rimmed by oversized, backlit photographs of Old New York by such famous photographers as Berenice Abbot and Walter Rosenblum. These street scenes of garlic vendors and oyster sellers from the 1920's and 30's evoke not only a feeling of nostalgia, but also a sense of time, perspective and, yes, even possibility.

Whether it's a Highrise of succulent seafood or their celebrated Delmonico Steak, City Hall prides itself on the quality and freshness of its meat, fish and produce.

In fact it is in pursuit of this ideal that Chef Meer has planted five acres on the sixty acre Beechnut Hill Farm in Bridgehampton, with an eclectic array of fruits and vegetables. These include heirloom tomatoes, fingerling potatoes, garlic, breakfast radishes, organic raspberries and peppers, and a variety of herbs all to be used exclusively at City Hall and the Cub Room.

Meer has long been an advocate of organically grown produce and has supported not only the local green markets, but also helped truck farmers with seed money, advancing them cash for highly priced specialized seeds.