LIRR commuter classic Tracks Bar to be MTA's first Grand Central Madison tenant

Published Mar 24, 2024 at 3:10 p.m. ET

Modified Mar 24, 2024 at 3:59 p.m. ET

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Published Mar 24, 2024 at 3:10 p.m. ET

Modified Mar 24, 2024 at 3:59 p.m. ET

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A restaurant is finally coming to Grand Central Madison — and the business will be familiar to many Long Island Rail Road riders who use the new terminal.

Documents published by the MTA on Friday show the agency plans to lease out a space in the station to Tracks Raw Bar and Grill, which had a location near the LIRR concourse at Penn Station for nearly two decades before it was forced to relocate. The eatery's expected opening date is set for fall 2024 on the concourse level between 47th and 48th streets, near where the ticket windows are, MTA officials said.

“The MTA is excited that a new location of Tracks will be coming to Grand Central Madison before the end of 2024," MTA Chair and CEO Janno Lieber said in a statement to Gothamist. "If you talk to Long Islanders, they’ll tell you about the great times they had lifting a glass with friends and co-workers after a long day or following a Rangers or Knicks victory. Now they can create new memories at our beautiful East Side terminal.”

The restaurant will be the first commercial tenant at Grand Central Madison since the MTA opened the station in January 2023 after more than a decade of construction delays. Since then, the retail and restaurant spaces inside the station have remained empty.

MTA officials said they have high hopes Tracks will be a hit in the station, which is set 150 feet beneath Grand Central Terminal. Riders using the deep underground LIRR platforms currently have to hike up to the old station’s dining concourse if they want to sit down for a meal or a drink.

The agency plans to locate the new restaurant near Grand Central Madison’s ticketing area and waiting room — and adjacent to an art installation by Yayoi Kusama, officials said.

The restaurant aims to “establish a new and dynamic gathering spot that contributes to the aesthetics of Grand Central Madison, helps to define the overall sense of place, and enlivens the customer experience,” the MTA wrote in lease documents set to be approved by the agency’s board this week.

Empty retail space at Grand Central Madison.

Tracks was a commuter favorite at Penn Station for 17 years until it closed in 2019 due to the MTA’s overhaul of the northern end of the train hub. The restaurant has since relocated across the street from Penn Station — and its lease in Grand Central Madison marks the business’s return as an MTA tenant.

The MTA plans to give the restaurant a 10-year lease, with rent for the first year sitting at $216,000 plus 12% of all its gross sales that exceed $2.5 million. The agreement also requires Tracks to build out the restaurant space at a cost of roughly $1 million.

Upper East Side resident William Mirabella, 61, who commutes through Grand Central Madison regularly, was skeptical the new restaurant would make the station more appealing to riders. He called the station in general "a big waste of money."

"You might as well be investing in horse stables to stable your horses," Mirabella said. "People just don't take the train anymore."

MTA officials said more than 70,000 LIRR riders use Grand Central Madison every weekday. But data also shows weekday LIRR ridership is down roughly 25% from before the pandemic.

Officials also said they are also seeking a master tenant to lease out all of Grand Central Madison’s commercial spaces, including the one to be occupied by Tracks.

The real estate move comes as the shopping mall giant Westfield is trying to break its lease with the MTA at Fulton Transit Center 10 years early. The company, which oversees all of Fulton Center's retail tenants, claims crime is out of control at the downtown station, and argues the MTA leased them the space in 2014 while it was still under construction.

This story has been updated with additional comment from the MTA.

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Ramsey Khalifeh is a general assignment reporter on the NYC Accountability desk covering the city's most powerful institutions and the work they do (or don't). He was previously a summer intern on the Day-of desk and also worked at the Boston Globe's metro and copy desk. Got a tip? Email rkhalifeh@nypublicradio.org

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