Grand Central Terminal is getting another major dining overhaul as the Grand Central Terminal food expansion moves ahead with new bars, cafes and quick-service spots across the landmark train hub. The Metropolitan Transportation Authority is pushing the biggest growth in hospitality businesses at the terminal in decades, turning underused corners into revenue-producing space.
The new mix will include both upscale dining and faster, casual options. A 95-square-foot elevator shaft with doors facing Vanderbilt Plaza will become a grab-and-go counter, while a closed Chase Bank ATM on the lower-level dining concourse will be folded into a new bar and cafe, the MTA said. David Florio, the agency’s chief real estate transactions officer, said the goal is to broaden the food and beverage mix and make the terminal more of a place for visitors and events.
That effort is being shaped by two forces: more office development in Midtown East, which has brought additional traffic to the area, and the terminal’s own busy restaurant scene. The 113-year-old terminal now draws an average of 750,000 visitors a day, giving the MTA a large customer base to work with as it searches for nonfare income. At the same time, the agency is facing a $300 million budget deficit in fiscal year 2027, which it says will grow to $500 million in 2028.
One of the largest additions will be Osteria Centrale, a 250-seat restaurant set to open this fall in the space once occupied by a Rite Aid drugstore for 25 years. Florio said that when the space was put out for proposals, no surviving pharmacies wanted it. The restaurant will be run by Vizz Group, which already operates Grand Brasserie in Vanderbilt Hall and will also oversee Mercato Centrale, a grab-and-go market tied to the new project.
Osteria Centrale will be the fifth high-end venue in the terminal and follows Palladino’s Steak & Seafood, which opened in September on the north and west balconies of the great hall. That restaurant moved into the former Michael Jordan’s Steakhouse location, which had been empty for seven years. Palladino’s also took over the Taxi Stand space on Vanderbilt Avenue and added an enclosed bar there so it can operate year-round.
