The History of Our Building

The 75 room New York Hotel (listed on the National Register of Historic Places) was originally constructed in 1906 as one of Salt Lake's finest luxury hostelries by local mining magnate and businessman, O.J. Salisbury. Salisbury was a Cornell educated mining engineer who obtained several patents and organized the Kelly Filter Press Company. He retained the services of designer R.K.A. Kletting, a prominent architect known for the State Capitol, Old Saltair and many other important structures of the period.

John Williams and Tom Sieg purchased the building in the mid-seventies and embarked on an extensive remodeling project, engaging the services of Muir & Chong Architects and builder William Perry to assist them in rehabilitating the building for restaurants and offices. This ambitious project culminated in first the New Yorker, a fine dining restaurant that opened in 1978, located in what was the old boiler room of the building. Its wild success prompted Williams and Sieg to embrace the restaurant business, take on a 3rd partner, Tom Guinney and establish Gastronomy, Inc. The trio went on to open the Market Street Grill on Halloween in 1980 and the Market Street Oyster Bar on New Year's Eve in 1981, both located on the main floor of the building. The second and third floors were remodeled into premier downtown office space. The New Yorker closed its doors in October of 2018 and the building remained under the stewardship of Gastronomy until October of 2019 when the Market Street restaurants were sold to Mountain West Brands.

The New York Hotel building continues to stand as a symbol of successful restoration and adaptive use of a significant historic building – and major catalyst for the revival and vigor of the southwest downtown district of which it is the centerpiece.