Windows on the World

Windows on the World
Logo designed by Milton Glaser
Map
Restaurant information
EstablishedApril 19, 1976; 48 years ago (April 19, 1976)
ClosedSeptember 11, 2001
(destroyed in the September 11 attacks)
Previous owner(s)David Emil
Head chefMichael Lomonaco
Street address1 World Trade Center, 107th Floor, Manhattan, New York City, NY, U.S.
CityNew York City, New York
Postal/ZIP Code10048
CountryUnited States
Coordinates40°42′44″N 74°0′47″W / 40.71222°N 74.01306°W / 40.71222; -74.01306
Seating capacity240
Websitewindowsontheworld.com (archived)

Windows on the World was a complex of dining, meeting, and entertainment venues on the top floors (106th and 107th) of the North Tower (Building One) of the original World Trade Center complex in Lower Manhattan, New York City, United States.[1]

It included a restaurant called Windows on the World, a smaller restaurant called Wild Blue[1] (before 1999 was called "Cellar in the Sky"), a bar called The Greatest Bar on Earth[1] (which had previously been the Hors d'Oeuvrerie[2]) as well as a wine school and conference and banquet rooms for private functions located on the 106th floor. Developed by restaurateur Joe Baum and designed initially by Warren Platner, Windows on the World occupied 50,000 square feet (4,600 m2) of space in the North Tower. The Skydive Restaurant, which was a 180 seat cafeteria on the 44th floor of 1 WTC conceived for office workers, was also operated by Windows on the World.[3][4]

The restaurants opened on April 19, 1976,[5][6] and were destroyed in the September 11 attacks.[3] All of the staff members who were present in the restaurant on the day of the attacks perished; the plane's impact severed all means of escape from the 92nd floor up.[3]

  1. ^ a b c "Fine Dining, Eateries/Specialty Foods". Port Authority of New York and New Jersey. Archived from the original on June 9, 2001. Retrieved January 12, 2022.
  2. ^ Morabito, Greg (September 11, 2013). "Windows on the World, New York's Sky-High Restaurant". Eater NY. New York City. Retrieved February 26, 2022.
  3. ^ a b c Grimes, William (September 19, 2001). "Windows That Rose So Close To the Sun". The New York Times. ISSN 0362-4331. Archived from the original on October 17, 2008. Retrieved September 18, 2017.
  4. ^ Roston, Tom (2019). The Most Spectacular Restaurant in the World: The Twin Towers, Windows on the World, and the Rebirth of New York. New York City: Abrams Books. ISBN 978-1-4197-3799-2. Retrieved July 18, 2022.
  5. ^ "Trade Center to Let Public In for Lunch At Roof Restaurant". The New York Times. April 16, 1976. Retrieved October 15, 2009.
  6. ^ Windows '96. New York City: New York Magazine. July 15, 1996. pp. 42–47. Retrieved January 1, 2022 – via Google Books.