The storied Midtown Hotel Elysee, which hosts the famed Monkey Bar, has been sold for $55 million to its current operators.
The pricing comes to a favorable $533,980 for each of the 103 keys as it was sold subject to the terms of the trio of owners’ existing lease that runs until the end of May 2041.
“At the end of the day, we were the logical buyers,” said Richard Born, an operator along with Ira Drukier and Henry Kallan. “We love the asset.”
According to Alan S. Cohen of ABS Partners, who marketed the hotel at 60 E. 54 St. for the family ownership, “There was an overwhelming response by well-qualified buyers for this renowned, well-kept historical property.”
The neo-Renaissance style hotel was designed by noted architect Henry Allan Jacobs. After a 1937 bankruptcy, it was bought by Mayer Quain, who had made a fortune on nightclub hatcheck concessions among other ventures, and lived there with his family. His adult children resided in the apartment hotel until their deaths some years ago.
Instead of numbers, each unique room has a name, such as the presidential suite honoring former guest Tennessee Williams. Baby grand pianos can be found in several of the larger suites, and amenities include a library and business center.
The Monkey Bar, where both “Sex and the City” and “Mad Men” filmed scenes, is operated separately by partners Jeff Klein, Jeremy King and Graydon Carter.
