Way (way) back, I was taking a graduate course, Literature and the Theatre, which involved traveling to NYC to see studied plays. We were about to see Tom Stoppard’s Arcadia. ** Approaching my seat, at the back of the theatre, I saw the playwright.
Afterwards, wandering in SoHo, delightfully, fellow student Marcia Claire and I decided to find the closest bar. (We were the ‘old broads’ of the class) Walking on Spring Street, we just happened to find The Balthazar. Pure chance. Oblivious to its renown. We just liked the look of it.
Way back, the SoHo building that houses The Balthazar had been a tannery.
The French restaurant’s design is intended to resemble a brasserie, with high-backed red leather banquettes, scarred and peeling brass oversize mirrors, high tin ceiling, scuffed tiled floor, faded saffron yellow walls, large windows, and antique lighting.
We were alone at the bar, enjoying each other’s stories. I sipped champagne from a clear flute.
Even the restroom was splendid.
* CBS Sunday Morning, July 20, 2025.
** Stoppard was one of the most internationally performed dramatists of his generation, critically compared with William Shakespeare and George Bernard Shaw. He was knighted for his contribution to theatre and awarded the Order of Merit in 2000. (BTW, Stoppard won an Oscar and a Golden Globe for the screenplay for Shakespeare In Love,)
