Wolf restaurant, in Nordstrom’s recently opened New York store, taps into the company’s Northwest roots.
By Annette Maxon with Claire Butwinick
Photographed by Connie Zhou
Nordstrom’s newly opened New York flagship makes a strong case for the ultimate trifecta: fashion, design, and food.
Aside from the latest threads, the seven-story department store, which greeted its first guests in October, offers dining options inspired by the company’s Pacific Northwest roots, running the gamut from high-end culinary experiences to the casual Shoe Bar.
Four of the store’s seven eateries are helmed by Pacific Northwest chefs Tom Douglas and Ethan Stowell. A star among them is Wolf—manned by Chef Stowell and designed by Seattle’s Heliotrope Architects—which invites diners to escape from the city’s rush not only through its PNW-influenced Italian fare but also its calming color palette and natural finishes. Heliotrope, which designed Stowell’s acclaimed Seattle restaurant Cortina, found that its pared-down aesthetic works well in the Big Apple, where the firm opted for “wood, stone, plaster, and steel materials to reflect the natural beauty of the Pacific Northwest,” says Heliotrope Architects principal Mike Mora and lead designer Tony Salas.
Simple oak tables, natural ash chairs, and herringbone floors lend industrial edge, while the dining room’s low ceilings are balanced by floor-to-ceiling windows that overlook Broadway and 57th and flood the space with natural light.
In an email, Mora and Salas describe the feelings they want the space to inspire: “comfortable and easy, with a place for everything and everything in its place.” Wolf’s focal point is a long, flamed granite bar between the kitchen and dining room, which provides diners with a glimpse of the open kitchen prepping Northwest cuisine such as fried oysters, burrata bruschetta, and king salmon.
“Our collaborations with Ethan Stowell Restaurants tend to favor long bars, natural materials, clean lines, and an intimate connection between cook and customer,” the designers say, enabling guests to transcend Manhattan’s bustle and “soak in the food and company.”
