Some of New York City’s best-known pre-theater restaurants have a potential new owner. An affiliate of Landry’s won a $22.2 million bankruptcy auction for the business behind Café Fiorello, Trattoria Dell’Arte, Bond 45 and other dining rooms. The winning bid is not yet a completed sale.
The development follows another loss in the same restaurant family: Redeye Grill closed after 30 years this summer. S.M.F. Group Inc. and 21 affiliated companies, known collectively as the Fireman Group, filed for Chapter 11 protection on August 9, 2026, in the Southern District of New York.
Two companies could divide the restaurants
Landry’s, the restaurant company owned by Tilman Fertitta, initially offered about $9.5 million as a starting bid. The auction brought a much higher offer. Bloomberg Law reported on October 7 that a Landry’s affiliate had emerged as the winner at $22.2 million.
On October 20, the New York Post reported another key detail: Ciao Hospitality Group was working alongside Landry’s on the purchase. Ciao chief executive Jeff Crivello told the newspaper the two companies were co-bidders.
Under the reported arrangement, Landry’s would operate Trattoria Dell’Arte across from Carnegie Hall, Café Fiorello near Lincoln Center and Bond 45 in the Theater District. Ciao would handle other Manhattan venues, including Paris Bar, Le Jardin, Brooklyn Delicatessen and two Brooklyn Diner locations.
These are familiar stops for theatergoers, concertgoers and visitors. Café Fiorello alone has operated opposite Lincoln Center for more than half a century.
Debt and missing payments squeezed the business
The bankruptcy involves the restaurant-operating companies, not Landry’s or Ciao. Court materials identify S.M.F. Group Inc. as the lead debtor in a jointly administered case involving 22 entities.
The group’s restructuring officer said payment processors withheld at least $6 million in card receipts after disputes involving merchant cash advance lenders. The company entered bankruptcy with less than $100,000 available in cash, according to its account of the crisis. Those financing disputes remain separate from the restaurant sale.
At the time of the August filing, the group reported nine operating restaurants in New York City and Washington, D.C., employing more than 800 people. Those were filing-date figures, not promises of how many employees a buyer will retain.
The winning bid still needs court approval
The bankruptcy case docket shows sale-related filings submitted October 20 ahead of the court’s review. A winning auction bid identifies the preferred purchaser; it does not transfer ownership on its own.
For now, the proposed deal offers a path forward for celebrated New York restaurants that faced an uncertain future. Whether it closes, and what it ultimately means for individual locations and workers, depends on the next steps in bankruptcy court.
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