Rothmann’s Steakhouse: A Rich Tradition With A-list Clientele And a Brief Stint as a B-list Chain Restaurant
By Himma Sharma
A formal landmark that once hosted Theodore Roosevelt, Jaqueline Kennedy, and Elizabeth Taylor, this East Norwich steakhouse is keeping up a tradition of fine food and a warm atmosphere.
Built as the East Norwich Hotel in 1851 and formerly a post office, Rothmann’s Steakhouse later turned into the Town of Oyster Bay meeting place where, notably, Teddy Rosevelt made a speech standing on the porch in front of the structure. Eventually, in 1907, Charles and Franziska Rothmann established Rothmann’s Steakhouse. They attracted celebrities and notable residents and visitors throughout the years.
The late pop-composer Burt Bacharach, who owned the adjacent inn, bought out the business in 1970 and ran the place as Burt Bacharch’s (what else?). Bacharach sold sometime in the 1980s. The next few years are hazy, with some reports saying the spot became known as Rothmann’s again for a time. Around 1993 the famed steakhouse that hosted A-list celebrities became a diner-style restaurant. One year later, it became Boulder Creek, which also did not last. Eventually, the last living heir at the time, Gloria Rothmann, sold the name, Rothmann, to the then-owners and they carried on the legacy.
Rothmann’s Steakhouse reopened in December 1998 after an extensive renovation.
“While it carries the Rothmann name, the present restaurant has the same owners as Boulder Creek,” The New York Times wrote of the reopening of the famed steakhouse back in 1999. “The Rothmann connection seems to be mainly one of nostalgia and shows up primarily in the decor.”
The current manager of the steakhouse, Jon Sherry, told us that consistency is the key to Rothmann’s recent decades of success.
“Ever since the second coming, it has been the reincarnation of Rothmann’s,” said Sherry. “I look at it this way; Rothmann’s is consistently consistent.”
For more than 100 years, Rothmann’s Steakhouse has kept up a long tradition of fine food and is now recognized as one of the premier steakhouses in New York.
“We are a part of a neighborhood. We are a destination location,” said Sherry. “There are a lot of good times had by generations of customers here.”
Himma Sharma is a reporter with The SBU Media Group, part of Stony Brook University’s School of Communication and Journalism’s Working Newsroom program for students and local media.
