Pop Collars Like It’s 2007: Ralph Lauren Opens Fratty New York City Restaurant

A true Bro does not ignore the classics. As ubiquitous and mass produced as his clothes are these days (read: cargo shorts), retail fashion tycoon Ralph Lauren is one of the great godfathers of modern men’s clothing. You probably own a couple of his polo shirts and, if you were in college circa like 2006, perhaps even ironically popped said polo shirt’s collar. That doesn’t mean he’s not a baller and the type of rags-to-riches entrepreneur every Bro can aspire to be.

Lauren’s culinary tastes are the subject of a New York Times profile, which brazenly announces his new midtown Manhattan eatery on Fifth Avenue. It’s called Polo Bar and situated next to Ralph Lauren’s flagship store. Given that location, it’s going to draw a SHIT ton of tourists (as opposed to the finance industry Bros who also work in mid-town, but would rather die than sip Bulliet Bourbon next to tourists). Based off the pics in the NYT, it looks pretty baller. Even cooler: It will feature meats from Lauren’s 17,000 cattle ranch in Colorado.

Bad. Ass.

Meanwhile, the food at the Polo Bar wouldn’t be out of place in the Eisenhower White House. There will be crab cakes, corned beef sandwiches and steaks — produced, when availability allows for it, on Mr. Lauren’s 17,000-acre cattle ranch in Colorado. There will be burgers. Such is Mr. Lauren’s fondness for burgers that he credits one with inspiring Ralph’s, his restaurant in Paris, which opened on the Left Bank in 2010. (He has had another restaurant, in Chicago, since 1999.)

And best of all, it looks like Polo shirts will be allowed. No word on the popped collar policy:

Mr. Lauren stressed that the Polo Bar would not be “a formal restaurant,” but what will he make of those customers who are sure to show up at the front door outfitted for a theme-park flume ride in Orlando instead of a fox hunt in the Scottish highlands? “We just had a conversation about it,” he said. “Would you turn them away if someone comes in in a T-shirt?”

He admitted that he’s no stranger to the maître d’ brushoff. “I’ve been one of those guys,” Mr. Lauren said. He recalled dropping by a fancy establishment, years back, when he had already become a force in global fashion. “I had shorts on, and they turned me away,” he said. He accepted that fate with equanimity.

Go read the whole profile at the New York Times.

 

Brandon Wenerd is BroBible's publisher, writing on this site since 2009. He writes about sports, music, men's fashion, outdoor gear, traveling, skiing, and epic adventures. Based in Los Angeles, he also enjoys interviewing athletes and entertainers. Proud Penn State alum, former New Yorker. Email: brandon@brobible.com