Three Global Hospitality Giants Merge for New Manhattan Dining Hotspot

When fish and chips are done right, you don’t get the more aggressive crunch of perfect fried chicken. It’s a frothy, almost airy kind of chomp, ideally a little tangy with beer. The Clocktower, a swanky, stylish new restaurant on the second floor of the Met Life Building, gets it just right: A big piece of Icelandic cod is hot, cooked through, but extremely juicy. This is served on a bed of mushy peas. The peas aren’t cafeteria-style, holding water, but fresh and vibrant, perfectly seasoned, buzzing through with a little malt vinegar.

The chef is an Englishman, obviously. His name is Jason Atherton, and he splits his time between his many restaurants all over the world, including the one he’s best known for: Pollen Street Social in London. Apart from the fish and chips, and a little Lancashire hotpot layered with threads of rabbit meat and tender potatoes, Atherton’s menu isn’t too obviously English, and the touches are well-integrated into a clubby, crowd-pleasing menu of cold dressed seafood and steaks.