Archive · modern edition Every bar New York on Tap knew, as it stood around 2008, with a 2026 check on each one. This page in the 2008 edition
The Garden of Ono, photographed for New York on Tap
Photo from the 2008 site

A New York on Tap pick

The Garden of Ono

Miami meets Japan in NYC

18 W. 13th St. · btwn Ganesvoort & 13th St
MeatPacking District, Manhattan

In 2026

Closed; now the Gansevoort Meatpacking hotel

Checked October 15, 2026.

Overview

Equal parts Miami and Japan this exquisite cabana garden still attracts the famous and beautiful but the door policy has relaxed.
This exquisitely beautiful garden is hidden behind a towering wall and falls in the shadow of the Hotel Ganesvoort. The sophisticated décor features low wooden benches accents of dark bamboo and a softly lit pond surrounded by lanterns. Four cabanas are available by prior reservation and their seclusion and serenity offset by the unmistable surrounding scene make them a celebrity favorite.

Why you should go

  • The waitstaff are so beautiful that you can almost forgive them for the dastardly things they're doing to your wallet.
  • As the night wears on the bar area turns into one of the cities best pick up spots
  • There are few better places in the area to take a date if you've the connections and the cash
  • One of the better celeb spotting spots in the city

What you should know

  • Before it was the Garden of Ono this space was a lowly car park.
  • A cocktail will run you $15
  • The bottle service minimum is $4,000
  • Tuesdays and Wednesdays are surprisingly some of sceniest nights here
  • Gisele broke her wrist here

History

From cabana garden to Japanese pub

Ono was planned as a Japanese-style restaurant for the new Hotel Gansevoort1, and we called the result Miami meets Japan. In 2009 Jeffrey Chodorow's plan to turn it into a steakhouse called Maxim Prime fell through2, and on October 7 it reopened instead as Tanuki Tavern, a cheaper, izakaya-style Japanese pub2, 3. Japan won, at pub prices. Tanuki Tavern has since closed as well, and the hotel, now Gansevoort Meatpacking, has a full-service restaurant on the ground floor and a rooftop bar4, 5, 6.

Sources

  1. amny.com
  2. nbcnewyork.com
  3. villagevoice.com
  4. gansevoorthotelgroup.com
  5. timeout.com
  6. gansevoorthotelgroup.com

Researched October 2026.

What's nearby