It used to be that the business crowd spent its days in shiny office towers while bohemian creatives toiled away in industrial warehouses. But many financial companies are still struggling to woo employees back downtown, and fashion editorials are now glamorizing corporate culture. At the intersection of all this is 161 Water Street, an office tower in Manhattan’s Financial District that was purchased by real estate firm 99c in 2022 after spending much of the pandemic empty. Since then, it has been rechristened the Water Street Associates (WSA) building and courted new, artistically minded tenants like V Magazine and clothing brand Bode. Adding to its reputation as a cultural hub, it has been playing host to no shortage of after-hours events — including a 2024 Met Gala after-party. 

Now, 99c is in the midst of reworking a second skyscraper, 180 Maiden Lane. One of its first acts of business was a pop-up dinner series organized by We Are ONA, a culinary studio that orchestrates theatrical meals around the world. For each one, founder (and Noma alum) Luca Pronzato pairs a buzzy chef with an equally exciting designer. Over nine days this May, Japan born, Paris-based Sho Miyashita served up chicken karaage on the 28th floor of 180 Maiden Lane, where Alexandre de Betak of Takbe Studio had created a transparent 100-seat table and 30-metre-long suspended lighting panel that drew inspiration from the drop ceilings and overhead tube fixtures common in office interiors. Not since Frank Gehry’s Condé Nast cafeteria opened in 2000 was an invite to a corporate canteen in such high demand.