OUR STORY
STEVE OLSEN,
owner
Owner Steve Olsen began working in the restaurant industry at age 16.
He started in the kitchen and worked his way through every position in the business. Steve opened the West Bank Cafe when he was all of 24. A passionate wine collector, he has amassed over 250 labels and holds vinification, viniculture, and blind wine tasting certificates from the American Sommelier Association.
In keeping with West Bank Cafe's close ties to the theater and film worlds, Steve has nurtured young actors, writers, and directors—including Lewis Black, Sean Penn, and Side Man playwright Warren Leight—many of whom appeared in and staged performances at the downstairs Laurie Beechman Theater, on their way to accomplished careers.
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West Bank Cafe opened in 1978 in the newly opened Manhattan Plaza - home to actors and professionals in the creative industries. At the time, the location was as "far-west" on 42nd Street as one would want to venture as Hell’s Kitchen lived up to its name. Ironically, the 24-year-old owner named it "West Bank Cafe" and modeled their logo after the popular musical West Side Story. Known as a Broadway hangout today, the restaurant’s early clients were a little rougher, including the notorious Irish gang, the Westies.
In 1980, The New York Times awarded West Bank two stars, which increased its visibility and attracted a wider range of diners. In her review, Mimi Sheraton described the restaurant as “a spirited, attractive [place] with…a number of exceptional dishes memorable for both originality and excellence.” The original Continental menu included dishes such as crudités and sole amandine—a window into the culinary times.
In this era, West Bank Cafe's owner, Steve Olsen opened "The Downstairs Theatre" downstairs from the Cafe, which staged plays and hosted events nightly. A young Lewis Black was named playwright-in-residence and on any given night you could see a new work by Aaron Sorkin or Warren Leight - Leight even developed his Tony-winning play Side Man on our stage.
Soon the redevelopment of 42nd Street spread further west, bringing new businesses and residents to the area. Throughout the 1980s and ’90s, the restaurant was a leader in the growing Theater District and Hell’s Kitchen dining scenes. As new theaters opened in the area, the restaurant’s connection to stage and screen remained strong as well. Everyone from Tennessee Williams and Arthur Miller to Sean Penn and Bruce Willis could be seen hanging out at The West Bank Cafe.
The Downstairs Theatre was renamed The Laurie Beechman Theatre, after our dear friend, and continued to regularly stage the work of emerging writers, actors, and singers (many of whom later became stars) as well as established acts: The Who even gave four live performances at the restaurant while their musical Tommy was running on Broadway and Joan Rivers played over 200 sets, including her final performance, on our stage.
After 45 years, the restaurant’s surrounding neighborhood and America’s culinary tastes have changed dramatically. West Bank Cafe has evolved along with the neighborhood and maintained a commitment to serving high-quality food in a unpretentious setting where both theater-goers and theatre stars feel at home.
