DIVIDE AND CONQUER

One of New York City’s most iconic restaurants is reinvented into a jaw-dropping spectacle for the eyes and palate.

See and be seen: Request a balcony table to catch a glimpse of the A-list crowd as well as the full impact of Marie Nichols’s signature rippling sheer curtains and Richard Lippold’s ceiling sculpture.

THE POOL

Diners enter The Pool through a hallway featuring a lush plant sculpture by Paula Hayes and restored wine room, which now glows golden with the world’s largest collection of Chateau d’yquem, Bordeaux’s famous Sauternes. Design touches include custom-made, ocean-inspired appetizer plates by Japanese ceramics manufacturer Nikko, Riva flatware from Brazil, and Georg Jensen bowls.

It was a very good year:

Art that harkens from 1958 (the year the Seagram Building was erected) surrounds the entryway, including works by Miró and Twombly, while Alexander Calder’s 1973 mobile 3 Segments gloriously hovers over the bustling room below. Two to taste: Chef/partner Rich Torrisi’s globally inspired seafood menu offers pristine preparations like thick-sliced, cured Alaskan king salmon, topped with crushed black peppercorns and accompanied by boiled La Ratte potatoes with aioli, as well as the show-stopping black bass for two, broiled in a bath of white wine and minced shallots, served tableside and finished with oregano oil. Behind the scenes: Request a kitchen tour where herringbone-planked floors divide entirely independent work spaces and salvaged equipment from ocean vessels is now used as heating lamps.

THE POOL LOUNGE

The Pool’s former private dining room has been converted into a 70-seat lounge, complete with mother-of-pearl bar. “When we were designing The Pool Lounge, we wanted a one-of-a-kind space for New York and for the world,” says Zalaznick. The William Georgis-designed space features onyx and nickel cocktail tables, floor lamps produced by Italian glassmaker Seguso, and a palette that Zalaznick describes as a “luxurious underwater cocoon.”

Two to toast: Waugh crafts fruit-forward cocktails based on single ingredients. Inspired by a mojito, the Watermelon combines white rum, fresh watermelon juice, and a touch of vanilla with Japanese shiso leaves in lieu of mint. The Jalapeño riffs on a martinistyle cocktail, featuring tequila, crushed cucumber, sea salt water, and dry fino sherry. 99 E. 52nd St., 212-375-9001; thegrillnewyork.com