In 2007, Castle Rock Entertainment in association with Village Roadshow Pictures and Warner Bros. released the romantic comedy ‘No Reservations’, which followed master chef Kate Armstrong played by Catherine Zeta-Jones, who ran her life and her kitchen with intimidating intensity until circumstances changed and she became the guardian of her young niece played by Abigail Breslin. With her daily schedule interrupted with parental tasks and crossing forks with the brash sous-chef, her attention moved away from the Bleecker Street restaurant, which in 2009, the creator of otsoNY.com, Mark Rogers discovered to be an actual clothes shop rather than a real restaurant. “When you are scouting film locations, one thing you have to be prepared for is disappointment,” said Mark matter-of-factly. “It actually took quite a long time to track down this location as the restaurant address in the film stated 22 Bleecker, and at the time, I wasn’t that familiar with this area of New York.”

Film Poster: No Reservations

After more research, Mark discovered that the filmmakers had in fact used a vacant space at the corner of Charles Street and Bleecker that had large windows, offering excellent views of city life out on the street outside. “The space formerly housed a Chinese restaurant,” explained Mark. “Though whilst I was searching, it was actually home to a clothes store. The temporary presence of a film production in the interim caused some confusion in the neighbourhood, especially as they had decided to name the restaurant 22 Bleecker Street. The store front wasn’t anywhere near number 22. The only number not in use on Bleecker Street was 22. Number 24 was a church. So the filmmakers thought they were safe with the name but, in fact, it confused the local messengers when they put the sign up that indicated ‘22 Bleecker’ in a spot that was actually in the upper 300s. In the end, they decided to remove the signage until the moment when they were actually filming the exterior.”

The fake Bleecker Street restaurant in New York City

The fake Bleecker Street restaurant in New York City

Little Owl Restaurant at 90 Bedford Street

Brooklyn Heights and its many streets of picturesque brownstone properties was home to the film’s leading character. “There is nothing quite like a stroll across the Brooklyn Bridge on a sunny morning,” smiles Mark. “The view of Lower Manhattan from across the East River is breath-taking, and from where you’ve come from, a busy and noisy environment, you suddenly find yourself in a quiet and peaceful setting. The actual brownstone used in the film was located on Montague Terrace.”

Scene from No Reservations inside the Little Owl restaurant at 90 Bedford Street

Before the closing credits roll, the film-makers concluded their story at the Little Owl restaurant at 90 Bedford Street on the corner of Grove Street, an apartment building made famous for its appearance in the TV Sitcom ‘Friends’.

Click HERE for a full list of film locations from No Reservations

In the next article of this series, Mark talks about the film, 'Celebrity', and the residential area of the Upper East Side.