Seahorse restaurant is bringing the Union Square food scene back from the dead

It took Seahorse, the new seafood spot in the W Hotel, four years to open after it was first planned — and only two weeks to conquer Manhattan.

The wonderful eatery from owner John McDonald and chef John Villa is a rare, instant artistic and commercial success that’s just what Union Square needed.

The blocks around the park lost their culinary cred after Brazilian-style Coffee Shop closed in 2018 and Bluewater Grill a year later, leaving the famous Greenmarket its only claim to glory. Seahorse, on Park Avenue South at East 17th Street, puts the juice back. The corner will be even more of a food destination when a giant STK steakhouse opens soon across the street. 6

McDonald’s Mercer Street Hospitality Group owns a half-dozen crowd-pleasing eateries including Bowery Meat Company,