Industrialist and art collectore Henry Clay Frick called upon his rural roots near Pittsburgh when it came time to name his private Pullman railway car. Stretching 82 feet long, the grand train car boasted a 10-seat dining room where guests enjoyed meals by a private chef, an observation lounge and platform, and two staterooms. For two decades, from 1911 until the 1930s, this car transported the Frick family and their priceless treasures—paintings by the likes of Rembrandt, Vermeer, Velázquez, and others—between their Fifth Avenue mansion in New York to their summer home in Masschusetts, and beyond. Though it represented the height of luxury, Frick didn't name the car after a Greek god or an exotic location. He named it after the place of his birth, Westmoreland.
Friends of Henry Clay Frick Posing with the Westmoreland railway car near Eagle Rock, the Frick family summer home in Prides Crossing. Massachusetts, ca. 1915 The Frick Collection Archives
Though the train car was dismantled in the 1960s, the Westmoreland legacy lives on at the Frick's brand new café, the museum's first dining establishment in nearly 90 years. Located on the second floor of the stunning museum expansion designed by Selldorf Architects (which opened this April), the café pays homage to the splendor and warmth of not only the railcar, but also the historic dining spaces of Frick's mansion.
Westmoreland, the new café at The Frick Collection, Photo by Joseph Coscia, Jr.
Bryan O’Sullivan Studio (BOSS) designed the café interiors with nods to the 1914 mansion and its green spaces. A palette of deep greens and soft pastels echo the colors outside window in the Frick’s restored 70th Street Garden. Floral motifs on the bar surrounds and bespoke murals by artist Darren Waterston pull in more elements of nature, referencing Japanese screens and Renaissance landscape paintings.
Custom furnishings, including walnut tables accented with brass details, upholstered wooden dining chairs, and a polished walnut bar, echo the refinement of Frick's railcar and provide the fifty-seat café with an air of sophistication.
Westmoreland, the new café at The Frick Collection, Photo by William Jess Laird
The Frick legacy lives on not just in the design, but also on the menu. Westmoreland offers an all-day, table-service menu featuring elevated American fare that highlights seasonal foods and takes inspiration from the Frick family’s historic menus. Diners can try a berry tart with flavors that Mrs. Adelaide Frick enjoyed, or an inventive cocktail featured on the museum's webseries Cocktails with a Curator.
Fifth Ave Gilded Age Mansions Tour
Admire the extant facades of Millionaire's Row and see stunning images of the opulent homes that have been lost while hearing about the scandalous goings-on inside.
With a museum ticket or membership to The Frick Collection, you can dine like a Gilded Age tycoon in a serene setting filled with art and opulence! Westmoreland is open during museum hours. Same-day reservations can be made onsite at the museum.
