Heritage

Rain splashes against the pavement. The clippity-clop of horses’ hoofs rings over the stone blocks. Overhead, trains roar along the Elevated. In the doorway of his new candy shop and restaurant stands Louis Sherry, stroking his moustache, poised to open that very evening—the year is 1881.

Perhaps, he thinks, he has made a mistake. Perhaps New York is not ready for a place like this. Yet there would be few evenings left for idly watching the bustle of the avenue. From the moment he opened his doors, business poured in, and his restaurant and confections were met with instant acclaim.

Sherry’s grew alongside the city—first at 662 Sixth Avenue, then at 37th Street and Fifth Avenue, and finally at his flagship on 691 Madison Avenue (now home to Hermès). From these storied addresses, elegant lavender tins of chocolate made their way to admirers around the world.

Today, Louis Sherry’s legacy lives on in the landmark Sherry-Netherland Hotel and his eponymous confectionery brand—two surviving institutions of New York’s Gilded Age.