Restaurant Legend Drew Nieporent’s Three Rules for Success

Drew Nieporent may be the last of the old time restaurateurs. New York City born and raised, he got his start on cruise ships and working at Warner LeRoy's singles spot, Maxwell's Plum. In the 1980s when you couldn't get a taxi to drive you to the area known as Tribeca, he heralded a new era there with restaurants that were serious about their cuisine and wine cellars, but relaxed in their dress code. Montrachet, then Tribeca Grill, attracted a Hollywood clientele, most notably Robert De Niro — who soon became a partner in what would become one of the most famous and profitable restaurant brand in history: Nobu. Bloomberg Brief's Peter Elliot caught up with Nieporent after the third incarnation of the Montrachet space, Batard— a riff on the French word for bastard—won "Best New Restaurant" 2015 from the James Beard foundation. Comments have been edited.

Elliot: Batard is in the space where you started Montrachet 29 years ago and then Corton. Do you just keep trying until you get it right?