CHICAGO The restaurant at Chicago’s Ambassador East Hotel will retain its legendary name following an online vote, owner Ian Schrager has announced.
Schrager invited Chicagoans to choose between the iconic name, The Pump Room, and another the moniker “Gold Coast Kitchen.” Not surprisingly, The Pump Room won in a landslide.
More than 28,000 votes were cast during two weeks of voting, although the winning margin has not been made public. Several Chicago celebrities created videos backing the Pump Room name, including actor Jeremy Piven and actress Jane Lynch.
Currently undergoing a total renovation, The Pump Room will be helmed by celebrity Chef Jean-Georges Vongerichten upon reopening this fall.
The 285-key Ambassador East will become Public Chicago in September.
Here’s a video of Schrager, released on Thursday, announcing the vote result: