Midtown East extends west to Fifth Avenue and east to the East River, from 42nd to 57th Streets, and enfolds the mini-hoods of Turtle Bay, Beekman, Tudor City and the Plaza District. But all those names add up to one thing -- Midtown East is a neighborhood at the center of it all, and home to some of the most desirable rental apartments in Manhattan.
While Midtown East is home to a number of iconic landmarks -- the gloriously designed transit hub that is Grand Central Station; the art deco grandeur of The Chrysler Building; the opulent retail mecca of Bloomingdale's -- it is most distinguished as a residential neighborhood by a surprisingly low-key gentility. Turtle Bay has a lively nightlife scene, but it's striking just how sedate, welcoming and neighborhood-y so central a neighborhood can be. World class dining and shopping are tucked away on these quiet, tree-lined blocks, as are unpretentious neighborhood pubs and coffeeshops. Midtown East is a study in contrasts, and all the more quintessentially New York for that.
Unsurprisingly, given its central location, Midtown East is a vertical neighborhood. What's more surprising is how varied these mid-rise and high-rise apartment buildings actually are. The ultra-luxe apartments and amenities at Le Triomphe offer an opulent living experience, as does the 52-story Metropolis. A more low-key, classic collection of rental apartments can be found at The Belmont and Rivercourt. The most important thing that this diverse array of luxury apartment buildings have in common, of course, is location -- at the very center of the city that's at the center of the world.
Thanks in part to a prime Midtown East location in the placid, residential Beekman neighborhood, 136 East 55th Street's spacious apartments for rent are among the most desirable rental listings in Midtown East. As ideal as 136 East 55th's location is, though, this stately 15-story rental tower's gracious rental apartments are the real selling point.
1BR from $3,100 per month
300 East 57th Street is a post-war mid-rise elevator building, offering great Midtown studios and one- and two-bedroom apartments. As one of the last buildings designed by art deco pioneer Emery Roth, 300 East 57th has a place in architecture history.
This 19-floor building has elevator access and laundry facilities. Each of its 163 units features hardwood floors and a marble bathroom.
Studios from $2,450 per month
1BR from $3,400 per month
Le Triomphe's prime midtown location puts it in the center of Midtown's most luxurious stretch, while its long list of luxurious amenities puts Le Triomphe in the top tier of luxury rental apartment buildings in Manhattan. By every standard by which Manhattan luxury apartment buildings are judged, Le Triomphe is, yes, a triumph.
2BR from $5,750 per month
Home to 225 apartments, The Olympic Tower, located at 641 Fifth Avenue, is a prized luxury rental among all apartments in New York City. It was erected in 1976, notably the first building in Midtown East constructed after New York City’s Fifth Avenue zoning district was established. The Olympic Tower’s dazzling Manhattan views of the neighboring St. Patrick’s Cathedral, all-encompassing amenities and inclusion of an arcade at the ground level define luxe-living in New York City.
1BR from $4,250 per month
2BR from $10,200 per month
4BR from $58,000 per month
Many Manhattan luxury rentals advertise condo-quality finishes and services, but One Beacon Court can go one better. That's because One Beacon Court, which is perhaps better known as The Bloomberg Building, is both one of Manhattan's most sought-after luxury condominiums and one of the most elite rental listings in New York City. That it's also the headquarters for Bloomberg and home to iconic midtown restaurant Le Cirque, then, would qualify as icing on the cake.
2BR from $15,000 per month
This giant, trapezoidal, through-block apartment tower radically departs from the city's regimented building alignment with its rectilinear midtown grid. Its long facades are at 45 percent angles with the sidestreets, and the tower is set back from 54th Street with landscaped plazas on either side. Interestingly, it is bigger at the top than at the bottom, an exceedingly rare high-rise phenomenon. Its bulges provide dramatic bay windows for the highest apartments and give the building a powerful profile.
1BR from $3,945 per month
2BR from $4,720 per month
3BR from $9,945 per month
Rivercourt, a 37-story rental apartment building, stands in the lee of River House, one of the city's most glamorous and legendary buildings. Rivercourt, of course, is of a different generation, style and economy, but its entrance is impressive; the slab tower is approached through a lushly landscaped garden path from 52nd Street.
Studios from $3,500 per month
1BR from $3,995 per month
2BR from $7,495 per month
Situated in Sutton Place within Manhattan’s bustling Midtown East neighborhood, St. James Tower is a post-war high-rise packed with amenities. Featuring 106 luxury apartments, St. James Tower is a doorman building standing at an impressive 32 stories. St. James Tower is located in a quiet section of midtown Manhattan, with the East River close by. A breathtaking, manicured plaza that includes both water and seating greets visitors to this apartment building, providing an entrance for a lovely Manhattan rental building in one of NYC’s more prestigious neighborhoods.
2BR from $5,300 per month
The Bamford, an especially spacious Midtown East apartment building, was completely remodeled in 1993. Around the corner from Central Park, the Bamford has a large lobby in a plaza with tasteful sidewalk landscaping.
1BR from $3,295 per month
Sutton Place has long been one of Manhattan's most luxurious neighborhoods an understated pocket of quiet sophistication in Midtown East that is home to some of the most elegant apartments for rent in Manhattan. While The Bristol's luxurious rental apartments and classically elegant exterior make it quite at home in its exclusive neighborhood, The Bristol's very contemporary rental units and state-of-the-art amenities also make it one of the most unique no-fee rentals in Midtown East. The Bristol is a modern luxury apartment building with old-school charm and a classic New York address.
1BR from $5,195 per month
2BR from $6,395 per month
