View Boston (Observatory) | Prudential Tower | Back Bay

kmp1284 said:
I think one of the biggest drawbacks was that unlike Top of the Hub, you couldn’t simply go there and have a meal or a drink without paying what’s essentially a cover to get into the attraction itself.
Click to expand...
I don't think you can do a "martini lunch and marriage proposal" operation like Top of the Hub with a $40 cover charge just to use the elevator...

The bottom line is that operating costs for an observatory are functionally just utilities, running dedicated elevators, and having some safety folks to make sure no one is throwing stuff off the building. View Boston is priced like an "attraction", but technically any tall building could just open up a high floor as an observatory pretty cheaply if they can't find a tenant. What's the value-add that makes View Boston so expensive?
 
Agree, the concept was fatally flawed. I used to got to Top of the Hub now and then, not because it was remotely close to being my favorite food or drink experience, but because the ambiance made the restaurant an enjoyable way to spend some time. I would never have gone had there been a cover charge, and I have not once gone to Discover Boston. It is too expensive a ticket for an observation deck, and it is particularly egregious to pay that in order to then over pay for mediocre food and drinks.
 
Equilibria said:
....but technically any tall building could just open up a high floor as an observatory pretty cheaply if they can't find a tenant. What's the value-add that makes View Boston so expensive?
Click to expand...

As you say, the view is the real attraction here. The city model is cool, and it's nice to have an outdoor section, but the view is the same as before. Obviously many people like going to the Top of the Hub for that specific dining experience. Personally, I never went up there but instead could spend hours at the Skywalk, for about half the price it is today. In that sense the current setup is kind of worse for everybody.
 
Personally, I feel the addition of the outdoor platform was a massive upgrade to the "viewing the city at height" aspect. I went to the old Skywalk (and the long-shuttered John Hancock Observatory) as often as possible (and when I got to be HS age, I'd drag my friends to Top of the Hub for appetizers and G-rated drinks) and that was all enjoyable and worth the visit, but the new outdoor platform at View Boston is something else.

But, as previously noted (and as has been said or added to by others), even with the awesome new deck, it both needs some type of bar/cafe/restaurant AND it can't charge the same as a day at Canobie Lake Park. I am super excited about View Boston, but at $34 per visit I'm probably going once every year or so, tops. Once they remove all food/drink options, that'll probably evolve to more like "only when friends or family are in town who want to see the city, but are too old, infirm, or fat to really do so."
 
Idea: keep the over-priced dining options but have the admission include some amount of food & drink credit.

If you use it as a pure observation deck you pay the full admission. And if you use it for eating and drinking you guarantee a minimum spend.
 
Last edited:
As I said in the other thread, I wish they were keeping the smaller bar (Stratus). I can understand closing the bistro (The Beacon), as it never seemed busy when I was there. But the lack of even a small bar is such a massive downgrade for View Boston. I agree with @chrisbrat about the outdoor viewing platform. Outdoor access on top of the Pru with the bar was a cool experience. It won't be nearly as enjoyable if it's just the viewing platform.

If they need more room for events, they could convert floor 52 (the indoor observation deck) and the Beacon bistro on floor 50 into event space without modifying floor 51 at all. That way, they can keep the outdoor viewing platform and Stratus for View Boston, with the two other floors dedicated to event space. Floor 52 is mostly empty whenever I go to View Boston, as most people would rather view the city from the outdoor deck instead of the indoor one. I don't understand closing the bistro and the bar while retaining the underused indoor observatory.
 
Last edited:
themissinglink said:
As I said in the other thread, I wish they were keeping the smaller bar (Stratus). I can understand closing the bistro (The Beacon), as it never seemed busy when I was there. But the lack of even a small bar is such a massive downgrade for View Boston. I agree with @chrisbrat about the outdoor viewing platform. Outdoor access on top of the Pru with the bar was a cool experience. It won't be nearly as enjoyable if it's just the viewing platform.

If they need more room for events, they could convert floor 52 (the indoor observation deck) and the Beacon bistro on floor 50 into event space without modifying floor 51 at all. That way, they can keep the outdoor viewing platform and Stratus for View Boston, with the two other floors dedicated to event space. Floor 52 is mostly empty whenever I go to View Boston, as most people would rather view the city from the outdoor deck instead of the indoor one. I don't understand closing the bistro and the bar while retaining the underused indoor observatory.
Click to expand...
I think they (reasonably) would expect that with *no* indoor observation deck, their attendance/profit (other than special events in the indoor observatory space) would be essentially zero from early november to late march.
 
TC_zoid said:
Like many restaurants that close, it's primarily due to poor management. View restaurants at this height become a bit boring after a while but then good food and selections, service, etc. do not. If this were a Gordon Ramsay restaurant and bar, it would thrive. (I remember going to the Hyatt Hotel rotating rooftop restaurant on the Charles River in Cambridge when I was in college. I kind of miss it. The rotating rooftop restaurant idea seems to be gone now. Why?)
Click to expand...
I think it was called the Spinnaker at the Hyatt. That place was awesome 80's excess.
 
3/26
IMG_2990.jpeg
IMG_3002.jpeg
IMG_3004.jpeg
IMG_3008.jpeg
IMG_4493.jpeg
IMG_3021.jpeg
IMG_4497.jpeg
IMG_3058.jpeg
IMG_3050.jpeg
 
You must log in or register to reply here.

Back
Top