Tracks Raw Bar and Grill back on track at new station, Grand Central Madison

Long Island commuters can finally get a meal while waiting for their train at Grand Central Madison, although maybe not a freshly cooked one.

Tracks Raw Bar and Grill officially opened for business during the Tuesday evening rush hour — far later than project officials had hoped. The MTA initially projected the eatery — the first at Grand Central Madison — would be open by last fall.

But a series of construction-related delays pushed the scheduled opening to this past July, and then to August, and finally to Tuesday, the second day of September.

"It’s no secret it took a little while to get to this moment," MTA chairman and CEO Janno Lieber said at a ceremony Tuesday near the establishment, which is on the station’s mezzanine level, across from the LIRR ticket windows.

Long a staple in and around Penn Station, Tracks now brings its signature seafood raw bar to the LIRR’s newest Manhattan terminal, which opened in February 2023.

At Grand Central Madison on Tuesday evening, commuters wasted no time in taking advantage of the new businesses, and its plentiful seating, which includes booths with flat-screen TVs and a bar with about 30 stools.

Fort Lee, New Jersey, resident David Carela stopped for a cocktail while on his way to visit family in Floral Park.

"I think everybody looks for a way to ... relax on their way to work and on their way home. It’s a good way to kind of disconnect and forget about the struggles you just came from," said Carela, 48 "If you haven’t eaten because you’ve been working all day, it’s a good spot to fill up your belly."

Unlike the original Tracks — which is set to return to Penn Station this fall after being relocated just outside of it for years because of construction — the new business has limited options for hot food. Ventilation restrictions at Grand Central Madison, which reaches 15 stories below ground at its lowest, prohibit businesses from cooking food there.

Tracks’ menu does include some warm dishes, including Angus beef sliders and a daily featured soup, that will be warmed up using special equipment, officials said.

"Nothing fried. Nothing heavily cooked to make grease vapors," said Tracks proprietor Bruce Caulfield.

"We’re very diverse. It’s not going to be only cold food," Caulfield said.

It’s all an improvement over the coffee and snack kiosks that were the only options for LIRR commuters in the station for the past 31 months.

Metropolitan Transportation Authority officials have suggested riders won’t have to wait as long for the next eatery to open at Grand Central Madison. After initially getting lukewarm responses from potential retail tenants, MTA officials have said they are negotiating leases with five other businesses looking to move into Grand Central Madison, including some in the "food and beverage" space. The first of the new businesses are expected to open next year.

"With almost 70,000 customers coming through this terminal on average each weekday, we anticipate plenty of patronage at this fine establishment," LIRR president Robert Free said. "And remember, this is only the beginning."

By Alfonso A. Castillo

alfonso.castillo@newsday.com@alfonsoreports

Alfonso Castillo has been reporting for Newsday since 1999 and covering the transportation beat since 2008. He grew up in the Bronx and Queens and now lives in Valley Stream with his wife and two sons.