In NYC only a licensed architect or PE may seal the drawings the Department of Buildings will permit a project from — and in hospitality, where a single filing stacks Building Code + Zoning + ADA + FDNY + DOH + SLA + LPC + DOT sidewalk café + Energy on top of each other, the architect is the single decision that most determines whether the venue opens on time, on budget, and in code. Most first-time operators conflate "design architect" with "architect of record," sign with a famous name, and then get surprised six weeks into Construction Documents by a second invoice from the firm actually filing the PW-1.
The trap is the AoR / design-architect split. Marquee NYC hotels almost always carry two firms — a celebrity design architect (Rockwell, ODA, Roman and Williams, Meyer Davis) authoring the aesthetic, and a separate Architect of Record (SLCE, Handel, Stonehill Taylor, Perkins Eastman) sealing drawings, filing DOB, and administering construction. Restaurant and bar projects under ~$5M usually combine both roles in one firm. Ask every candidate flat out: "Will your firm be the AoR for the NYC DOB filing, and if not, who will be, and how is their fee handled?" Firms that hedge are firms that will surprise you.
NYC-specific filtering matters more than national portfolio. Weight five criteria above generic design quality: (1) NYC DOB filing volume in the last 24 months with specific Alt-1, Alt-2, and NB counts; (2) named expediter relationship (Milrose, Outsource, JAM, Domani) with documented length; (3) consultant Rolodex — who they reach for first on MEP, structural, kitchen, lighting; (4) SLA, FDNY, and DOH coordination described with specifics; (5) principal seal availability — is the named partner the one stamping the set? A firm that knows what the plan examiner will object to on a Use Group 12 Alt-2 is worth the 10-20% NYC premium. A cheaper firm that re-files three times is not cheap.
NYC traps the brief misses: the 75-occupant Place of Assembly threshold (PACO + FDNY Public Assembly run on a separate 4-8 week clock from DOB plan exam); the SLA LAMP 200-ft / 500-ft rule that has killed projects after leases were signed; LPC review in any of the 150+ historic districts adding 6-12 weeks (and 3+ submissions); LL97 emissions caps for any building over 25,000 sf (most hotels); and the Alt-1 vs Alt-2 trap where a Use Group change from retail (UG6) to eating-and-drinking (UG12) makes it an Alt-1 and adds 6-12 weeks. A competent firm runs zoning + LAMP + LL97 at programming, not at DD.
