Categories
Construction — Specialty Trades
Electrician
Electricians wire your space — panel upgrades, branch circuits, kitchen equipment hookup, lighting, low-voltage rough-in, and the DOB sign-off that gates your CofO. Every restaurant, bar, and hotel needs a licensed Master Electrician on the permit. As of February 23, 2026, all Master and Special Electrician license applications must be submitted through DOB NOW: Licensing — every legitimate 2026 master electrician has a DOB NOW: Licensing profile and can produce their license number on request; the migration from Title 27 to Title 28 took effect December 21, 2025 (LL 128 of 2024).
View briefing →Flooring Contractor
Flooring contractors install hardwood, tile, vinyl, polished concrete, and resilient floors — the surface that takes the daily abuse of every restaurant, bar, and hotel. Hire them for any new buildout or renovation; floor failure in service is one of the top sources of operator pain. Tile and stone install in NYC hospitality is governed by the TCNA Handbook for Ceramic, Glass and Stone Tile Installation (2026 edition is current) and ANSI A108; gauged porcelain panels have their own dedicated 2025-2026 TCNA Handbook with 1/4" notch trowel + back-buttering + suction-cup lift required.
View briefing →HVAC Contractor
HVAC contractors design, install, and service heating, ventilation, and AC — packaged rooftop units, splits, makeup air for kitchen hoods, exhaust fans, and the controls that tie the system together. Every restaurant, bar, and hotel needs an HVAC vendor for buildout and ongoing service. The federal AIM Act ER&R rule effective January 1, 2026 dropped the HFC leak-detection threshold from 50 lb to 15 lb of charge — every refrigerant-using system over the new threshold needs a leak-monitoring program; mid-tier 13-14 SEER2 / 11-12 EER packaged RTUs run $4,000-$8,000 per unit installed in 2026.
View briefing →Plumbing Contractor
Plumbing contractors install and repair water, gas, drain, and grease lines — kitchen equipment hookups, three-compartment sinks, mop sinks, grease traps, gas piping, and the DOH-required configuration that lets you pass inspection. Every restaurant and bar needs a Licensed Master Plumber on the permit. As of February 23, 2026 all Master Plumber applications must be submitted through DOB NOW: Licensing; the 2021 LL 154 commercial-kitchen exemption means gas cooking is still permitted in NYC despite the residential ban.
View briefing →Ceiling Contractor
Ceiling contractors install acoustic tile and grid systems, GWB ceilings, custom wood ceilings, metal ceilings, and the integrated lighting/HVAC/sprinkler coordination that ceilings have to absorb. Every restaurant, bar, and hotel buildout includes ceiling work. Stocked Armstrong/USG/Rockfon standard tile and grid lead time is 1-2 weeks in 2026; custom fabrication runs 4-10 weeks from approved shop drawings, which makes ceiling lead time the bottleneck on the construction critical path more often than people expect.
View briefing →Countertop & Surface Fabricator
Countertop fabricators template, fabricate, and install bar tops, back-bar surfaces, vanities, and host stand tops in stone, quartz, solid surface, or wood. Every bar and restaurant needs them, and the bar top is usually the single most visible material decision in the space. NYC stone countertop fabrication runs $55-$115/sqft installed for standard quartz and granite, with marble and exotic stone running $200+/sqft; lead time is 2-4 weeks from template, and the seam placement on a long bar is the most common QC failure that becomes operator pain post-opening.
View briefing →Fire Protection Contractor
Fire protection contractors design, install, and service the sprinkler systems, standpipes, fire alarm panels, kitchen hood Ansul systems, and the FDNY-required infrastructure that keeps your CofO valid. Every restaurant, bar, and hotel needs one for buildout and annual inspection. NYC fire protection labor runs $80-$120/hr; pricing reflects 2025-2026 NYC market with union labor, FDNY permit requirements, and current material costs — kitchen hood Ansul recharges and 5-year sprinkler inspections are the recurring touch points that catch operators off guard.
View briefing →Glass & Mirror
Glass and mirror vendors fabricate and install storefronts, interior partitions, mirrored walls, glass railings, shower enclosures, and back-bar mirrors — the transparent and reflective layer of the build. Every restaurant, bar, and hotel needs them. NYC commercial glass installation runs $8-$15/sqft for standard glazing and significantly more for custom work, low-iron glass, or frameless systems; storefront work usually requires landmarks review in historic districts and DOB sign-off on structural attachment.
View briefing →Metalwork & Welding
Metalwork and welding shops fabricate custom steel railings, structural reinforcement, decorative metal screens, custom hood vents, and the structural brackets that hang heavy fixtures from existing structure. Hire them for any project with custom metal in the design or structural reinforcement in the demo. NYC custom metalwork runs $150-$250/hr fabricator labor plus material; the union shops (Ironworkers Local 580 ornamental, Local 40 structural) sit at the top of the market, with a strong NYC artisan layer (Forged in Brooklyn, Bednark, Rockwell Group's in-house shop) servicing the design-driven operator.
View briefing →Millwork & Custom Fabrication
Millwork shops fabricate the custom wood elements — bars, banquettes, hostess stands, back-bar shelving, paneling, and the build-in furniture that defines a restaurant or bar's interior. Hire one for any concept where the build-in design is part of the brand. NYC hospitality millwork packages run $200K-$400K for a typical full-service restaurant fitout; lead time is 8-14 weeks from approved shop drawings, which makes millwork (alongside ceilings) the most common construction-schedule choke point.
View briefing →Painter
Painters prep, prime, and paint walls, ceilings, and trim — the cosmetic finish layer that the last week of construction lives or dies on. Every buildout and renovation needs them, and a good crew finishes a 5,000 sqft restaurant in 5-7 days clean. NYC commercial painting runs $3-$6/sqft for standard finish work and $8-$15/sqft for specialty finishes (Venetian plaster, lime wash, decorative work); the 2026 NYC market is union-heavy at the high end (DC9) and non-union throughout the mid-market.
View briefing →Soundproofing Contractor
Soundproofing contractors design and install acoustic isolation — resilient channels, double-stud walls, mass-loaded vinyl, isolation hangers, and the floor-floating systems that keep nightlife venues from getting shut down. Hire them for any music venue, nightclub, or restaurant in a mixed-use building with residential above. NYC soundproofing scopes run $2,000-$8,000 for spot treatments up to $50K-$200K for a full nightclub envelope; NYC noise complaints are the #1 source of 311 calls against rooftop bars and #2 for nightlife generally, which makes soundproofing a regulatory necessity, not a nice-to-have.
View briefing →Tile & Stone Installer
Tile and stone installers set ceramic, porcelain, natural stone, and terrazzo on floors, walls, bar fronts, and bathroom surrounds — the durable finish layer that defines most restaurant interiors. Hire them as a separate trade from the GC for any project with serious tile or stone scope. NYC tile installation runs $8-$12/sqft labor for standard work; the TCNA Handbook (2026 edition is current) and ANSI A108 govern installation systems, and gauged porcelain panel installs have their own dedicated 2025-2026 TCNA Handbook with strict trowel notch and lift-equipment requirements.
View briefing →Wallpaper & Wall Covering
Wallpaper and wall-covering installers hang printed papers, fabric panels, vinyl coverings, leather wraps, and the high-end specialty finishes that define a restaurant or hotel's interior story. Hire them as a separate trade from the painter for any project with serious wall-covering scope. NYC wallpaper installation runs $50-$150/single roll labor for standard goods; commercial-grade Type II vinyl is the hospitality default for durability, with Phillip Jeffries, Maya Romanoff, and de Gournay at the design-led top of the market and 6-12 week lead times typical for custom prints.
View briefing →Other Operations sub-areas
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