Alexander Clark, owner of Union League Hospitality poses in the bar and cocktail lounge at the newly renovated Union League Café, in New Haven, Conn. Nov. 13, 2025.
Ned Gerard/Hearst Connecticut Media
Alexander Clark, owner of Union League Hospitality speaks during a news conference at the newly renovated Union League Café, in New Haven, Conn. Nov. 13, 2025.
Ned Gerard/Hearst Connecticut Media
Members of the waiting staff pose for a photograph prior to a news conference at the newly renovated Union League Café, in New Haven, Conn. Nov. 13, 2025.
Ned Gerard/Hearst Connecticut Media
Union League Café, in New Haven, Conn. Nov. 13, 2025.
Ned Gerard/Hearst Connecticut Media
Union League Café, in New Haven, Conn. Nov. 13, 2025.
Ned Gerard/Hearst Connecticut Media
Union League Café, in New Haven, Conn. Nov. 13, 2025.
Ned Gerard/Hearst Connecticut Media
Union League Café, in New Haven, Conn. Nov. 13, 2025.
Ned Gerard/Hearst Connecticut Media
Union League Café, in New Haven, Conn. Nov. 13, 2025.
Ned Gerard/Hearst Connecticut Media
View of the Ladies Dining Room at the Union League Club, signed in 1906.
Courtesy Union League/Courtesy Union League
The dining room at the Union League Club.
Courtesy Union League/Courtesy Union League
Image of the smoking room at the Union League Club.
Courtesy Union League/Courtesy Union League
Image of the “Conversation Room” at the old Union League Club.
Courtesy Union League/Courtesy Union League
Image of the “Conversation Room” at the old Union League Club.
Courtesy Union League/Courtesy Union League
NEW HAVEN — When Mayor Justin Elicker first came into the Union League as a young man, he made the faux pas of forgetting to wear a jacket to the acclaimed French restaurant.
Quickly, staff gave Elicker a too-large jacket for his slender frame and ushered him to a seat in the corner.
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This was met with laughter from the group at the recent unveiling of a $4 million-plus renovation to the historic Roger Sherman House, a national landmark that was the former home of New Haven’s first mayor, Roger Sherman, who hosted George Washington in 1789 for tea by the fireplace, now a focal point in the dining room.
Yale University took ownership and the building has had a restaurant there for years. Alexander Clark, a tech entrepreneur turned restaurateur, bought former Union League Café at 1032 Chapel St. in 2023 from Yale University for more than $4.3 million.
“The fun thing about this is that this is Yale University’s first property sale in their recorded history (to a private individual),” said Clark, who was dressed in a black Valentino ensemble topped with an Alexander McQueen jacket with peaked shoulders and sported a sparkling Tiffany pin.
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In addition to its restoration, Clark dropped “café” from the eatery’s name and has plans to elevate the cuisine and restaurant experience.
He also recently opened the Union League Patisserie next door, a pastel blue and gold shop with marble-topped café tables. Clark also bought Zinc in 2022. All the businesses fall under Union League Hospitality.
The venture is a passion project for Clark who is founder and CEO of Technolutions, a college admissions tech company, whose flagship platform, Slate, is used by more than 2,000 colleges and universities worldwide, he said.
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Clark fell in love with the space and the New Haven restaurant scene when he was a Yale undergraduate.
“I joined my parents here at Union League. I was entranced,” he said. “I’m from Jackson, Mississippi, and I’m not saying it’s not a cosmopolitan place, but I had never encountered a foodie scene quite like this before.”
In this first phase, the lobby, dining room, lounge and service areas were given a total makeover, but with an eye to historic preservation. The second and final phase of other floors and kitchen is expected to be complete by early 2026.
“We elevated each detail to return it to its original glory,” Clark said about the Beaux arts style architectural details in later additions to the early building.
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The eatery was formerly Union League Café for 28 years with chef-owner Jean Pierre Vuillermet at the helm. Vuillermet also started Bar Bouchee in Madison in 2011 and sold both restaurants in 2021.
Prior to Union League Café, the eatery was Robert Henry’s 1993 and before that incarnation, it was Sherman’s Taverne By the Green from 1977 to 1985. Sherman also has the distinction of being the only American to sign all four of the nation’s founding documents: the 1774 Articles of Association, Declaration of Independence, Articles of Confederation and U.S. Constitution.
The Union League traces its heritage to the Union League Club, founded in 1884, which operated up to the 1970s as a civic and social club.
Elicker gave kudos to Clark’s decision to have his business in New Haven.
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“You could clearly choose other places, but your passion for the city is something that is clear in your actions, but it’s also a wonderful thing for our community,” Elicker said in his remarks. “We’re so grateful to you.”
Great attention was paid to small and more obvious historical details in the dining room, which was renovated from floor to ceiling, with new hardwood floors.
Painted stained glass scenes from 19th century New Haven circling the dining room now are aglow thanks to backlighting. These “lunettes” were “meticulously restored” by glass artisans who repaired chips and touched up faded paint, Clark said.
Original tile work surrounding the fireplace has been refurbished as well as the now-gleaming Rossa marble mantel, which was dulled by layers of accumulated grime over decades.
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A modernistic chandelier made in Portugal replaces a traditional hanging candelabra in the main dining room. Other changes include swapping out the white butcher paper covering the tables at the former brasserie-style eatery with white linen tablecloths, hotel silver and crystal goblets.
Another view of the “Conversation Room” at the old Union League Club which is now the dining room.
Courtesy Union League/Courtesy Union League
The plaster coffered ceiling and crown work were also painstakingly restored and hides high-tech speakers.
The bar has been completely reimagined with blue walls, burnt red-orange banquets and soft lighting.
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The space is topped by a new vivid painted ceiling of sky and clouds inspired by landscapes by the British landscape painter J.M.W. Turner, lit up by indirect illumination.
“Everything’s been designed so that it has the perfect glow in the evening and just the right levels throughout,” Clark said about the lighting. “Because people are coming here for dates and anniversaries, and we want them to look their best.”
Helping Clark execute his vision is David Mancini, of Madison, the former director of the famed French restaurant Le Bernardin in New York, which has three Michelin stars. Clark said he lured him out of retirement with his dream for Union League.
“I wanted to elevate Union League to become the, quote, ‘Le Bernardin of New England,’” Clark said.
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Mancini said he decided to join Clark after he told him his vision for the restaurant and how it would add to the city’s vitality and “bring more people back to the city.”
“We had this lunch and here was this magnetic, wonderful person sitting across from me,” Mancini said.
Dining and Cooking