MoMA PS1 announced that Symone, a new restaurant concept from chef DeVonn Francis, will become the latest dining destination inside the contemporary art museum’s Long Island City, Queens campus. The restaurant is scheduled to open in early October 2026, adding a food-focused creative project to one of New York’s most prominent experimental arts institutions.

Francis’s Symone will introduce a French African-inspired cafe concept built around seasonal ingredients and flavors connected to the chef’s Jamaican and Caribbean heritage. The project marks Francis’s first restaurant and follows his previous work with Yardy World, an initiative founded in 2017 that explored immersive dining experiences centered on Caribbean cuisine and cultural storytelling.

The arrival of Symone continues MoMA PS1’s effort to create a more expansive visitor experience that connects art with other forms of creativity. The museum, located in a former public school building in Queens, has long emphasized experimental exhibitions, performances, and community programs. Its programming has included major contemporary art surveys, site-specific installations, and the annual Warm Up music series, which brings emerging and established performers into the museum’s courtyard.

For cultural institutions across the United States, restaurants and cafes have increasingly become part of how museums engage visitors. Dining spaces can extend the time audiences spend at museums while creating additional opportunities for artists, chefs, and designers to collaborate. Symone represents this broader movement by treating cuisine not simply as a visitor amenity but as a cultural experience connected to identity, memory, and place.

Francis’s menu approach is expected to focus on familiar dishes presented through a contemporary lens. Planned offerings include curry chicken salad sandwiches, patties, soft serve, cod and rice porridge, and seasonal pastries. The concept will emphasize approachable comfort foods while incorporating influences from African, Caribbean, and French culinary traditions.

The restaurant will operate during museum hours, allowing visitors to experience the dining space as part of a broader visit to MoMA PS1. The museum has continued expanding its public-facing programming, including its free admission initiatives and outdoor projects designed to encourage repeat visits from local communities and international audiences.

Symone will also have an early public preview during Printed Matter’s NY Art Book Fair, scheduled for September 24 through September 27, before the restaurant’s official opening. The preview connects the culinary project with one of New York’s major gatherings for artists, publishers, and independent creative communities.

The partnership also reflects a continuing shift in the relationship between restaurants and cultural spaces. Museums have historically operated cafes and dining facilities primarily as supporting services, but many institutions are now working with chefs whose reputations and creative approaches can attract audiences independently. These collaborations often create new entry points for visitors who may engage with the institution through food before exploring exhibitions and programs.

MoMA PS1 has maintained a reputation for supporting experimental projects across disciplines. Its 2026 programming includes exhibitions, music events, and large-scale outdoor installations that combine visual, social, and participatory elements. The addition of Symone fits within that institutional approach by introducing another medium for creative exploration.

Francis’s background in immersive dining also aligns with the museum’s interest in experiences that encourage participation rather than passive observation. While traditional exhibitions ask visitors to view artworks, culinary experiences can involve additional senses through taste, smell, atmosphere, and social interaction. Symone’s role within the museum environment may provide a different way for audiences to connect with cultural narratives.

The restaurant opening comes at a time when arts organizations continue searching for new ways to strengthen public engagement and diversify programming. Museums in major U.S. cities have increasingly explored partnerships with chefs, designers, and hospitality groups as they compete for audiences in a changing cultural landscape.

For MoMA PS1, Symone adds another layer to the institution’s identity as a place where contemporary culture crosses traditional boundaries. The restaurant is not positioned as a replacement for the museum’s exhibitions or performances, but as an extension of its broader mission to support innovative creative voices.

As the opening approaches, attention will focus on how Francis translates his previous immersive dining work into a permanent restaurant environment and how visitors respond to the combination of contemporary art and cuisine. If successful, Symone could become another example of how museums are redefining the boundaries between exhibition spaces, hospitality, and cultural programming.