Stunning Upper East Side townhouse returns two decades later with 780% price increase

A resplendent mid-block townhouse on a stretch of East 79th Street off of Park Avenue has returned to the market asking 781 percent more than it last sold for. The early 20th-century townhouse, owned by Simon Oren of the Five Napkin Burger chainlet, traded to the restaurateur for $2.1 million in 1997. This afternoon it returned to the market seeking $18.5 million. (Cue gasps.)

A marble entryway opens onto a grand stair and an elevator. The townhouse’s parlor level gives way to some serious Upper East Side opulence; the living room is decked out in a crystal chandelier, large wood-burning fireplace, impeccable molding, and circle-top windows.

The parlor level also includes the house’s kitchen, a room that looks straight out of Provençal France with its sun-dappled dining area that lets onto a planted, elevated terrace overlooking the gardens of the historic block. Not to mention the kitchen’s chef-grade appliances or gigantic kitchen island.

Six or seven bedrooms fit on the house’s upper levels, including a spacious master suite with another wood-burning fireplace and a master bathroom with dual sinks, a free-standing tub, and glassed-in shower stall.

• Listing: 121 East 79th Street [BHS via StreetEasy]
• All coverage of properties for sale in NYC [Curbed]