New Haven Register (New Haven, CT)
Ansonia’s Crave to close and reopen with new name, menu
ANSONIA — Why would successful Latin fusion restaurant Crave completely renovate and relaunch with a new menu and new name?
Owner Libby Meissner said it’s about taking a risk.
“Life is about taking risks...,” Meissner said. “And I've always done that all my life.”
The official Ansonia Facebook page announced on Tuesday that Crave would be shutting down for renovations, to reopen in early April.
But Meissner said Crave is going to be a completely different restaurant when it reopens. Meissner said she’s switching it up in order to stay ahead of her competitors who are now part of a local food scene that didn’t exist when her restaurant first opened more than a decade ago.
Meissner said the restaurant will close on March 14, so customers still have a chance to get their favorites before Crave shuts down.
But she did say her customers have pleaded with her not to remove customer favorites from the menu.
“Some people are saying ‘Oh no, please don’t take this, please don’t take that.’ Everything’s coming off. There’s not going to be one identical menu item. Now will I have weekly specials that might bring back those items? Perhaps? I’m not sure yet,” she said.
However, Meissner was mum when it came to revealing what her restaurant would soon serve.
“The food is still in my head. It’s still in that little corner of my head and I haven’t extrapolated it yet.
It’s coming. I know it’s there. And I have some great ideas I really do. But I don’t have the whole menu set up. But I will tell you one thing. There’s no doubt it’ll be delicious,” she said.
One customer on the Ansonia Facebook page asked why she would revamp her menu. Meissner said her customers asked her as well. But she said she decided to change because Crave came about in 2007 and Main Street wasn’t the food destination it is now. Crave, she said, was one of the few restaurants in the immediate area. Now, there are a number of restaurants on Main Street. Meissner calls it “restaurant row.”
She said while she serves Latin fusion cuisine, other restaurants in the area also offer similar fare. Eateries in Shelton have also sprang up, she said, but many don’t stand out.
She said she wants to create trends, not follow them.
Meissner said her menu will still offer fusion fare. She said her mixed ethnic background is also an influence.
“I'm going to create my own fusion because I’m a fusion kind of girl. I’m a Puerto Rican German Jew, so that’s a fusion in itself. So therefore, I’m somebody that identifies with fusion,” she said.
However, she said some of her employees were also surprised by her announcement. On Wednesday, she flagged one of her employees, Josh Gonzalez, to her table. Gonzalez said her employees trust her.
“There was some concerns but people trust you. People have faith in your vision,” Gonzalez told Meissner.
Ansonia Economic Development Director Sheila O’Malley said she was also surprised at the announcement. O’Malley said when she first heard Meissner was going to visit City Hall to speak to the mayor on Tuesday, she said she thought it was about something else.
“She always comes in with good news. So yeah, a bit surprised to hear that. But I’m not surprised at all that she’s going to reinvent herself and her restaurant,” O’Malley said.
Crave is set to reopen April 1 with the new name and menu, according to Meissner. Crave gift cards, she said, will still be honored but customers wishing to enjoy Latin fusion must use them by March 14.
As for what Crave will soon be called, Meissner said that’s still under wraps as well.
“I won't even disclose the name... one of the reasons why I can’t tell you is because I don’t have a clue yet,” Meissner said