Rotisserie closes; Ubuntu still in limbo
With Memorial Day firmly in the rearview mirror, it’s officially tourist season in Wine Country, but two high-profile Napa restaurants have remained dark after extended offseason “vacations.”
Tyler Florence’s 18-month-old Napa Riverfront restaurant, Rotisserie & Wine (720 Main St.), will not reopen.
The original plan was to go on hiatus for an off-season remodel, but after weeks of uncertainty, Florence confirms that he’s saying goodbye to the downtown restaurant space.
“We just want to consolidate and focus our efforts on our other two restaurants, Wayfare Tavern and El Paseo,” he says. His restaurant at SFO will continue to operate as well.
A few blocks away, Ubuntu (1140 Main St.) has not reawakened from its winter hibernation, either. Owner Sandy Lawrence says there’s still no resolution to its fate. Possibilities may include a sale or even a reopening. Dress down: Last week, Daniel DeLong and Margaret Grade — the pair behind Manka’s in Inverness — picked up the keys to the historic Olema Inn (10000 Sir Francis Drake Blvd.), which closed a month ago.
The North Bay hotel and restaurant dates back to 1876, although the
prior owners took it over in 2007.
DeLong says that the new project will give him his cooking fix while the dining room at Manka’s remains in rebuilding mode, where it’s been since the 2006 fire. The lodging at Manka’s is open.
“I need to keep my hands busy in a kitchen. We’re looking forward to it,” he says.
But the still-unnamed Olema restaurant won’t be upscale as Manka’s was. In lieu of a fixedprice menu and white tablecloths, it will be rustic and “more scuffable,” with a casual a la carte menu. Opening is set for late summer.
As for that new name, DeLong is taking suggestions. Baking up a storm: Victoria Pastry — est. 1914 — is indeed moving from its longtime perch at Stockton and Vallejo streets, the partnership confirmed. As anticipated, the bakery is headed to 700 Filbert St., just a few blocks away. The plan is to close the existing location and open the new one around the same time, tentatively mid-July.
Unfortunately, it might not be a simple move. Victoria’s landlords wanted their established tenant to stay, and say they were surprised when the bakery didn’t pick up the lease option, which expired May 31.
Leading up to the deadline, building owner Peter Lee says he even tried to swing a deal, offering a “pretty substantial renegotiation” with lower rent. But it wasn’t good enough.
“They were asking for huge improvement to their space, which we couldn’t do, since they’ve been there for so long,” Lee says. “We don’t want empty spaces. We tried to accommodate them, but it just didn’t work out.”
So when Victoria Pastry made it clear it was moving, Lee did the logical thing and found a new bakery to take its place.
However, it’s now June and Victoria hasn’t moved out. With the new bakery scheduled to move in last Friday, it’s not a good situation for Lee, who is now worried he’ll be left without a tenant.
“We relied on good faith, and it kind of bit
us,” Lee says. Stepping out: Elsewhere in the neighborhood,
Steps of Rome Caffe (348 Columbus Ave.) is officially done after 22 years in North Beach. The cafe’s closure comes roughly six months after owner Scott Holley closed nearby sister restaurant Steps of Rome Trattoria. Both restaurants are on the market. Steak a claim: As Roland Passot of San Francisco’s four-star La Folie prepares to open LB Steak in Menlo Park, he’s named a chef de cuisine for the new location, which will be the second branch of his San Jose steak house.
Set in the former Marche (898 Santa Cruz Ave.), the restaurant will be helmed by Ryan Ellison, who has been at the San Jose location for the last three years. They’re hoping to open late this month. Starbucks: Regarding the news this week about Starbucks’ $100 million purchase of La Boulange:
Pascal Rigo, La Boulange founder, said the cafes will keep their individual identities, but one Inside Scoop blog commenter had a clever suggestion if the two entities ever merge.
“They’re changing the name to the effervescent sounding Le StarBoubucklanges.”