Napa: It's no secret that like most big-name chefs in the business of expanding empires, Thomas Keller looks at a lot of potential restaurant spaces up in Wine Country. However, the Napa Valley Register shares some juicy gossip in passing about a deal that almost was in the town of Napa:
Steve Hasty, the owner of Fagiani's Bar, said he had been in negotiations to lease the Main Street building to Keller only to see the deal fall through last week. Most intriguingly, Keller said he was considering another downtown property — one within view of Fagiani's, Hasty said Friday.
We've been hearing plenty of rumblings too that Keller has been considering and looking at spaces (including the shuttered Pilar next door, which may or may not be the aforementioned), though as the Keller people are obviously quick to point out, it's definitely just that so far: he's considering spaces. Still, we think it significant that with the Burgers and Half-Bottles project now without a home, The Laundryman is (at the very least) open to the prospect of expanding in the Napa area beyond Yountville.
· Mixed fortunes for small downtown merchants [NVR]
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