Things are changing down at Manresa, and per a plan we heard described in its draft stages a few months back, chef David Kinch is reconfiguring the eight-year-old, Michelin two-star restaurant to add a twelve- to fourteen-seat bar and cocktail lounge. In addition, the entrance is moving, and what’s currently a back patio will get enclosed to add more table seating. As the Scoop reports, rather than increasing the number of covers they do each night, Kinch is planning to transition to a more European model in which everyone gets their table for the night, with no turnover.
The restaurant is only expected to be closed for a week, after Valentine’s Day, during the remodeling process, and otherwise will be open throughout the construction.
Beverage director Jeff Bareilles is planning a cocktail program for the new bar (with the new full liquor license) that includes both obscure spirits from small and foreign distillers, as well as a “garden cocktail” menu to complement the restaurant’s fresh and homegrown-driven menu. Also, Kinch is hoping to create a new paradigm in fine dining using the bar, for those who might like to take a more progressive approach:
Folks will obviously be able to pop into the bar, but Kinch also envisions a dynamic that would see dinner guests arrive at the restaurant, have a drink and amuse in the bar, place their dinner order and then transition to the dining room for a meal, sans menus, similar to an evening at a dinner party in someone’s home.
Someone’s home, that is, where they churn their own butter and serve you things like foie gras in sea water and edible soil.
Manresa - 320 Village Lane, Los Gatos - 408.354.4330
Manresa looks ahead with a remodel: New bar, new dining area, full liquor [Scoop]
Earlier: A 25-Course Meal at Manresa, Illustrated [Grub Street]
