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| Photo: Nial Kennedy, Flickr |
But back at his Yountville ranch, news comes that Keller’s second-line ventures, Bouchon Bakery and Ad Hoc (which have been closed for renovations since January), plan to spring back into action soon. Bouchon Bakery, which has been redesigned to have its own entrance and now boasts its own dedicated take-out phone line (707-754-4272) will reopen this Sunday (February 25). In honor of the reopening, the Yountville bakery will be rolling out their gussied up version of the Hostess Ho-Ho, which up until now has only been available at its New York branches.
The revamped sit-down restaurant Ad Hoc will resume service on March 1. That dining room has been upgraded to include a new decked-out reception area and a private alcove that seats up to 18. Behind the scenes, the revamped kitchen now features state-of-the-art kitchen equipment on par with Per Se and French Laundry. In other words, there’s nothing ad hoc about this Keller spin-off.
Both Bouchon Bakery and Ad Hoc plan to host a series of special offers for the reopenings. You can find out more about them on their respective Facebook pages.
In other Keller news, Nicolas Fanucci, who has served as general manager of The French Laundry for the past six years, will be departing on February 25 to become his own boss. According to Philly.com, Fanucci will be taking over Le Bec-Fin in Philadelphia, replacing George Perrier, who will be retiring after four decades at the helm. According to Foozbooz, Le Bec-Fin’s current chef Nicholas Elmi will not be part of the restaurant’s new incarnation under Fanucci, leading to speculation that more offspring from Keller’s family tree would be popping up in the City of Brotherly Love. However, a rep from Per Se has made it clear that The Thomas Keller Restaurant Group will have “no involvement, whether operational or otherwise, with Le Bec-Fin.” The plot thickens.
Bouchon Bakery already had its own entrance. The bakery building is a separate building, across a small outdoor seating area, next to the restaurant Bouchon.
ReplyDeleteVery true. It now has TWO doors, one to form a line with and enter, and the other to pay/exit.
ReplyDeleteAlso, last time I checked, Feb 25, 2012 was a Saturday - I should know, I was there, and both establishments were *very* open for business.