400 Highland restaurant is CLOSED
Jul. 17th, 2006 09:17 pm![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png){kind=small}
ron_newman posting in ![[community profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/community.png){kind=small}
davis_squareThe restaurant at 400 Highland Avenue has closed, a little over three months after it opened. A sign in front says that anyone holding a gift certificate should redeem it at Joshua Tree.
Meanwhile, it looks like the Rosebud is going to give their back room another try. The sign now says La Spina - Authentic Neapolitan Cuisine. Don't know when it's going to open, but presumably soon.
Meanwhile, it looks like the Rosebud is going to give their back room another try. The sign now says La Spina - Authentic Neapolitan Cuisine. Don't know when it's going to open, but presumably soon.
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Date: 2006-07-18 01:24 am (UTC)no subject
Date: 2006-07-18 02:46 am (UTC)no subject
Date: 2006-07-20 04:51 pm (UTC)no subject
Date: 2006-07-20 04:59 pm (UTC)I actually really like the Italian place by JP Licks, a lot.
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Date: 2006-07-20 05:01 pm (UTC)no subject
Date: 2006-07-22 11:06 pm (UTC)But again, I've never tried it.
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Date: 2006-07-18 01:26 am (UTC)no subject
Date: 2006-07-18 12:50 pm (UTC)I think we could use an actual good Chinese place or something other than American-esque food. Sauce, I'm thinking of you.
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Date: 2006-07-18 01:18 pm (UTC)no subject
Date: 2006-07-18 01:49 pm (UTC)And that's why I think they failed. I mean, sure, maybe on Newbury Street or Back Bay, those prices would be fine (but the food would look even more lackluster) but in Davis? No way.
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Date: 2006-07-18 02:03 pm (UTC)Maybe it's too big entirely?
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Date: 2006-07-18 02:52 pm (UTC)Is it worth it? What's Magnolia's and EVOOs?
You do have a point - a smaller pricey place could have survived - assuming the food warranted it, since a smaller clientele could keep it afloat.
Thinking about it a bit more, besides the drinks (apparently), 400 Highland just didn't seem... distinctive. I mean, if a small actual tapas place (and not a faux one like Sauce tried to be) moved in, I bet it'd do well.
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Date: 2006-07-18 03:07 pm (UTC)Magnolia's is ersatz Cajun/Southern, but is mostly alright if you don't know what excellent catfish tastes like. They have pretty good upscale Southern food. EVOO is upscale American with some outside influences--they put a great premium on using local, seasonal, sustainable ingredients, and actually turn out some amazing food. And, it's *casual*.
I liked Sauce's food, but it cost too much for what it was.
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Date: 2006-07-18 03:22 pm (UTC)Where is EVOO?
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Date: 2006-07-18 03:26 pm (UTC)I was more pointing out that you CAN do tapas in a large space, whereas, sometimes it's hard to do especially good food on a large scale.
I've never been to Gargoyle's, but keep meaning to go. It's potentially a bit trendy for me.
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Date: 2006-07-18 01:29 am (UTC)no subject
Date: 2006-07-18 01:34 am (UTC)no subject
Date: 2006-07-18 03:56 am (UTC)no subject
Date: 2006-07-18 01:38 am (UTC)no subject
Date: 2006-07-18 11:17 am (UTC)Yee's Village!!
Date: 2006-07-18 03:52 pm (UTC)Don't we need a good place to get $2.50 bourbons and Scorpion Bowls again??!
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Date: 2006-07-18 01:46 am (UTC)I wonder if they'll send the check...
(I know another place in Davis that's almost certainly going to close by the end of the summer, too. Gah.)
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Date: 2006-07-18 01:52 am (UTC)no subject
Date: 2006-07-18 02:00 am (UTC)There are certainly a lot of available storefronts in Davis these days.
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Date: 2006-07-22 02:24 am (UTC)no subject
Date: 2006-07-18 02:30 am (UTC)no subject
Date: 2006-07-18 01:25 pm (UTC)no subject
Date: 2006-07-18 02:09 am (UTC)La Spina's sign says "Authentic Neopolitan [sic] Cuisine". I'm not sure if I hope that's a typo or that I hope it isn't.
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Date: 2006-07-18 02:49 am (UTC)no subject
Date: 2006-07-18 11:19 am (UTC)(which is the case)
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Date: 2006-07-18 12:00 pm (UTC)Enh. My entire sense of history comes from the classical Mediterranean, in which it is always and only Neapolis, and Neopolis would be clearly ungrammatical. So I shudder at the idea of "Neopolitan".
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Date: 2006-07-18 01:16 pm (UTC)http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B000008P77/sr=8-2/qid=1153228423/ref=pd_bbs_2/102-0921006-5493705?ie=UTF8
(My desk dictionary and online dictionary both have it as an alternate, and it only takes one source to matter. Grammatically, neo- makes more sense in English.)
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Date: 2006-07-18 02:48 am (UTC)no subject
Date: 2006-07-18 03:01 am (UTC)OK, so I'd never eaten at 400 Highland but the expression works.
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Date: 2006-07-18 11:22 am (UTC)Well, what next? It's large. Crepe Universe? Someday Brasserie?
(it's one of those sweltering, cynical mornings)
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Date: 2006-07-18 08:31 pm (UTC)I passed by on Sunday and saw the windows papered over. One of the bartenders was outside and said they had closed, and the staff had just been told. She thought that the owners would give it more time and that they were starting to pick up steam. There's an interesting thread about the transition from Sauce to 400 Highland on Shameless Restaurants (http://shamelessrestaurants.com/forum/viewtopic.php?t=1874). The consensus seems to be that the owners thought that because they could run bars, they would be able to run a restaurant. Personally I though that they had an interesting idea with Sauce, but were afraid to go with it, watered it down, and it became uninteresting. 400 Highland was kind of schizophrenic, trying to be a sports bar and a fine restaurant. BTW, I passed by this afternoon and it looks like they're giving up and selling.
Highland Ave in general
Date: 2006-07-18 01:46 pm (UTC)There are old awnings and rusty signs over a lot of these stores and I really find it hard to imagine that they could not make more money by selling their premises. I do not wish to offend any of these store owners but I do feel that Davis needs a larger vision than hoping it remains a neighborhood full of old mom and pop stores. I believe Davis can be an awesome place, a tourist destination full of cute stores and a center for the arts.
Only then will Highland Avenue support 400 Highland type restaurants.
Re: Highland Ave in general
Date: 2006-07-18 02:03 pm (UTC)Re: Highland Ave in general
Date: 2006-07-18 02:20 pm (UTC)Re: Highland Ave in general
Date: 2006-07-18 05:49 pm (UTC)she is consistently getting good press and bringing lots of people into the square.
Re: Highland Ave in general
Date: 2006-07-30 02:12 pm (UTC)and yet not only do they seem to make rent (unless of course they own the entire stretch of building) but actually survive from year to year.
How do places one actually wants to stick around and thrive (and which DO show evidence of life) fail and go under and places like these described above (which are candidates for those behind-glass This-Is-What-A-Real-Apothecary-Was-Like! museum displays, sans the visitors) chug on?
Re: Highland Ave in general
Date: 2006-07-18 05:10 pm (UTC)I think the Someday was great because it build a community, even though I never went there. This is also what's great about the Diesel, Mike's, and MacIntyre & Moore. I want to see a coffee shop that can have open mics and evening performances, like the Herrell's in Allston. Or it could be another bookstore, like Lorem Ipsum or son of the Grolier. If it has to be food it should be someplace simple, cheap, pleasant, and good.
Re: Highland Ave in general
Date: 2006-07-18 05:12 pm (UTC)Re: Highland Ave in general
Date: 2006-07-18 05:58 pm (UTC)When I said "tourist" destination, I suppose I should really have said "destination" and left the tourist connotation out of it.
I think that Davis has 3 possibilities:
1. We capitalize on what we have already and Davis becomes even more artsy, attracting arty types who are willing to invest and spend in the area. The Square attracts people who'll spend money in arty and independent stores like McIntyres, Magpie and Diesel and make the Square hip and desireable. People would come here because of the lovely location, the trees, bike path, cutsie stores and coffee shops.
2. We let landlords sell out to high bidders like CVS and the banks and the area becomes a down at heel Harvard (without the tourists!)
3. We do nothing and Davis flounders along with no specific plan. Old stores that make little money struggle on and eventually become boerded up. We lose 400 Highland, Someday, McIntyres, Mr Crepe?
Re: Highland Ave in general
Date: 2006-07-18 06:30 pm (UTC)Otherwise, I basically agree.
Re: Highland Ave in general
Date: 2006-07-18 08:10 pm (UTC)no subject
Date: 2006-07-18 08:02 pm (UTC)Spark Craft Studios has been trying to get someone to rent their space. So perhaps people are confusing us?
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Date: 2006-07-18 08:07 pm (UTC)no subject
Date: 2006-07-18 08:24 pm (UTC)