Acclaimed Chef To Open New UWS Eatery In Dovetail Space: Report
UPPER WEST SIDE, NY — The Upper West Side space that hosted Michelin-star-winning restaurant Dovetail will be home to a new restaurant helmed by an acclaimed up-and-coming chef, according to reports.
Adam Leonti will head up a new restaurant in Dovetail's former building on West 77th Street near Columbus Avenue, Eater New York first reported. Dovetial closed at the end of June for summer renovations and a new concept.
The new concept appears to be Leonti's take on upscale Italian cuisine, Eater New York reported. The restaurant will likely share the chef's named and be called Leonti. The chef earned widespread acclaim for his work at Philadelphia's Vetri, but has struggled since making the move to New York City, Eater reported.
After initially signing on to helm a restaurant in Williamsburg's Hotel Harvey, Leonti left the venture in 2017 after the restaurant's opening was delayed by two years. A court then blocked his attempt to work at Sessanta in Soho due to a non-compete clause in his contract with the Hotel Harvey, Eater reported. Leonti worked in Germany until the non-compete clause ran its course, according to the report.
Leonti wants his new Upper West Side restaurant to be a hit among neighborhood locals rather than a destination-eating hot spot, he told Eater. Diners in a neighborhood like the Upper West Side are typically more loyal than Downtown, where new restaurants open every week, he told the publication.
Dovetail, which closed at the end of June, achieved that hit status on the Upper West Side but its run ended when chef John Fraser sold his stake in the restaurant to focus on other projects. Over the years, Dovetail amassed recognition including a Michelin Star and a three-star review in the New York Times.
Read the full Eater report here.
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