South Food + Wine Bar Will Have a New Accent in 2010

~SOUTH FOOD + WINE BAR~ in SoMa has some big changes underway. It will be closing after dinner service this Saturday December 19th, and when it reopens in the New Year, it will have an entirely new concept and a new look (from designer Kendra Nicholas). The targeted opening is sometime in February. Partner Luke Mangan will no longer be involved in the project, and is focusing on everything he has going on in Australia. Current partner Anna Weinberg is staying on and is going to be working with a new partner: Dave Stanton, an owner of Tres Agaves. As for what’s going to be on the new menu, executive chef Jennifer Puccio (most recently at Cortez) will be offering a “fresh spin on classic French bistro cuisine.” I’ll keep you posted on new menu items (and the new name!) as the reopening gets closer. The hours will also be the same, offering lunch and dinner service. As for why South is closing, Australian products were incredibly expensive to procure and ship, and suppliers were also becoming scarce, which was really making it hard to turn a profit at the restaurant. And in this economy, we need to earn every little bit that we can, right mate?