I received this email from a former AQUA employee: “AQUA (and fine dining in general) may have fallen out of favor as of late, but I wanted to point you to a sort of tribute site that I put together using some of the more than two thousand pictures that I took while I worked there. It’s set up as a blog and I put up new posts when I’ve gotten enough pictures into a theme.”
“Seeing as the restaurant never put out a book or cookbook during its nineteen years of service, I thought that it might be cool to sort of make one on the web—where everyone can have access to it and contribute to it. I think it’s important to do whatever possible to preserve its legacy.” (You can read more about contributing to “My Life AQUA-tic” here.)
Although May 1st was the expected date for the restaurant to close, AQUA actually closed this Sunday the 18th.
It is the end of an era…
The Mina Group will take over the lease at 252 California Street on May 1st, but there’s nothing released yet about the next concept, name, or timing. There have been rumblings about MICHAEL MINA closing at The Westin (rumors have circulated about that for months), but according to an official statement, “Although the Mina Group will take over the new location, the plan is to continue to operate restaurants at both locations; its flagship venue at The Westin St. Francis and the 252 California Street. ‘We have every intention of operating restaurants at both addresses,’ stated Chef Michael Mina. ‘Having both locations gives us the opportunity to consider a range of creative options to better accommodate our guests and dining trends in San Francisco.’”
Flickr photo from that guy 252.
