You didn't think we forgot about the Mint Plaza doings, did you? Here are the latest happenings from everyone's favorite development.
Limon? Dosa? Whatever it will be, work continues in the mystery space.
1) Maybe it's chance, maybe not, but the last several times the Eater/Curbed staff have visited the premises, the biggest flurries of activity—by far—have been at the yet-to-be-named restaurant, even though (as far as we know) that space has not been officially leased.
2) The word on the street—and by street, we mean that little fake promenade street they have there—is that the Blue Bottle Cafe has made an "amazing" amount of progress in the last two to three weeks, which is notable because early reports always implied that Blue Bottle would be the last. The finishing carpentry isn't done yet, but the wiring and plumbing are just about complete. In other words, Blue Bottle is much closer than originally thought.
A barista counter, perchance? [Photo: Flickr/bluebottlemintplaza]
3) As is evident from the above image, in addition to working their asses off lately, the Blue Bottle crew has set up a Flickr page with regularly-updated shots of the under-construction interior. Those guys, ahead of the curve.
4) Thus far, Latte Express, the dive-diner on the corner of Jessie Street and Fifth Street, has been mum on the nature of its upcoming renovations. Will it be a complete overhaul? A slight tweaking? In either scenario, the fate of the Latte Express in the soon-to-be-gentrified Mint Plaza remains a tantalizing subplot.
5) Construction has definitely picked up across the board. Chez Papa is aiming to debut in the first week of November, a proclamation that provoked a dubious look around the room, followed by a "Yeah, well that's what we're aiming for."
6) Those rumors of an overzealous Zagat sticker on the (not even close to being open) Chez Papa storefront? Completely true:
· EaterWire AM Edition: New Blue Bottle Aims to Get You Wired, Drunk [~ESF~]
· SoMa Rife With Development, Gag-Inducing Smells [~ESF~]
· Mint Plaza Extravaganza: Not ... Quite ... There. [~ESF~]
Your thoughts, as always, in the comments field or to us.
