As mentioned in an earlier article here, a group behind several Spanish tapas restaurants and taquerias/tequila bars in Connecticut, New York, and Georgia are planning to open a location in the Boston area, and it appears that one space that they are looking at is currently home to an American restaurant and beer bar.
According to the Brookline TAB and Wicked Local, the Barcelona Restaurant Group is interested in opening a branch of the Barcelona Restaurant and Wine Bar in Brookline, apparently taking over the space on Beacon Street where American Craft resides. American Craft is owned by the same person who is behind The Publick House (just east of American Craft on Beacon Street) as well as the now-closed Roadhouse Restaurant, which was in the same space as American Craft until it closed in the winter of 2010. The article mentions that while a spokesperson for Barcelona Restaurant and Wine Bar says that the company is indeed hoping to open in the American Craft space, the owner of American Craft and The Publick House did not respond to calls from the newspaper about whether American Craft may be moving elsewhere or simply closing.
Barcelona Restaurant and Wine Bar first started out in 1995, while its sister restaurant Bar Taco was introduced in 2010. The former can be found in Fairfield, Greenwich, New Haven, South Norwalk, Stamford, and West Hartford, CT, as well as Atlanta, GA, while the latter can be found in Stamford, CT, and Port Chester, NY.
[November 23 update: This has just been confirmed; Barcelona will indeed be taking over American Craft (which remains open for now) and has town approval to transfer the liquor license, though it still needs the state's approval. Construction on Barcelona is expected to begin next spring, with the restaurant looking to open in the middle of 2012.]
[January 14, 2012 update: A message from the owner of American Craft indicates that their last day of business will be tomorrow (Sunday, January 15).]
[January 2, 2013 update: A note from BostonTweet (along with a post from Foodservice East) indicates that Barcelona Restaurant and Wine Bar has opened. BostonTweet says that they were open over the weekend, but their official opening date appears to be today.]
[January 2, 2013 update #2: NOTE--Barcelona won't be opening tonight after all, as Eater Boston posts that there has been some sort of a delay. As soon as we hear of an official opening date, we will post another update here.]
[January 7, 2013 update: Eater Boston has confirmed that Barcelona Restaurant and Wine Bar is now officially open.]
For more information on this story, please go to the Brookline TAB/Wicked Local link below.
Tapas chain plans move into American Craft space in Brookline
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