[Sag Harbor's JLX to open this weekend?]
The well-chronicled downfall of Hamptons restauranteur Ed "Jean-Luc" Kleefield, just got a little less depressing, according to a new interview with Grub Street. Kleefield claims that in addition to working on a July 4th opening (and revamped menu) for Sag Harbor's JLX, he's in the process of rebuilding his presence in Manhattan.
His original big city venture, Upper West Side bistro Jean-Luc, which closed years ago, will not be resurrected. Instead, Kleefield hopes to open a 'sushi and steak' outlet somewhere restaurant-starved Battery Park, a location he sees as missing a 'Raoul’s or a Cub Room or a Mercer Kitchen'. Though aiming for an autumn opening, Kleefield's shaky finances may slow down the process, along with the cost of keeping at least a few of his Hamptons restaurants afloat for the summer. Consider this one in the works, and more on the supposedly imminent opening of JLX as we see it...
· Hamptons Restaurateur Ed ‘Jean Luc’ Kleefield Plots Manhattan Return [GS]