Porcelli’s Bistro closed its Tremont location at 2391 W. 11th St. after less than one year in business (no changes to the downtown spot). But the Tremont space, home to Bistro on Lincoln Park and Sage Bistro, to name a few, already has been spoken for.
As soon as early February, Faozou Ligali will open Ligali Bistro, a French restaurant. Ligali was born in West Africa and raised in Paris, where he later owned a restaurant. School brought him to Cleveland, he says. He is not a chef, but currently is in the interviewing phase.
“Tremont is one my top locations — it fits me, fits my personality,” he says. “It’s a place you go and really feel good. That’s what attracted me to the neighborhood. And the space looks French and trendy. After Porcelli’s closed, I couldn’t help myself from jumping on it.”
Little needs to be done to the space, he adds, other than some light décor changes. He will open for dinner and weekend brunch to start, perhaps adding lunch service down the road.
As for possible issues with the location that might cause restaurants to fail prematurely, Ligali says, “I don’t know why they didn’t work because to me, that place has it all.”
This article appears in Jan 15-21, 2014.
Welcome to Tremont! Porcelli failed in my experience due in to poor service and inconsistent hours. If you treat Tremont with more respect you will be welcome and successful.
Porcelli’s failed for a myriad of reasons, but one of the biggest has to be the location. Yes, its neighborhood is the holy grail of Cleveland dining destinations, but that corner of W11 and Kenilworth has NO parking. I live close enough that I can see Porcelli’s out my front window and the neighborhood parking filled to capacity for the big boys on Professor well before Porcelli’s opened. Whoever opens there is going to have to get in on the valet game, because there simply isn’t enough parking to support all these restaurants.
Best of luck to you!