Sona to close in May, reopen in 2011 in new locale

By Betty Hallock and Jessica GeltChef David Myers has announced that Sona, his Michelin one-star restaurant on La Cienega Boulevard, will close in May and reopen in a new location in 2011. Myers said contracts are being finalized for the new Sona space, but he would not reveal the location or details about the restaurant other than that he is working with designer Adam Tihany.

“Our lease is coming up here this year, and we have an opportunity to re-create, to do something new,” Myers said.

Myers also owns Pizzeria Ortica in Costa Mesa and bistro Comme Ca in West Hollywood and plans to open a “high-end pastry shop and Sona-esque restaurant” in Tokyo’s Ginza shopping district in September. “This has been in the works for over a year now, and it’s really great timing. I wanted to be able to give 100% of myself” to the new projects in Japan, he said.

But previous plans to expand his empire have been curbed, and Myers admitted that the biggest challenge of 2009 was the economy.

Boule, the groundbreaking patisserie that Myers opened in 2003 with his former wife, Michelle, has closed. Plans for a Comme Ca Bakery have been scrapped. The La Cienega location that had been tagged for another Ortica (across the street from Sona) has been abandoned. “We’re actively looking and ready to open” a new Ortica, Myers said. “The more we looked at that location, it was way too small and just didn’t work.”

Meanwhile, during the hiatus between the closing of Sona and the opening of the next iteration of the restaurant, chef de cuisine Kuniko Yagi and pastry chef Ramon Perez will be traveling throughout Asia and Europe to “use this time to better their craft” by working at various restaurants, Myers said. “This is an incredible moment to get inspired and to think about what we really want to do for the next version of Sona.”

Patty’s goes online only

Patty’s Pizza, the Santa Monica classic, recently closed its brick-and-mortar location after 22 years, opting to offer its tasty Take-and-Bake pizzas through delivery only via a new online service (www.pattyspizza.com.). The pizzas are fully prepared but require 12 minutes in the oven once you get them. Pizza choices are unusual; think pear and blue cheese or pistachio and rosemary. The site is offering $5 off your first online order and $10 off all online orders over $100. You were planning on throwing a big party sometime soon, right?

The new delivery service, called Patty’s on the Run, doesn’t charge sales tax or tack on delivery charges and delivers to the following locales on specific days: Santa Monica, Venice and Marina del Rey (Tuesdays to Sundays); Malibu (Saturdays); Pacific Palisades (Sundays and Wednesdays); and Beverly Hills (Thursdays). It will be closed Mondays.

Prices range from $8 for a small pizza to about $20 for a large with three toppings.

Cedd Moses has new downtown spot

Downtown nightlife giant Cedd Moses and designer Ricki Kline strike boozy joy into the hearts of Angelenos again with a new mezcal and tequila bar called Las Perlas, which had a soft opening Tuesday night.

Located across 6th Street from Cole’s — Moses’ most spirited reinvention of a historic business to date — Las Perlas pays tribute to mezcal with the same meticulously researched flourishes that Moses’ Seven Grand bar pays to whiskey and Scotch.

The kings of the cocktail menu are general manager Raul Yrastorza and Rivera bar chief and Las Perlas consultant Julian Cox.

— Betty Hallock and Jessica Gelt