I just spoke with the PR firm who represents Mi Piaci and they report that the Italian restaurant is now open at the Park Cities location. This is in the old Ocho location on Preston near Northwest Highway.
It was reported early on the Chef Joel Harloff would take on the Mi Piaci job after Ocho closed, but Harloff told us that he was not actually approached. Instead the executive chef at the Preston location is Elmer Pineda, the same as the original Mi Piaci on Montfort that is currently closed. You will remember that they were locked out due to a rent dispute, and the owners are currently in litigation.
We were also just told that the reason they opened ahead of schedule was because they were able to use the employees from Montfort, and implement basically the same menu.
Mi Piaci has definitely been a favorite, and I look forward to sitting in the new digs. They are open for lunch today, so drive by and check it out. Here is the new lunch and dinner menu: Lunch_Designed_1 Dinner_Designed_1
Here is a ditty from the press release:
This new Park Cities restaurant offers a large bar downstairs as well as a spacious patio for al fresco dining. Upstairs is home to Enoteca Wine Bar which is open daily at 4pm. Along with a gorgeous dinning area, Enoteca offers an extensive and award winning wine selection, as well as handcrafted specialty cocktails. Upstairs is also home to another large patio that has retractable ceilings and air conditioning making it a great destination all year round.