Windsor may be losing Odyssey Restaurant, when chef-owner Rudy Mihal closes its doors the second weekend of July.
But it’s gaining a Thai restaurant, when Bangkok Villa takes over the space on Emily Rose Circle in Old Downtown shortly thereafter.
It will be the second location for the Santa Rosa-based eatery.
While Mihal says he’s sad to go, he is looking forward to returning to his roots as a “city boy.” He plans to open a new restaurant, possibly a French bistro, in either New York (where he’s headed for a lengthy post-closing vacation) or San Francisco.
While the critics (including me) loved his two-year-old effort, a tiny but superb French/Italian concept, everyday traffic was suffering. He’d had his eatery on the block for six months, he said, yet was waiting for the right deal so he could at least break even.
As for Bangkok Villa, it should fit in the Windsor mix nicely. The kitchen emphasizes local, organic ingredients, for creative specialties like artfully carved cucumber boats stuffed with crabmeat and poached shrimp in wasabi sauce.
Now, if only we could convince the Bangkok owners to offer Mihal’s amazing foie gras burger…
Details: Bangkok Villa, 1169 Yulupa Ave., Santa Rosa, 707-566-9469; and coming soon, 426 Emily Rose Circle, Windsor, bangkok-villa.com.
