What’s going into old Splash Cafe? New spot will have Michelin-recognized chef, cocktails
Get ready, Monterey Street — a splashy new restaurant is coming to your side of San Luis Obispo.
The former Splash Cafe at 1491 Monterey St. is under renovation as it transforms into a new cocktail bar and restaurant: La Condesa.
Splash Cafe closed in October 2023 as the local company decided to pivot its energy toward running a commercial kitchen. The popular cafe served customers in SLO for 18 years before the closure.
Brandon Ristaino and Misty Orman Ristaino — who own the nearby boutique hotel, Petit Soleil — are partnering with owner and chef Ramon Velazquez on the new restaurant to create specialty cocktails and use the upstairs space of the building.
On the second floor of the building, four new rooms will be created for Petit Soleil. La Condesa and a cocktail bar will take up the first floor, according to Ristaino.
Award-winning chef will create menu for new SLO restaurant
Velazquez, a California Michelin Bib Gourmand winner, will create the menu of the new contemporary Mexican cuisine, while the Ristainos are concocting the cocktails that match the dishes.
When reached for comment, the Ristainos said they don’t want to give away too much information, but hinted at tequila and mezcal drinks.
“Ramon will be drawing inspiration from Mexico City on the food side, and then Misty and I will be mezcal, tequila heavy,” Brandon Ristaino said. “But we’ll be using old world modifiers on the cocktails, leaning on some of the French liqueurs and vermouths and things of that nature that really play well with Mexican cuisine and Mexican spirits.”
The Ristainos said La Condesa is set to open in early March 2025. Further details on the new spot were not available as of Monday.
Nearby SLO hotel looks to offer ‘bed and beverage’ experience
The cocktail tie-in with a nearby restaurant was an obvious fit for Petit Soleil after its recent renovation.
After reopening the hotel at 1473 Monterey St. in March, the Ristainos updated the European-themed boutique hotel, adding in mini bars in every room and having guests check in to its lobby bar.
Their inspiration comes from traveling the world to bring a “bed and beverage” experience to the hotel.
“Our one kind of luxury is that we really love to travel and get inspired by our work,” Ristaino told The Tribune. “We love the idea of a centralized location within a hotel where people can mingle, chat, relax, drink, they can have a nibble.”
The mini bars in the rooms have bottled cocktails full of French elements, local wines and treats from vendors. When checking into the transformed lobby bar, guests will even be offered a cocktail as they are receiving their room key.
“You kind of feel like you’re at someone’s home,” Misty Orman Ristaino said. “The staff have such hospitality and warmth that people continue to come back and meet other people there, and guests will come back with other guests and hang out in the lobby.”
This story was originally published December 19, 2024 at 5:00 AM.