Thali Too Closing, Too

by Staff | Oct 20, 2017 12:09 pm

(20) Comments | Commenting has been closed | E-mail the Author

Posted to: Arts & Culture, Dining, Business/ Economic Development

Three popular New Haven restaurants run by chef Prasad Chirnomula will soon all be closed. Chirnomula’s Indian restaurant Thali on Orange Street has already closed. Friday he announced that he will close a less expensive vegetarian version of that restaurant, Thali Too off Broadway, at the end of business on Sunday, Oct. 29, ending a nearly ten-year run. And he plans to close Oaxaca Kitchen, a Mexican restaurant he opened on College Street in 2011, on Saturday, Oct. 21. In a press release, Chirnomula claimed that an expansion of his business in other Connecticut markets “resulted in financial strains that forced the closing of the majority of his restaurants.”

Share this story with others.

Post a Comment

Commenting has closed for this entry

Comments

posted by: THREEFIFTHS on October 20, 2017 8:13am He will not be the only one closing.I heard the rents are going Sky High Down Town.

posted by: Stylo on October 20, 2017 8:30am Thali Too was awesome but Oaxaca was never as good as its now closed Westport sister.

posted by: Dwightstreeter on October 20, 2017 9:11am These are 3 quality restaurants and it’s unfortunate that they are closing.

I hope this talented chef will re-organize and open something new in the area.

posted by: Foodie on October 20, 2017 10:18am Noooooo. Thali 2 has been our favorite for many years. It’s a great loss to New Haven.

posted by: Foodie on October 20, 2017 10:20am Such sad news! Thali 2 is one of my family’s favorite restaurants. This is a huge loss to New Haven.

posted by: HewNaven on October 20, 2017 10:55am The restaurant bubble has finally popped in New Haven!

posted by: concerned_neighbor on October 20, 2017 11:28am Chirnomula and/or his related companies re facing a wide range of litigation. From more than $75,000 owed to AMEX, $40,000 to 9th Sq, over $750,000 to landlord in Fairfield County, it certainly adds up. I enjoyed Thali very much. It was a tough location but they were there for 10 years or so? Hopefully, some reorganization and restructuring will get Chef Chirnomula back in the kitchen.

posted by: BetweenTwoRocks Such a bummer. Sounded like the rapid expansion didn’t go great and stretched the finances too thin. It’s too bad. I really liked Thali/Thali Too. I hope he comes back with something in the not-too-distance future.

posted by: Babz Rawls Ivy on October 20, 2017 2:14pm Oh such a tremendous loss! I loved both Thali and Thali Too!

I don’t think New Haven has reached its restaurant peak. Ten years is a good run! I am sure he will rebound and come back strong!

posted by: Kevin McCarthy on October 20, 2017 4:03pm 3/5ths, we both have been in New Haven a while. Are there more or fewer restaurants downtown than there were 10 years ago? Twenty years ago? Thirty?

posted by: Stylo on October 20, 2017 7:33pm I wouldn’t be so quick to blame the city or some sort of bubble bursting. Downtown has more restaurants than ever and many are doing very well. The owner has made some bad business decisions and, let’s face it, Oaxaca was not very good. And Thali has slid a bit recently in quality too. I used to love it but House of Naan is my new go to. I didn’t like that he said “too many restaurants and not enough people” in regards to New Haven as it’s a slam to the city and just not true. Increased competition and business issues overall is behind. Don’t project blame to a city that supported you for years that has a dining scene that’s doing better than ever, it’s bad form and not a good look.

posted by: RobotShlomo on October 21, 2017 10:11am 3/5ths, we both have been in New Haven a while. Are there more or fewer restaurants downtown than there were 10 years ago? Twenty years ago? Thirty? There’s more, however when they’d fail, they use to fail one at a time. Now we’re seeing simultaneous failures. Like any ecosystem, it expanded too greatly and now resources are stretched thin. All that talk of “so many restaurants” and “a foodies paradise”, yeah… no. As HewNaven said, the bubble if it hasn’t burst already, is in the process of bursting.

posted by: Aileen Reynolds on October 21, 2017 11:53am This is very disappointing. Thali II is one of our favorite restaurantts.

posted by: M Short on October 21, 2017 1:46pm NOOOOO!!! Thali Too is AMAZING. I promise to go there all the time. I’ll get a membership. Please don’t go!

posted by: THREEFIFTHS on October 21, 2017 7:14pm posted by: RobotShlomo on October 21, 2017 10:11am 3/5ths, we both have been in New Haven a while. Are there more or fewer restaurants downtown than there were 10 years ago? Twenty years ago? Thirty? There’s more, however when they’d fail, they use to fail one at a time. Now we’re seeing simultaneous failures. Like any ecosystem, it expanded too greatly and now resources are stretched thin. All that talk of “so many restaurants” and “a foodies paradise”, yeah… no. As HewNaven said, the bubble if it hasn’t burst already, is in the process of bursting. As always on point.

posted by: Kevin McCarthy on October 21, 2017 9:45pm RobotSchlomo, you’re right that the growth in the restaurant industry has increased the risk of owners overextending themselves, potentially leading to multiple closures. But more restaurants have opened than closed in recent months, and more are under construction. Restaurants are a historically risky business. But I would be willing to bet you lunch that there are more restaurants in town a year from now than there are today.

posted by: Esbey on October 22, 2017 9:22am The New Haven restaurant bubble isn’t ending because there is no bubble to end. The restaurant business is everywhere high turnover, high risk and subject to passing overdone fads (Cajun Boil! Poke!). Downtown New Haven is growing slowly compared to real boom towns and that modest growth will probably continue up to the next national recession. Federal population estimates claim that New Haven overall is not growing at all this decade. My guess is that when that recession hits, a good number of approved housing projects will remain unbuilt and the much feared gentrification of the Hill, Newhallville, etc, will have barely advanced.

posted by: RobotShlomo on October 22, 2017 11:18am @KevinMcCarthy There’s always been a high turn over in that industry, but with the coming crash (PHRASING) it will only get worse. And the crash is coming (PHRASING). Let’s not forget that Anna Liffey’s also closed about two weeks ago, and that’s a bet that I’m not willing to take because I utterly DESPISE eating at restaurants. Seriously, first of all, it’s expensive and it’s money that I don’t want to spend. Second, I’ve had dates ask me “why haven’t we gone out to eat yet?”. and I’ve told her that I tend to eat like the Tasmanian Devil, and it’s really off putting. But most of all I hate when you order something and it’s NEVER what arrives at your table. “Excuse me, this isn’t what I ordered”. “Oh yes it is sir”. “I know that’s what you brought me, but believe me when I tell you, that’s not what I ordered”. And usually what ever they bring is so nauseating that it smells like it’s been soaking in wine sauce or formaldehyde for a month. Even with something as simple as a steak, places try to get cute and do something stupid to it like putting mushrooms all over it. How can you do that to a steak? It has the SIMPLEST recipe in the word; take a piece of meat and add FIRE. “Oh, but they have to try and be creative”. Fine, do it with something else and not with a steak!

I know there are certain people who think restaurants are a form of “entertainment” in and of themselves, however I am not one of them. I’ve never been one of them. I don’t feel as if it’s some sort of important social experience to know what it feels like having flushed a hundred bucks down the drain between a bad meal and drinks, and then have your date tell you “didn’t you just love it”, and then have to lie through your teeth when you drop her off not to get into an argument. I take a Jerry Seinfeld approach to it when he said “I am not a foodie, people say ‘oh this is too rare, this is too salty’. Just eat it and shut up”.

posted by: Kevin McCarthy on October 22, 2017 7:29pm RS, I take your point that when the next recession hits, a lot of restaurants will close (and there will be a recession at some point), But your perspective on restaurants is idiosyncratic. Nationally, people spend more money on eating out than they spend on groceries. The growth in the restaurant industry has not been steady, but over time it has been quite significant.