click to enlarge Facebook/Millennium

Millennium was known for its elegant, richly plated vegan dishes.

Well, another one bites the dust. Millennium , the fine dining vegan spot in the Tenderloin, has announced that it will be closing as the hotel that houses it, the Hotel California, has been sold. Millennium was a trailblazer in the vegan world, serving animal-free food in a fine dining setting since 1994. Its passing is mourned by the City's vegans and long-term residents alike, as there's nothing in town right now that quite takes its place.But every restaurant eventually reaches the end of its lifespan, and though it is undeniably sad that Millennium's time has come, it may be time for it to pass the mantle of vegetarian and vegan food to an eager young upstart. (Even the name, Millennium, seems a bit dated these days, 15 years after Y2K.)To that end, the restaurant announced in a sad statement on its Facebook page that co-owner and chef Eric Tucker will open his own restaurant with general manager Alison Bagby serving "organic plant-based cuisine." They're looking at an East Bay location because of the "high cost of doing business in San Francisco." They plan to launch a Kickstarter campaign in the coming months.Millennium will close its doors in the spring when its lease runs out, so you've got a few months to say your goodbyes and pay your respects. Inside Scoop , via Eater SF