Thomas Keller Opens New Temporary Restaurant During French Laundry's Closure

Chef Thomas Keller has announced a partnership with Silverado Resort & Spa in Napa, Calif. to open a new, temporary restaurant called Ad Lib in the space formerly known as the Royal Oak. The casual pop-up opens January 21, and will coincide with the closing of The French Laundry, which has shuttered for extensive renovations until the summer.

Why Silverado? According to the Ad Lib website, the space was chosen due to its "recognizable club setting and chef Keller's longtime relationship with Hall of Fame golfer and Silverado resort co-owner Johnny Miller."

Ad Lib's team will be comprised of Thomas Keller Restaurant Group's chef de cuisine Devin Knell, The French Laundry's chef de cuisine David Breeden and sous chef Michael Wallace. The pop-up will retain many of its other French Laundry employees, purveyors, and partners, while satisfying Keller's culinary fans with classic, iconic American fare like a classic Caesar salad and steak tartare (both prepared table-side), fruitwood smoked kielbasa, black angus chop steak, root vegetable pot pie, braised beef short rib "Wellington," broiled Alaskan king crab legs, and a seven-layer coconut cake. 

"2015 is gearing up to be quite a momentous year for our restaurant group and the Ad Lib pop-up at Silverado's Royal Oak is an exciting kick-off to the year ahead," said Keller, chef and proprietor of TKRG. "It is always inspiring to see our plans come to life and this simple concept of traditional, straightforward food is no exception to that."

The restaurant will be open Thursday through Monday for dinner, and reservations can be made at www.adlibroyaloak.com.