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Lafayette-based wine market and Italian eatery Marcello's will open a Metairie location in January 2016, Ian McNulty reports this week. Owners Gene Todaro Jr. and Gene Todaro Sr. will bring the vino and Sicilian cuisine to 4860 Vets (currently a Mexican chain called Coyote Blues). In fact, the Todaros will work with Coyote Blue's Kevin Moody to redevelop the property, which is "significantly larger" than the first area location— a critically-acclaimed Warehouse District favorite in the former Le Chat Noir space. Meanwhile, Coyote Blues may seek another area location.
As for the expansion, Helen Freund reports that the upcoming "6,500-square-foot space will have a large, stand-alone bar, a patio, a private banquet space and ample parking," plus room for some 500+ bottles of wine to choose from.
On top of expanding to Metairie, McNulty also reports that The Todaros have purchased the recently-shuttered Indulge Island Grill (845 Carondelet), a fitness club/bar and grill in the Warehouse District, and have reopened the spot as a private events space (with a pool, mind you) called Carondelet, with plans to potentially convert it into a restaurant sometime in the future.
