The million dollar question has been answered: in 2019 Knife Pleat will open in South Coast Plaza in the Penthouse on level 3, the space formerly occupied by Marche Moderne.
Like its predecessor it’s a French restaurant operated by a power couple; this time it’s Tony Esnault and restaurateur Yassmin Sarmadi, the veterans who brought Spring and Church & State to downtown Los Angeles. Those spots have earned high praise from critics throughout Southern California.
“We sought out Tony and Yassmin in the quest to further elevate the caliber of our fine dining collection,” said Debra Gunn Downing, spokeswoman for South Coast Plaza. “Their restaurant concept and interpretation of French cuisine for Knife Pleat represent a major step forward in the evolution of our Penthouse destination dining.”
Esnault, a native of France, has worked at Carré des Feuillants in Paris, Auberge de L’Ill in Alsace and Louis XV restaurant in Monte Carlo, among other Michelin-starred restaurants. His mentor is superstar Alain Ducasse.
The restaurant’s name mixes food and fashion; it’s a pleat with folds pressed in one direction.
Esnault and Yassmin Sarmadi envision the cuisine as “elegant yet approachable.” Seems a fit as Florent Marneau thought of his place there as a “bistro deluxe.” Marneau and his wife, pastry chef Amelia, moved their restaurant to Newport Beach’s Crystal Cove Shopping Center, reopening in September 2017.