California restaurant known for fine Italian dining to close after 17-year run

It’s arrivederci for a Napa Valley dining institution.

Oenotri, a celebrated downtown Napa hotspot known for its upscale Italian fare, house-made salumi, and extensive wine list, announced it will shut its doors permanently after 17 years, leaving longtime customers heartbroken.

The Italian eatery, which became a go-to destination for locals and wine country visitors alike, announced on Instagram that its final day of service will be Saturday, Nov. 14.

“It’s hard to put 17 years into words,” the restaurant wrote in an emotional farewell message posted to Instagram on Sunday. “What began as a restaurant became a gathering place, a second home, a family, and a part of so many people’s stories.”

The restaurant thanked its loyal customers and employees for nearly two decades of memories, adding that the team hoped to share a few more meals and raise a few more glasses before turning out the lights for good.

“To the guests who filled our tables, the team who poured their hearts into this place, and everyone who made Oenotri what it was, thank you,” the post continued. “You gave these walls life, and you gave us 17 years we’ll never forget.”

Known for its ever changing menu, locally sourced ingredients and handmade pastas, Oenotri’s wine program also complemented its location as being in one of America’s most celebrated wine regions.

The restaurant’s announcement offered no explanation for the decision to close. However, owners have reportedly “described the closure as a natural evolution rather than a sudden shutdown,” according the San Francisco Chronicle.

The news quickly prompted an outpouring of grief from customers, many of whom said Oenotri had been a fixture in their lives for years.

“What?!!! Thee BEST pizza in Napa!!!!! What will I do??? Nooooo,” one devastated fan wrote in the comments.

“Literally the only place is Napa I tell people to go!! Thanks for having the most amazing food,” another added.

Others reflected on the memories made around the restaurant’s tables.

“I was there on the first day, and I’ll be there on the last day…Dough left to rise overnight, pasta rolled by hand, salumi cured for months, and a crew that took years to become a family. Slow things, made with care, until it became a culture of its own,” one particularly emotional customer wrote.

For devoted regulars, the impending closure means losing more than just a place to grab dinner. It’s the disappearance of a familiar gathering spot that helped define downtown Napa’s dining scene.

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