Meet Marvin. He is my undercover snitch. Marvin knows a lot about the Dallas restaurant business. He’s socially awkward and therefore people feel comfortable feeding him information. They trust him with their secrets. Marvin has two qualities I love: he has a big mouth and my phone number. Marvin, who resembles a Black-footed Albatross, called this morning. He is convinced the space formerly known as Ocho will become a second location of Mi Piaci.
Could be. Brian Black, one of the principles in The Hatch Partners Team that opened Ocho, is the owner of Mi Piaci. Ocho closed abruptly on June 3 and put up a note that they were closed for renovation. I’ve left messages for Black and Ocho chef Joel Harloff but they aren’t returning my requests. So I can only guess Ocho’s managing partner Eric DiStefano is back in Santa Fe. Sounds like a good plan to me.
