Restaurant deal closes Baci; chain sets Utah debut

Friday brought word of two closings affecting Salt Lake-area diners.

One was the closing of a deal in which Baci Trattoria and Cafe Pierpont changed ownership. The other was the closing of Baci itself.

The Latitude Restaurant Group, which bought the Pierpont Building and its two restaurants from Gastronomy Inc. for an undisclosed sum, announced that Baci's last day was Friday and the site would be transformed this summer to a Ruth's Chris Steakhouse. No changes will be made to the Cafe Pierpont.

Latitude said it acquired the Ruth's Chris franchise rights last August, and its first Utah location will open this summer.

Latitude is no stranger to the Utah restaurant world. Its portfolio also includes Mikado Downtown, Mikado Cottonwood, Ichiban Salt Lake, Kampai in Park City, Harry's at the E Center, Harry's in Sugar House and Hapa Grill in Kimball Junction.

It plans to open several new restaurants this year, including three Hapa Grill locations in Southern California and one in Las Vegas, as well as the Ruth's Chris in Salt Lake and Harry's in River Park.

Latitude announced last week it would be acquiring Cafe Pierpont, Baci and the Pierpont Building but did not announce its plans for them. Latitude is led by founder and owner Gene Kwon.

Gastronomy is owned by John Williams, Tom Guinney and Tom Seig. Guinney said last week that it would focus on potential future growth of its seafood division, which uses the Market Street Grill and Oyster Bar seafood concept.