Well, that was quick. Andrew Hsu, co-founder of Napa, announced via WeChat today, Jul 17, that the California style restaurant is closed. The news is all the more surprising because it comes a few short months after reopening in Shunyi in the wake of a similar snap shuttering at its original Chaoyang Park spot last fall.

“Even though we just soft opened recently, we have no choice but to shut down due to strategic and operational disagreements with our landlord,” Hsu wrote in his WeChat post, adding: “Napa’s signage may still be up, but the current owner/operator of the space has zero affiliation with us.”

The restaurant’s original Chaoyang Park location

The closure will be a letdown for Shunyi dwellers who were keen to have a hot new restaurant in their sleepy neighborhood (check out our review of that second location here). But Napa’s numerous longtime fans are bound to be all the more discouraged because even though the new iteration had a more upscale menu, it still sported hallmarks like delectable wood-fired pizza that helped the restaurant make such a big splash upon first opening near Chaoyang Park in 2016.

The Napa team couldn’t be reached for comment, and there’s no word yet on whether they plan to rebound with yet another restaurant. The bittersweet tone that Hsu struck at the end of his post didn’t sound promising:

“We are genuinely grateful for all of your continual support and encouragement throughout the years. It’s been a memorable experience, and as short-lived as our venture was, we hope we’ve provided a bit of Californian hospitality and warmth to those living in Beijing along the way.”

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Email: kylemullin@truerun.com
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Photos courtesy of Napa, Margaux Schreurs