Almost exactly seven months after the Taylor Gourmet sandwich empire abruptly collapsed, a new owner seems poised to rebuild it. At least five locations of the local fast-casual chain could return by August.

A company named Source Cuisine purchased Taylor’s assets in a bankruptcy sale last month, Washingtonian reports. Steve Kalifa, the head of Source, told the outlet that his company is looking to reopen at least five former Taylor locations with a menu that’s similar to what customers might remember from Taylor 1.0, with perhaps the addition of some salads.

“People love the food. People love the concept,” Kalifa told Washingtonian. “We’re not going to change a lot.”

The news of the resurrection comes at the same time that new sandwich shop Grazie Grazie is opening at The Wharf by …. the former owner of Taylor Gourmet, Casey Patten. Grazie Grazie’s hoagie-stacked menu bears a lot of resemblance to Taylor’s old offerings, including the vegetarian Cumberland sandwich, a chicken cutlet sammie named for Ben Franklin, and a risotto ball appetizer. It opened without much notice today.

It’s unclear exactly how the recipes are shared between the two companies, if at all.

Kalifa may be familiar to Washingtonians from the 2017 sale of Washington City Paper. According to the Washington Post, Kalifa was a potential partner to Armstrong Williams, a conservative columnist and businessman, who announced his intention to purchase the alt weekly at the time. Venture capitalist Mark Ein ended up purchasing the paper.

Taylor abruptly folded in September. At the time, unnamed sources told Washingtonian that owner Casey Patten’s decision to participate in a small business roundtable with President Donald Trump in January 2017 led to a decline in sales. The company officially blamed too-rapid expansion for its demise. Only one Taylor remains open: the location inside Washington National Airport, which has been operating under a licensing agreement. Kalifa has taken over management of that location, as well, per Washingtonian.

Previously:
Taylor Gourmet Owner Opening Up A New Sandwich Shop On The Wharf