By Sarah Aarthun, The Charlotte Observer, N.C.
Aug. 8--Last week, restaurateur Scott Sartiano arrived in Charlotte to check out the nightlife and work on plans for his own venture into the local scene.
If you haven't heard of the 33-year-old co-owner of Butter restaurant and 1 Oak lounge in the Big Apple, you're almost certainly familiar with the women to whom he's been romantically linked: Jamie Lynn Sigler of "The Sopranos," Ashley Olsen (Mary Kate's sister), among others.
Sartiano plans to open a new concept in the N.C. Music Factory in Fourth Ward. His goal? "To bring a little bit of New York to Charlotte."
Sartiano is keeping plans for the new concept -- to be called Butter Lounge -- under wraps, but Music Factory developer Noah Lazes calls it a cross between Butter and 1 Oak.
Sartiano and business partner Richie Akiva have found a successful nightclub formula that draws New York's elite by being what they call "ambianteurs."
"We are creating a scene that people want to come to, from the design, the lights, the seating, the music," Sartiano says.
Sartiano has many ties to the Carolinas. He was born in Columbia, grew up in Greenville, N.C., and his parents now live in Kannapolis. (He's a huge Gamecocks football fan, but don't hold that against him.)
"We want to continue to help ... build a regional destination (in Charlotte)," he says.
So, while Akiva travels to exotic places to work on the pair's other top-secret concepts, Sartiano promises he'll make regular trips to Charlotte over the next year.
"At the end of the day, I'm a Southerner," he says. "I have very happy memories of growing up in the South."
OTHER MUSIC FACTORY NEWS: The Garden & Gun Club, originally scheduled to open at the Music Factory last month, will now have its grand opening Sept. 5. The club's owners are proceeding despite a trademark-infringement lawsuit filed by Charleston-based Garden & Gun magazine. Carol Adams, a spokeswoman for the club, said the owners have no comment on the suit.
Building on the Music Factory's main stage is nearly complete, and I got a sneak peek last week. It's an impressive space. The dimensions are the same as the Verizon Wireless Amphitheatre stage, according to Ken Thomas of the ARK Group. Work on seating starts next. Plans call for 6,000 removable seats, 2,000 fixed reserved seats, 270 box suites and a lawn that will hold up to 3,000.
saarthun@charlotteobserver.com; 704-358-5207
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Story Source: The Charlotte Observer (Charlotte, N.C.)