After yesterday’s debunked rumor about Gerard Craft possibly opening another restaurant in the former Melange space, Gerard was kind enough to check in and elaborate on the state of his expansion plans.

“We’re actually still looking,” Craft said, “but it’s been really important for me for the next place that we don’t just jump into it.”

Craft added that the Melange space had been under consideration, and that he’d originally started looking in Clayton in his search for a second space. “We’ve looked all over the area, but as the search has gone on, our best choices have actually been getting closer and closer to my doorstep (Niche’s current location on Sidney Street in Benton Park),” Craft said. “This neighborhood has done a lot for us, and I really don’t want any new place to be very far away.”

Craft said that he intends for any new restaurant to be more casual than Niche.