Brooklyn's Botanica "On the Verge of Closing," Says GM

Is it lights out for Botanica (and its unlit 17th-century Dutch facade)?

Botanica in Red Hook may be closing its doors. According to general manager Pat White, the one-year-old spot's problems stem from it being an "expensive concept. Plus an owner that is hell bent on esthetics rather than function."

In a comment left on BrooklynBased, White went on to rant that the restaurant was opened "in the middle of a remote Red Hook. The owner believes that you can open a restaurant with nominal funds, high expectations with few employees. He demanded fresh ingredients and premium inventory selling at a low price point, the result is low return on investment. A 30 list specialized cocktail menu is time consuming and expensive to maintain. The kitchen staff to the front of the house strived to make an impossible situation last. With no way of marketing the 6 month old kitchen through the web-site due to disgruntle web designers. No signage or lighting in the front of the establishment because it would spoil his 17th century dutch building, is a dead give away on how Dan Preston thinks."

Disgruntled staff or cry for help? A bit of both, from the sound of it.