After barely a year atop the flourishing Mission distillery Brucato Spirits, the amaro-driven restaurant Bar Brucato will close after Saturday.

Sierra and James Clark, who own the building and distillery, unveiled Bar Brucato in April 2025, serving a seasonal California menu with a dash of Italy. It functioned as both an independent restaurant and a vehicle for Brucato to highlight its small-batch spirits, including four amaros (Fields, Woodlands, Orchards, and Chaparral) and Mission Gin. It was well-received out of the gate and was named one of The Standard’s best new restaurants of 2025.

Sierra Clark announced the news to her team Tuesday in an emotional moment. “I teared up,” she says. “I told them, ‘This place has been fantastic. There’s nothing I’m not proud of here, but let’s not wait until something goes wrong. Let’s recognize what an incredible thing we built and move on.’” 

The Clarks have found San Francisco to be a tough place to run a restaurant and struggled to oversee the distillery simultaneously. “In terms of oversight and energy, juggling both businesses was incredibly hard.” 

The Clarks have recently launched some high-profile partnerships, including bottling a special Brucato Woodlands Amaro for two-Michelin-starred Lazy Bear in the Mission. The downtown restaurant and event space Holbrook House is set to host a launch party for a custom-produced Brucato gin.

In the short term, the Clarks need a breather. “We’re going to take some time over the summer with our two girls and start thinking about our next chapter,” Sierra says. As for the future of the Bar Brucato space, she teases the possibility of a forthcoming project. “We’re thinking blue skies right now — pop-ups, a tasting room, visiting bartenders — a true celebration of Brucato and the neighborhood.”