Though the location still hasn't been confirmed, Eater LA has news that SF's beloved Tartine Bakery, which has been planning an LA expansion for the past two years, will be opening a huge second location of its new Manufactory concept in Downtown LA approximately a year from now. They're partnering with prolific LA restaurateur Bill Chait (Republique, Bestia, Otium) on the project, and the deal for the space sounds close to being inked.

Things are moving fast for the Tartine empire, which just launched dinner service at the Manufactory in the last two weeks after opening the bakery-restaurant at the edge of SF's Mission District in August — it shares a building with the Heath Ceramics flagship store. They've also launched their own coffee line, with roasting expertise coming from a Verve alum, and added ice cream to the menu, competing with one of their longtime Mission neighbors, Bi-Rite Creamery.

The new DTLA Tartine Manufactory would be 150 to 200 seats, about three times the size of the SF location, with a 15,000-square-foot kitchen and both daytime and dinner service. Chait estimates that the bread baking operation at the new location could open for retail sales by October or November of next year, with the restaurant to follow about a month later.

Late last year, Chait and his Sprout Restaurant Group announced that he was stepping down as managing partner in order to pursue his own projects, and this is clearly the first big one. Notably, news about Chait breaking off on his own came via LA Magazine just two weeks after the bombshell last December that Tartine founders Chad Robertson and Elisabeth Prueitt were breaking off a deal to partner with Blue Bottle Coffee on a major expansion. Coincidence?

At the time, Prueitt told the SF Chronicle, "Our individual plans would be better served pursuing them independently. Coffee infrastructure doesn’t really support food and food infrastructure doesn’t really support coffee."

As of 2014, Robertson was talking about an imminent expansion to London which has yet to come to fruition, as well as a potential expansion to New York.

Also, as we learned last month, an earlier plan to sell off the Bar Tartine restaurant on Valencia Street to its longtime chef has fallen through, and a new rejiggering of that restaurant is set to happen soon as well.