On the table: Laurent Gras's L.2O

After months of debating, local restaurateur Rich Melman and superstar chef Laurent Gras (at right) have settled on a name for the project they're launching in March in the former Ambria space. L.2O (pronounced el-two-oh) is apparently a play on H2O, as the restaurant's main focus is seafood.

The PR folks for the duo are calling it a "modern, high-end seafood restaurant characterized by elegance and lightness," and stated that Gras (best known for San Fran's Fifth Floor) will source lesser-known varieties of seafood from small suppliers around the globe, including octopus from Spain's Galicia coastline, turbot from Brittany, and hirame from the Hokkaido and Kinki areas in Japan. (A sample dish Gras mentioned was cured, lightly smoked shimaaji (striped jack) seasoned only with apricot oil and Murray River salt.) The L.20 kitchen staff will cold-smoke certain fish with whiskey barrels, turn Kurobuta and Berkshire pork into charcuterie, and make the butter, yogurt, creme fraiche and bread in-house.

Dirk Denison Architects has been tapped to overhaul the dated mahogany look of Ambria and replace it with a "warm, modern" feel. Details include ebony tabletops, off-white leather chairs, steel mesh screens, white onyx, glass, grey carpeting and slate tiles. There will also be a lounge, a tatami room and a "white onyx booth for two," something that's surely aiming to be the most-requested table.

L.2O (2300 N Lincoln Park West, Belden-Stratford Building)