Estéban chef Thomas Snyder to join the team at new Cella Restaurant + Bar in Monterey.

 Behind thick adobe walls, there’s a revival underway in downtown Monterey: The historic Cooper Molera Adobe will soon be home to Alta Bakery + Cafe and Cella Restaurant + Bar, alongside a new event space and renovated museum exhibitions. Alta comes from veteran pastry chef Ben Spungin, previously from Post Ranch Inn, Restaurant 1833, and Bernardus Lodge.

Now, Cella has recruited its chef: Thomas Snyder, currently executive chef at Estéban Restaurant at the Casa Munras Garden Hotel and Spa. “It’s a humongous opportunity and I’m excited to be part of the team at this exciting new culinary corner in downtown Monterey,” says Snyder.

Spungin, a partner with Kirk Probasco and PJ Clark in the new Alta Group hospitality team that will manage the new eateries, shares Snyder’s enthusiasm, “We're absolutely ecstatic to have Tom as the chef for Cella Restaurant. His passion for the area and bold flavors in cooking says it all. I have personally admired chef Tom’s food for years and am excited to finally be working together.”

“Leaving Estéban was a tough decision, honestly,” says Snyder. “It was a chapter of my life I really enjoyed, but now it’s time for another chapter forward. It’s been a decade at Estéban, but it’s time for a change.” Snyder is quick to thank Estéban and the Casa Munras Garden Hotel and Spa, “They’ve been fantastic as employers and as friends.”

Right now, Cella is a bit of a blank canvas for Spungin and Snyder, without equipment or tables. Located inside the Spear Warehouse on Polk Street, it will eventually include 80 seats indoors, plus a bar, and with an additional 50 seats in an outdoor courtyard with firepit. Pronounced “chella” and Latin for “warehouse,” the restaurant will restore the building’s original warehouse architecture by removing the dropped ceiling to expose the roof truss and incorporating a reveal of the original adobe construction as the centerpiece behind the bar. It also pays tribute to building’s storied history as a fonda, a small inn that provided both accommodations and meals.

It’s too early to tell what Snyder’s culinary program will be for Cella. His cuisine is influenced by the flavors of southern France and northern Spain, and he’ll no doubt leverage local farms, fitting with the team’s vision for a “globally inspired and locally sourced” menu.

While Snyder expects to push pause on paella and pintxos at Cella, he’s a Spanish savant: Prior to taking over the kitchen at Estéban 10 years ago, he worked at the Basque restaurant Piperade and the since-shuttered tapas hotspot Bocadillos in San Francisco.

He’ll remain at Estéban until July 1, then spend time in, ironically, Spain before starting with Cella on August 1.

The Cooper Molera Adobe complex and orchards will reopen on July 3. Alta Bakery + Cafe will debut later that month, with Cella Restaurant + Bar opening in September.