In the last few months, downtown Napa has seen the opening of two new restaurants, Neela’s Contemporary Indian Cooking and The Border. Both restaurants have received a fair amount of attention, although criticism tends to be the dominant theme for both places thus far. On one hand, you have Neela’s, which has a reputation for good food, but at high prices. On the other hand, there is The Border — an upscale take on Mexican cuisine — that has suffered similar, but even worse condemnations.

Although I eagerly anticipated the opening of both restaurants, I can’t really claim to disagree. I honestly expected more from both places, but at the same time, considering the short history of each, neither restaurant has had sufficient time to evolve as a business and discover its niche. It will be interesting to see how these two restaurants can adapt in the near future (according to much of what I’ve read, The Border could establish a great deal of good will by offering free chips and salsa).

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In the meantime, Napa’s culinary landscape will continue to evolve on its own, spurred by the arrival of downtown hotels like the Ritz-Carlton, which was approved for ground-breaking just about 11 months ago. As anticipated, last year’s Ritz-Carlton deal has already begun to have a domino effect, with heavyweight chefs such as Masaharu Morimoto poised to set up restaurants in the vicinity (from what I hear, Thomas Keller is no longer headed for Napa, perhaps content to simply dominate Yountville).

Inked just a few weeks ago, Morimoto Napa (I’m not sure that this restaurant name is entirely accurate, but I’m going with it for the moment) will establish unprecedented credibility in Napa’s downtown culinary scene. In many ways, it’s as if Godzilla is coming to town, stomping out any competition that cannot win its share of local, loyal customers. Frankly, I’m all for this much-needed paradigm shift: Napa dining has long suffered from relative mediocrity, while towns such as Yountville and St. Helena have managed to flourish in comparison.

From a culinary perspective, Morimoto Napa should raise the bar within Napa’s city limits, at the same time becoming a natural destination for the Ritz-Carlton’s affluent clientele. The restaurant will also produce a domino effect of its own, and has already enticed another popular Food Network chef, Tyler Florence, to join the fray downtown. As a result, restaurants like Neela’s and The Border — those that aren’t backed by camera-friendly, nationally-known chefs — will have to rely more and more upon repeat local customers.

I wish Neela’s and The Border both the best, but right now, I have to admit, they’re not in my current rotation (for what it’s worth, my key downtown spots are The Bounty Hunter and Uva Trattoria). However, I’ll check up on Neela’s and The Border in a couple of months, to see if anything has changed or improved. In the meantime, if the ground around Napa happens to rumble, don’t assume that it’s from seismic activity. Godzilla is on the horizon.