A shopping center is threatening to sue the city of Palo Alto over its natural gas ban, arguing that the prohibition on new natural gas hookups will prevent world-famous chef José Andrés from opening his first Zaytinya location in the Bay Area.

The Stanford Shopping Center in Palo Alto was set to be the site for a new location of Zaytinya, a Mediterranean restaurant owned by Andrés. Developers demolished the Macy’s Men’s Store and were planning to erect three new buildings in its place — one of which would contain the new Zaytinya. But lawyers for the shopping center say the city has told them that the restaurant may not be able to connect to a natural gas hookup that was specifically installed for the new buildings.

The dispute between the city and the Stanford Shopping Center was first reported by Palo Alto Online. An attorney representing Simon Property Group, which owns the shopping center, wrote a letter to the city on April 28 that said Andrés will pull out of the venture if his new restaurant isn’t able to connect to the gas line.