The Tea House The long-vacant building that used to house BakerâÄôs Square will soon become the Tea House , a family-owned Chinese restaurant opening in early January. The restaurant, which has three other locations in the Twin Cities, will offer traditional Chinese dishes, a large selection of noodle soups and perhaps the cityâÄôs first ever half-Chinese, half-American breakfast. Given its proximity to a hotel, the owners decided offering American breakfast was a necessity, and hired a local chef to prepare it, co-owner Yolanda Wang said. For the next month, the buildingâÄôs interior will be under construction. In October, Wang said theyâÄôll begin focusing on the menu, which will differ slightly from that of the existing locations. The meals will be priced with students in mind. Palm, Tarot and Psychic Readings Having recently purchased a prominent Washington Avenue storefront, Eliot Ten has his work cut out for him. The former Enrica Fish Medical Bookstore came complete with a layer of black dust with boarded windows. Ten, who co-owns Stadium VillageâÄôs new Palm, Tarot and Psychic Readings shop with his wife, will keep the business open while he does the painting and carpeting. The readings will be given by TenâÄôs wife, who has been studying tarot and palm reading for the past seven years. âÄúSheâÄôs always been gifted with picking up on peopleâÄôs energy,âÄù Ten said. Most of the cityâÄôs psychic services reside in Uptown, but charge around $130 per reading, Ten said. HeâÄôll determine his prices by looking at the competition and going down from there. âÄúWeâÄôre just looking to sit down and help people with whatever their questions are,âÄù he said. âÄúWe understand that everybodyâÄôs having hard times.âÄù Paradigm Copies When Paradigm Copies was still located in the Dinkydome, graduate instructor of Spanish and Portuguese Michael Arnold could run over in a minute if he discovered a page missing in the exam he was handing out. Now that the copy store has moved to Stadium Village, that wouldnâÄôt be possible. While the initial plan was to remain in the Dinkydome post-renovation, Gary Magee, the manager of Paradigm Copies, had to find a new solution when his lease expired. But since moving to Washington Avenue on June 15, he said the changes have been positive. âÄúMore people see us, more people are dropping by,âÄù he said. âÄúItâÄôs just more visible.âÄù In addition to keeping most customers from the former location, Magee said heâÄôs seen several new faces as well. Some University departments, such as Spanish and Portuguese, will be able to order copies by mailing electronic versions of documents, which Paradigm will print and deliver. Tsunami Japanese Restaurant Stadium Village now houses the stateâÄôs only Spicy Mussel Roll, an original creation by Takeshi Hatori, manager of Tsunami Japanese Restaurant . âÄúIt sounds weird, but tastes great,âÄù Hatori said of the roll. The restaurant, in the same building as the former AzukiâÄôs Sushi , opened in July and offers traditional Japanese dishes and sushi, with prices ranging from $8 to $15 for entrees and $4 to $15 for sushi. Hatori, who worked as a chef and manager of downtownâÄôs Origami for seven years, didnâÄôt hesitate to open Tsunami when the opportunity came up. Tsunami will be very different from its predecessor in menu and concept, Hatori said. He designed the menu with help from his chefs. Bun Mi Sandwiches Ever since she saw the Bun Mi sign go up last year, Jessica Appert, a graduate student in the school of public health, said she couldnâÄôt wait for it to open. Since it did in mid-May, sheâÄôs been a frequent customer. âÄúI know itâÄôs really pathetic, but I come here all the time,âÄù she said. âÄúItâÄôs the best thing over here.âÄù Initially, the owners of Bun Mi were worried about a lack of summer business, but were happily surprised at the wave of support they received, general manager Christina Idea said. Bun MiâÄôs food is different from anywhere else in Stadium Village, Idea said. The restaurant is known for its BBQ pork and lemon grass chicken sandwiches, which cost around $5. âÄúInstead of having a deli sandwich or a pizza or the normal Chinese food, you can have something quick and simple but yet very tasty and flavorful,âÄù she said, adding that all of their sandwiches are made with fresh vegetables. âÄúTo be cheesy, we make it from the heart,âÄù she said.
Stadium Village sees influx of new businesses
Here’s a look at businesses that opened over the summer and some that have yet to open.
by Tara Bannow
Published September 9, 2009
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