Counter intelligence: Chef Thom Pham gets around the block

Chef Thom Pham gets around the block

Last update: July 26, 2006 - 11:52 AM

Chef Thom Pham gets around the block

Not content with Thanh Do (3005 Utah Av. S., St. Louis Park) and Azia, the Caterpillar Lounge and Anemoni Sushi & Oyster Bar (2550 Nicollet Av. S., Minneapolis), chef Thom Pham is turning his attention to 33rd Avenue and E. Lake Street in Minneapolis. The now-empty building that has been home to an Embers, an Ethiopian restaurant and an Irish pub is being remade as Mix Restaurant & Lounge.

The menu? "We're still going to do pan-Asian mixes," Pham said. "It's going to be 30 percent Thahn Do, 30 percent Azia and the remaining 40 percent is going to be contemporary American-Euro fusion, based on what's available seasonally."

That's not all. Two blocks east, Pham has acquired a 100-year-old storefront that he plans to turn into the Manhattan Martini Lounge. The area has special meaning for Pham; he lived two blocks from the Mix location when he was a teenager. "I've always loved the neighborhood," he said. "It's always been mellow but nothing exciting. But now with Town Talk Diner and the Craftsman and the Longfellow Grill all there, it's time for the neighborhood to become something else."

Pham hopes to open both businesses before Thanksgiving, after the street is repaved following its extensive renovation; right now E. Lake Street is a two-lane mess. "We bought the buildings back in April," said Pham. "We're taking our time because we don't want to open before construction is over."

Blackey's says farewell

A northeast Minneapolis institution is disappearing. Blackey's Bakery (639 22nd Av. NE., 612-789-5326), the maker of Polish and Danish specialty breads and sweets (and a purveyor of one of the best sandwich buns in the business), is closing after 96 years. Saturday is the last day to revel in one of the bakery's singular poppyseed kolaches, so don't delay.

In other news of closings, Tiburon Caribbean Bistro has shut its downtown Minneapolis doors after a 4 ½-year run.

RICK NELSON