Having fun and fighting crime: North Loop hosts block party Friday and Saturday nights

https://www.cbsnews.com/minnesota/news/having-fun-and-fighting-crime-north-loop-hosts-block-party-friday-and-saturday-nights/

MINNEAPOLIS -- Having fun, fighting crime, and bringing a boost to businesses downtown: those are the goals of this first-of-its-kind block party in the busy North Loop.

That section of the city - a hot spot for nightlife - is closed down to traffic not only Friday but Saturday night too. Organizers hope by shutting off vehicle traffic they can increase foot traffic and safety. 

The warehouse district block party has been in the works for years, delayed by the pandemic.

"It's a first-time effort to really create more of a pedestrian zone in the heart of our warehouse district, both for safety reasons but also to increase vibrancy and really make sure folks are having a great time," said Steve Cramer, President and CEO of Downtown Council.

Safety has been a concern, with at least two shootings happening around the area this summer.

Friday's event is meant to show the North Loop is both safe and fun. 

One parking lot was filled with food trucks and a giant screen showing the Twins game, as well as ample security.

"People have a great time in the warehouse district at night. It's also a point where some of our more serious crime incidents occur and so we want to make sure we're doing what we can to minimize that element," said Cramer.

The reviews so far have been positive. 

"I haven't really been in downtown that much. just drive past," Ru Lendez said. "Me and my fiancée just came here for a little vacation and right now we're looking for something to do and good thing we came across this place."

The same block party-style event will take place Saturday night. If you want to come down and watch the twins and have some fun, it's free to get in.

The Downtown Council will take what they learned from this weekend and hold a similar event in another part of downtown next month.

Allen Henry

Allen Henry is an Emmy Award-winning journalist who joined WCCO as a reporter in August 2022.

First published on September 16, 2022 / 11:06 PM

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Hana Bistro pivots to mobile eatery after restaurant closes

Caitlin Anderson, caitlin.anderson@apgecm.com Dec 29, 2021

https://www.hometownsource.com/sun_current/community/edina/hana-bistro-pivots-to-mobile-eatery-after-restaurant-closes/article_9f5a4e3c-6811-11ec-82ad-b300489d2249.html

Hana Bistro, the Pan-Asian restaurant that permanently closed at 50th & France this summer, is making a return – but this time, it will do business on the go.

For its next chapter, the eatery it will operate a food truck in and around Edina and Minneapolis in addition to providing private dinner parties. The choice to shift to the new model came after the restaurant experienced over a year of difficulty with the pandemic, said Stephanie Lan, who runs the restaurant with her husband, Ben Lan.

“It’s fun and exciting,” she said. “It will be enjoyable for the customers as well as for us while we make (the food.)”

Serving Japanese, Chinese and other Asian dishes, Hana Bistro has been in business since the fall of 2017, when it first opened at 50th & France. Since the Lans sold the space in July, it has been taken over by new operators and converted to a Japanese-Tibetan restaurant called AMA Sushi.

Hana Bistro’s Chinese-trained chef, Ben, decided to open his own restaurant after working as a chef for more than 20 years. Stepanie Lan said her husband is “really passionate about food,” and the couple wanted to share his talents with the community.

After the COVID-19 pandemic hit in the spring of 2020, the Edina restaurant had to shut down its dining space for a while. The restaurant offered delivery and curbside pickup services, which was an easy transition because its offerings of Chinese foods and sushi packaged well, Lan said.

But in-person dining was “so important” for revenue, she added, “that without our tables full, there definitely was an impact.”

Customers did step up to the plate though, by ordering from the restaurant more frequently and giving bigger tips, Lan said. “There’s a lot of kindness that came out,” she reflected.

Due to the negative impacts of COVID-19 and the long hours of running a restaurant while caring for a family, the Lans decided to close the restaurant and take a break. But soon, a customer approached the couple asking if Ben Lan would come by and prepare their sister’s favorite foods as a surprise because she missed the restaurant.

This inquiry prompted the idea for Hana Bistro’s next phase: offering private dinner parties for customers. The Lans have already seen quite a few requests for dinner parties, and some several times from the same family, Lan said.

She said this new model allows her husband to make more personal dishes for customers, too.

On the food truck side of the business, the mobile kitchen made its first appearance at the Fulton Winter Farmers Market in Minneapolis. And near the beginning of next year, Hana Bistro will look to get its permit to operate in the Edina area, too, Lan said.

The food truck is “definitely more COVID-friendly for our customers and for us,” she said. There’s also the opportunity for menu flexibility, such as changing items with the seasons, she added.

Representative menu items for Hana Bistro are pad Thai, pan-fried scallops, sesame chicken, sashimi and cream cheese wontons.

Over the years, Hana Bistro has had “a lot of great, loyal, supportive customers,” Lan said.

But the new model of business for Hana Bistro “takes some of the pressure off of us” in terms of staffing or upkeep of a brick-and-mortar restaurant, she said.

“We were happy to transition,” Lan said.

– Follow Caitlin Anderson on Twitter @EdinaSunCurrent

Copyright ©2020 at Sun Newspapers/ APG Media of East Central Minnesota. Digital dissemination of this content without prior written consent is a violation of federal law and may be subject to legal action.

Photo of Chef Ben preparing 7 Spice Scallops at a private chef dinner is courtesy of Greg Mays.

Photo of Chef preparing Sesame Chicken in the new food truck is courtesy of Stephanie Lan.