Business News

December 2006

Mysore Cafe
December 17, 2006 - Mysore Cafe will open at 2819 Hennepin Avenue on January 3rd, 2007. The restaurant will feature vegetarian, authentic southern and northern Indian cuisine. Mysore Cafe will offer a lunch buffet Tuesday-Sunday from 11:00am - 3:00pm and dinner from Tuesday-Thursday 5:00pm-9:30pm and Friday-Sunday 5:00pm-10:00pm.

Amazing Thai
December 16, 2006 - Amazing Thai is slated to open in the former Panera Bread building at 3024 Hennepin Avenue. The new restaurant will be the fourth Thai restaurant in Uptown. It is unclear as to when the business will open.

UPS Store to move
December 16, 2006 - As preparations for the new North Face store moves forward, the UPS Store at 3010 Hennepin Avenue will move to a new location at 2751 Hennepin. The former Saint Sabrina's space is bigger and has more parking. The new UPS Store should open in mid-January 2007.

T-Mobile opening in Uptown Row
December 16, 2006 - After Cingular purchased Nextel, Cingular decided to close its store at 1221 W. Lake Street. Several months have gone by and T-Mobile announced that it will take over the space. Construction began and should be complete in early 2007.

Gigi's Art Gallery
December 16, 2006 - The small space at 2827 1/2 Hennepin Avenue now offers art rather than scooters. Gigi's Art Gallery recently replaced Uptown Moto Werks.

November 2006

New Indian restaurant coming to Uptown
November 27, 2006 - A new restaurant will try to beat out a storefront that has seen significant turn over in recent years. Mysore Cafe began working on the space in mid-November. The Indian restaurant at 2819 Hennepin Avenue replaces Antoine's Creole Maison Restaurant, and will join Passage to India and Marla's Indian and Caribbean Cuisine in offering Indian food.

Josi Wert to close boutique
November 27, 2006 - Josi Wert announced this month that the store will close sometime near the end of the year. A televised interview with the store's owner revealed that she decided to close the store over parking concerns during a nearby condo/hotel project's construction.

Paper returns to 24th & Hennepin in a new store: PaperGami
November 6, 2006 - In late October at 2404 Hennepin Avenue was a familiar site, as paper products, cards, and gifts returned to a storefront once home to Paper Source. However, this time it's home to a new store called PaperGami. PaperGami offers quality origami papers from around the world, including such far off lands as Japan, India, Italy, and Thailand. The store also offers gifts and cards. This is the third PaperGami store in the United States, as two stores exist in New Mexico and are operated by a partner. This location is operated by a Kenwood native who recently returned to Minneapolis.

Cold Stone Creamery Closing?
November 5, 2006 - A sign in the window of Cold Stone Creamery announced that their space is for lease. The 1,800 Sq. Ft. Cold Stone Creamery replaced Garden of Eden, a lotion, perfume, and bath essentials store. It was reported in the Southwest Journal at the time of Garden of Eden's closing that the building's landlord wanted to bring a new tenant in rather than renew a lease with Garden of Eden.

The Gap Building: Now Available
November 2, 2006 - Stories in the Minneapolis St. Paul Business Journal and Finance & Commerce state that the Gap store at 3000 Hennepin Avenue will shut down in early 2007. Gap has struggled nationally and is closing many stores across the country. Interest is reported to be high for the highly visible building at Uptown's 100% corner. A new tenant will likely be announced in the not too distant future.

October 2006

City Image Salon Relocating November 2nd
October 26, 2006 - After facing Calhoun Square reconstruction plans that included removing their building, City Image Salon spent months of planning its move to 1404 West Lake Street adjacent Stella's Fish House. Their new store, occupying Gabriella's former space, will feature a complete renovation of the existing, aged retail space. The new store will open November 2nd.

Estes Uptown News opens
October 8, 2006 - Estes Uptown News recently opened in Calhoun Square offering gifts, magazines, quick snacks and essentials, and more.

North Face coming to Uptown
October 8, 2006 - North Face will open in a newly constructed building where the UPS Store and Tibet's Corner now stand. Construction should start in spring pending necessary approvals and open sometime in late 2007 or early 2008.

September 2006

Lou Lou's Retreat for Women
September 28, 2006 - Various reports state that the owners of 1609 Salon moved their business across the street from their 1609 W. Lake Street location to a small storefront adjacent Tommy's Retreat fro Men. Along with the move was a name change, Lou Lou's Retreat for Women.

August 2006

The Beat Coffeehouse
August 4, 2006 - The Beat Coffeehouse will open just east of Hennepin at 1414 West 28th Street. The 2,000+ square foot space once housed Comedy Sportz before they moved to Calhoun Square.

Calhoun Square to add Estes Uptown News
August 4, 2006 - Estes Uptown News will open in Calhoun Square in the former Beezwax Candles space. As of August 1st, they were looking for employees.

July 2006

Saint Sabrina's to get New Digs
July 22, 2006 - Saint Sabrina's will move one block north to a new space at 2645 Hennepin Avenue. The new space, which has seen interior and exterior remodeling recently, will open on August 2nd.

Kuhlman Outlet: The Store Formerly Known as SK2
July 22, 2006 - SK2, an outlet carrying the Kuhlman and associated brand's clothing lines, relabeled itself Kuhlman Outlet. The Calhoun Square store carries high quality, European crafted clothing with designs that are meant to stand apart.

Now Open: Blue Sky Creamery
July 22, 2006 - Blue Sky Creamery opened its doors on July 20th. Its ice cream uses liquid nitrogen to quickly freeze the ingredients, which results in a smooth, rich taste. The store is open from 11:00am to 10:00pm.

June 2006

Letterbox Creative Moves In
Recently opened at 2741 Hennepin, Letterbox Creative began offering its paper, cards, stationary and gifts to Uptowners. According to their website, owners ZackBarocas and Kimberley Yurkiewicz have a deep passion for the handwritten letter, and in fact, their passion helped bring them together and later fall in love. Be sure to stop by and welcome them to the neighborhood.

Jon Charles Salon Opens
Opened on June 10th, Jon Charles Salon opened in the Uptown Row project, 1221 W. Lake Street, filling the space across from Pizza Nea. Owner Jon Charles is no stranger to Uptown, as he was a partner in Urban Retreat and Schmity's before becoming Artistic Developer of Best Buy's EQ Life. His latest adventure, Jon Charles Salon, offers classes on waxing and blow drying in addition to more typical salon features. Blow Dry Bootcamp teaches clients how to properly brush and blow dry hair with either the store's or their own brush and blow dryer, while Wax On, Wax Off teaches waxing techniques. Jon Charles Salon is an authorized retail location for Bumble and Bumble and Kerastase products. If salons aren't your thing, at least Fido can get a drink from the water dish out front.

Blue Sky Creamery Replaces Einstein Bagels
Iowa-based Blue Sky Creamery will open its third Metro-area store, fifth overall, in the space formerly occupied by Einstein Bagels. While the company has only a handful of stores, the ice cream brand has had significant exposure in this market through the retail sales of its ice creams at such places as Lunds, Byerly's, Cub Foods, and Super Target.

Panera Bread to Close Uptown Location
Since its 2004 opening, Panera Bread seemed to have struggled to have the business that many of its other stores have. Perhaps that is the reason why the store will close after lunch on June 11th. The building previously was occupied by Haagen Dazs location.

May 2006

Via's Vintage Wear Moving Across Street
Via's Vintage Wear will move across the street to the Alt's former space at 2408 Hennepin Avenue. The new, larger space will allow the store to have more stock and potentially carry some additional product types. The new space will open July 1st. An impending sale of their current space played a large role in the decision to move, said Kelly - Via's owner. With the Alt's space becoming available at the same time their current building is for sale, the move will allow Via's to continue offering Uptowners and others the service that Via's has provided for over 17 years without worry that a new owner will bring in a new tenant.

April 2006

Sundog Trading Co. Opens in Calhoun Square
Helly Hanson - Minnesota opened a new store called Sundog Trading Co. in the former Uptown Traders space in Calhoun Square. Sundog carries the full line of Kavu brand clothing, which their manager described as "rugged casual" - sort of a Pacific Northwest outdoor style. In addition, the store offers bag, clothes, shoes, and other accessories.

Borders to Leave Uptown
A "business decision" rather than failed negotiations is the reason behind Borders' decision to exit the Uptown market according to one reliable source involved in Calhoun Square's redevelopment. For years, the bookseller has talked of expansion within the urban mall but action never materialized. Borders entered Calhoun Square in the 1990s, replacing the previous bookseller, Odegard Books. Calhoun Square has not announced whether or not it would court another bookseller.

Country Wireless to Replace Discount Video
Discount Video at 2655 Hennepin Avenue will be replaced by Country Wireless. The wireless accessory store will open April 29th.

Uptown Row Loses Cell Phone Store
Cingular Wireless leaves Uptown Row, 1221 W. Lake St., for the Calhoun Village shopping center on the west side of Lake Calhoun. It is not clear what will become of their former space.

Sixteen O Nine
The latest salon and day spa in Uptown is Sixteen O Nine at, surprise, 1609 W. Lake St. The salon previously was known as Urban Retreat.

The Alt Moves to Lyn-Lake
As of April 1st, The Alt left South Hennepin for its new location at 3013 Lyndale Avenue.

March 2006

Pizza Nea Brings its Aroma to West Lake Street
In late February, Pizza Nea opened its doors at 1221 W. Lake St. in the Uptown Row complex. The restaurant serves pizza, sandwiches, and salads and offers a full bar. It is the company's second location.

Calhoun Square Prepares for Reconstruction
As Calhoun Square nears the start of its reconstruction, a number more retailers have closed. Healing Source, Little River Creations, La Veranda Floral, and Sara Cura Silver have all shut their door or relocated outside of Uptown.

Atmosfere Becomes Calhoun Square's Newest Tenant
The new hip clothing store opened in the high-turnover space that Wilson Leather has seasonally operated in. Atmosfere joins SK2, and Ivy in newer, hipper clothing retailers in Calhoun Square.

101 Blu Becomes Aura
The Euro-bistro offering wood-fire oven food has changed its name to Aura.

February 2006

The Fixery Closes
After many years of service, The Fixery leaves Calhoun Square. The center's redevelopment plans indicated that The Fixery's space would be removed, though it isn't clear as to reason for the close.

January 2006

Add Gabriella's to Closing List
After years of calling Uptown home, Gabriella's at 1404 W. Lake St. announced it will close soon. A store closing sale is offering items at significantly reduced prices.

Maud Borup to Close
Calhoun Square will lose another tenant before its large renovation is hoped to begin. Maud Borup will close in January.

Zeno Under New Ownership, Temporarily Closed
A sign in the window of Zeno stated that it was under new ownership and that they would be closed until mid-January for renovations.

Uptown Traders Decides to Close
Uncertainty of Calhoun Square's future and a desire to retire, the owners of Uptown Traders called December their last month after more than two decades of service in Calhoun Square.

Past Years

2005 | 2006