A New York style pizza place is going into the Lumen building in Lower Queen Anne, in the same complex as QFC and Genki Sushi.

According to a notice on the door, New York Pizza & Bar is renting the space at 500 Mercer Street, Suites 2-4, and is currently doing construction in preparation for opening.

New York Pizza & Bar currently has two locations in Washington State – one in Bellingham and another in Lynden. We’re waiting to hear back from the owners on when they plan to open the new Seattle location.

* Thanks to Patrick and Jenn for the tip!

Just one month after Nucleus hair salon shuttered its doors, a new business is opening up in the same Lower Queen Anne shopfront, and perhaps not surprisingly, it’s a restaurant. Mo’s Sub Co. will be “coming soon” to the space at 621 Queen Anne Ave N., according to the sign in the window, but beyond that little else is known.

There is currently no website or any online information for the business, and no permit applications have come through the city for that address. But whoever “Mo” is, we’re guessing he’s not from around here, considering the misspelling of Queen Anne (sans the last ‘e’) in the sign.

Still, in the current economy, where vacant storefronts have been sitting empty and idle for months at a time before a new retailer moves in (if ever – just look at both of Queen Anne’s former Blockbusters: the Upper location was left empty for almost two years before reopening as Umpqua Bank earlier this month, and the Lower QA location is still hollow from its March closure), it’s surprising to see a business closure turn around into a new opening so quickly. What do you think – is this a sign that things are looking up for Uptown’s business district?

The City of Seattle moved one step closer to a new kind of street food community on Wednesday when the City Council land-use committee unanimously approved a measure that would allow mobile vendors to park in designated spots citywide.

Currently, vendors have to work out deals with local business owners, which is why you always see food trucks in parking lots or outside local companies. The new guidelines would allow for street food carts to park in specific spaces throughout the city on their own.

With the new legislation would come changes to street food vendor rules as well.

These called for increased parking fees; upping the buffer between sidewalk vendors and business entrances/exits (from 10 to 15 feet) and schools (now 1,000 feet, before it was 200 feet); and notification of nearby property owners. Previously vendors were to notify all owners within 100 feet of their site; now they will have to inform owners on each side of the street as well as those on the adjacent block when the slinger is situated on a corner. The legislation dictates no more than two merchants are permitted per block; if there is little or no commercial activity, that number could increase.

Not everyone is a fan of the proposal. Many restaurants are against the measure as an increase in street vendors could leads to a decrease in customers for them. See the full details here.

The City Council is expected to consider the bill on Monday, July 18.

Four months after Flame vacated its Queen Anne Ave N space and moved in with the neighboring Elliott Bay Pizza Co., a new restaurant is taking over its former space, replacing Flame’s burgers and BBQ offerings with Oaxacan cuisine.

We’ve been hearing rumors that a Oaxacan restaurant was planning to open in the space for some time now, but this month we got some definitive evidence–on June 14 the owners of “Mezcaleria Oaxaca” applied for a liquor license application at the former Flame space, at 2123 Queen Anne Ave N, to offer spirits, wine, and beer in the restaurant/lounge.

One reader, Jenny, thinks the new restaurant might be a second location for popular Ballard spot La Carta de Oaxaca.

“I noticed that there is a liquor license application on the door with the name “Oaxaca” on it.  I’m hoping the Ballard location is expanding because if it is, we’ll finally have a decent Mexican place on the Ave,” she wrote.

The new restaurant will join the handful of other distinctly different Mexican restaurants at the top of the hill, including the relatively new La Luna, which opened up at Queen Anne Ave N and Boston back in April, Tenoch Mexican Grill, which opened in Vincenzo’s former corner spot on Queen Anne Ave N and W McGraw in April 2010, and Malena’s Taco Shop, a longtime popular neighborhood spot at W McGraw Street and 7th Ave W.

I’m currently waiting on a call back from La Carta de Oaxaca’s manager to find out if this restaurant is in fact expanding to Queen Anne. I will update this story as to whether or not this new eatery will be a new location for a local chain, or a brand new Oaxacan place under different ownership, as soon as I know more.

* Thanks to Jenny for the tip!

After just over two years in its new incarnation, Sezoni Gourmet Pizzeria & Restaurant has closed. From the same family that ran Vincenzo’s for five years (in the house on Queen Anne Ave N and McGraw that now houses Tenoch), Sezoni opened in the former Ace Hardware space in March 2009 (1515 Queen Anne Ave. N.) as an Italian, Greek and Mediterranean restaurant.

Now just two years and a few months later, Sezoni has shuttered its doors somewhat suddenly.

“Walked by Sezoni (ex-Vincenzo’s) last night and there was a big Closed sign on the door,” writes Mark. “Another good restaurant gone? Just had pizza from there last week!”

Exactly why Sezoni’s owners decided to close up shop is still unknown, as is what, if anything, will replace it. A voice mail left with the business, as well as a note to its reservations email account, have not yet been returned. While Sezoni’s website is still active, its online ordering system has been disabled. There is no information on its Facebook page as to why the business has closed. We’ll update this story as soon as we learn more.

* Thanks to Mark Taylor for the tip.

If you’ve walked down Mercer Street lately  you may have noticed that Lower Queen Anne’s newest restaurant Wanna Noodle, which opened its doors just two months ago, inexplicably closed last week.

Since the closure we’ve received a number of emails from Queen Anne-ers wondering why this new Asian fusion noodle shop left so suddenly, many of whom were disappointed to hear the news.

“We really liked the place and went there pretty often,” Mark Taylor wrote. “It’s very weird.”

There isn’t a lot of information indicating why the new business closed. Wanna Noodle’s website has since been taken down and now redirects to a Wikipedia page on Noodles. Wanna Noodle’s Facebook page has also been taken down, and there are no faulty permit applications, liquor license or restaurant inspection problems for the business on file with the city. An email to the former Wanna Noodle contact address has not yet been answered.

While the reasons for Wanna Noodle’s sudden closure is somewhat of a mystery, Hesch & Shain commercial real estate broker for the space at 12 Mercer Street, Constance Shain, confirmed that the business is officially closed.

“It is unfortunate that the former business has closed,” Shain said. “And it is not because they weren’t doing well.”

Shain wouldn’t elaborate on why the business has shuttered its doors, but she did add that a new operator will be going into the space, “though I can’t confirm what the concept will be,” she said.

We’ll keep following this story, and will update this post with any developments.

The space at 2 Boston Street has gone through quite a few incarnations over the last couple of years–from Opal, to Opal Bistro, to Flow Lounge. After the short-lived Flow closed its doors back in November, we wrote that the restaurant would transform once again, this time under new ownership, into La Luna.

La Luna‘s manager Tony Lopez describes the cuisine as “inspired Mexican food,” or Mexican fusion on the finer side.

The restaurant, which is open for breakfast, lunch, dinner, brunch and happy hour, opened on Friday, April 15, and so far the response has been fantastic.

“Reception has been great so far,” Lopez said. “We’ve had tons of neighborhood people coming in.”

While the inside of the restaurant hasn’t changed much, La Luna did add a few flat screen TVs and a number of ‘fire tables’ (yes, you read that right) for festive indoor and outdoor seating.

La Luna is open from 7:30 a.m. to 2 a.m. and most items range from $6 to $12 in price. Currently there are two happy hour times, though Lopez says these may change as the restaurant settles into a regular schedule. For the time being patrons can get $1 off well drinks and the bar menu from 5 to 6 p.m. daily, and $2 off from 3 to 5 p.m.

To find out more about La Luna, check out their website, or follow them on Facebook or Twitter.

Tomorrow, April 6, dozens of restaurants across the region will be participating in Red White Unite, a collective effort between participating restaurants, Junglecity.com, and Suzuki + Chou Communimedia to raise money for the relief effort in Japan. Through Red White Unite a number of restaurants around town and in the neighborhood will be donating 10 percent of their total sales on Wednesday, April 6 to Peace Winds America for disaster relief in Japan. Check out the participating Queen Anne eateries:

• How To Cook A Wolf
• Betty
• Crow
• Pagliacci Pizza
  
• Macrina Bakery
  
• Portage

See the full list of participating restaurants for more spots where you can dine and donate tomorrow.

Seattle Weekly’s annual Voracious restaurant guide is out and there are two popular Queen Anne dining spots – out of 107 citywide – that made the list.

In the “Things That Swim” section, Canlis and chef Jason Franey were commended for the menu – a mixture of new dishes and original plates from the restaurant’s early years.

In the “Veggies” section Book Bindery was called out for a salad – “one of the greatest salads ever” – made out of more apples than vegetables.

Check out the full guide to see some other nearby notables, including the selections just across the water in Fremont. What do you think, Queen Anne? Any shocking omissions from the list?

If you’ve walked by Flame on Queen Anne Avenue N recently, you may have noticed the paper covering the windows and the sign on the door directing patrons to Elliott Bay Pizza Co. two doors down.

That’s because the two restaurants have merged, according to an Elliott Bay Pizza Co. employee who spoke to us over the phone this morning.

While the sign on the door at Flame says it is only closed for renovations, adding “Y’all kin get yer got juicy delicious flame broiled burgers next door at Elliott Bay Pizza,” in fact the restaurant changed ownership this week, the Elliott Bay Pizza Co. employee confirmed.

The man who owned both Elliott Bay and Flame decided to consolidate the two restaurants – and their vastly different menus – and sell the Flame location. The renovations inside are on the part of the new owner, he said, adding that he does not know what the new owner plans to do with the restaurant.

A call to the new owner has not yet been returned. In the meantime, most of the original Flame menu (burgers, fries and onion rings, chicken tenders, BBQ sandwiches, and salads) can be found at Elliott Bay Pizza Co. alongside its existing pizzas, pastas, salads, calzones and subs. The only items not available in the new merger are Flame’s tacos and shakes.

And as for the fate of Flame’s old homestead, we’ll keep you posted as we learn more about what will be moving in.

A new martini bar is opening up in the old Ascada Bistro space at 621 1/2 Queen Anne Ave N (across from the MarQueen Hotel and the Uptown Caffe Ladro).

We first got wind that Oskar’s Kitchen would be taking over the space after former Seattle Supersonic Shawn Kemp and his wife Marvena applied for a liquor license at the location.

According to Skyline Properties managing broker Nathan Belo, Oskar’s is opening its doors at 2 p.m. today.

“They’re still fiddling around with the menu but they’ll have the usual stuff, sandwiches, etc.,” he wrote. “They’re still hiring kitchen help so I’d give them a couple of weeks to sort out the food situation, but libations should be excellent.”

The new restaurant/lounge/martini bar will also have a daily happy hour from 3 to 6 p.m. with $4 beer, wine, and well drinks, Belo says.

Cafe Bonjour, that cozy spot nestled in at 1629 Queen Anne Ave N, is expanding, opening a new location in Green Lake soon.

Our sister site, My Green Lake, spoke with owner Michelle Zhang about the new location, which will be much bigger than the Queen Anne spot. She hopes it will feel “like a living room,” with big couches, comfy chairs, and free wifi, Zhang said.

Cafe Bonjour’s Green Lake location, at 7119 Woodlawn Ave NE. Photo courtesy of My Green Lake.

Michelle, who has owned the Queen Anne location for two and half years, says she chose Green Lake as the home for her new location because the neighborhood is one of her favorite in the city. It’s also where her parents live.

She sees the cafe as an opportunity to build community. Although still in the permitting stages, Michelle is looking to hire full- and part-time sandwich artists and baristas who live in the Green Lake area.

“The green lake location will be a much larger scale, complete with a kids play area and story time Wednesdays,” Michelle says.

The Queen Anne cafe offers hot paninis, crepes, weekend brunch, and wine. The Green Lake location will also offer all natural French pastries, and gluten free options, alongside the cafe’s own tea line, Seattle Best Organic Tea, which offers imported organic green tea blended with fresh flowers or fruit.

“Some of our popular items, will be available at both locations, including house made Hungarian goulash soup with dumplings, roasted with avocado panini with fresh bread from Grand Central bakery, and last but not least, garden fresh crepe with spinach, egg, mozzarella cheese, tomato and avocado,” Michelle says.

For more information on the new Green Lake location, see My Green Lake’s story.

We first heard that the short-lived Flow Lounge would be leaving its corner spot on Upper Queen Anne, at 2 Boston Street, and that a new Mexican restaurant would be moving in a few weeks ago.

While we don’t know many details on what exactly is coming to 2 Boston Street, or when it will be opening, this week a new business called La Luna applied for a liquor license for the space with the Washington State Liquor Control Board.

We haven’t yet been able to reach the owners of La Luna to ask what exactly their restaurant will entail, but the application specifies the sale of beer, wine, and spirits in a restaurant/lounge, so that gives us some idea of what’s to come. We’ll keep you posted as we find out more.

Homegrown is opening its Upper Queen Anne location today. The local sustainable sandwich shop chain moved into the old Peet’s Coffee & Tea location on caffeine corner, at 2201 Queen Anne Ave N., in September, and has been prepping for opening ever since.

Homegrown offers sustainable food and serving materials, so that everything is 100 percent compostable and recyclable (everything you don’t eat, that is!).

This location is the local chain’s third, after Fremont and Capitol Hill. When we first spoke with owner Ben Friedman back in September, he said the new shop would be open for breakfast, lunch and dinner every day. But from the looks of the website, the shop is starting out with daytime schedule, open from 8 a.m. to 4 p.m. daily. We’re checking with Ben on whether he plans to roll out dinner service soon. Update 11:52 am: We just got confirmation from Ben that Homegrown will be extending its hours to include dinner time in the near future. “We’re just doing a staggered start,” he writes. “Dinner should be rolling later this month!”

Homegrown offers meals made with seasonal, local, and sustainable products. Take a look at the menu here. The eatery also offers catering services, and special order tote lunches delivered straight to you Monday through Friday (luckily for fans in Queen Anne, the delivery range covers the hill, Fremont, downtown, Eastlake, and Capitol Hill).

Twirl Cafe is having a grand opening celebration this Saturday, October 9 from 10 a.m. onward at its brand new digs in the Sweetbrier building, at 2111 Queen Anne Ave N.

We first heard that Twirl was coming to Queen Anne back in June, when we spoke with Queen Anne resident and Twirl owner Rebecca Pelletier. The idea behind Twirl was to create a community oriented family-style gathering space—part kids play space, part cafe.  Pelletier ultimately decided to open her play cafe in Queen Anne, thanks to the neighborhood’s vibrant community atmosphere.

Twirl will offer classes and activities for kids and adults, childcare services (while the parents enjoy some downtime or in-house workshops), and yummy health-oriented eats. And from the look of things so far, even the food will capture the Queen Anne feel. ‘The Howe,’ ‘The Galer,’ and ‘The Bigelow,’ are all specialty sandwiches on the menu.

Read more about Pelletier and Twirl Cafe here.

The Than Brothers are opening a new location in Lower Queen Anne.

The local pho chain has locations all over the Seattle-area. The owners say this new outpost could be open as early as next week. Reader Erin had this to say about the restaurant:

Just saw signs last night that the Than Brothers are opening up in the old martial arts space on Mercer, around the corner from Toulouse Petit.  Not be best pho in town, but certainly cheap – and you get a cream puff!

Now I’m no pho expert, but having frequented the location on Market Street in Ballard several times, I’d venture to say there’s nothing wrong with this tasty, extremely affordable pho house. Welcome to the neighborhood!

Page Ahead Children’s Literacy Program is hosting its annual restaurant benefit, Dish Up Literacy, on Thursday. Eat at Ten Mercer in Queen Anne or 12 other Seattle restaurants, and 20 percent of the proceeds will support literacy programs for children in need.

According to Page Ahead, 61 percent of low-income families have no books at all in their homes for children.

Page Ahead operates on one simple and astounding fact: growing up in a house with books is the foremost predictor of academic success in childhood—and a child who succeeds in school will remain there. Page Ahead is dedicated to helping children in need succeed in school by developing strong reading skills.

Participating restaurants include:

• Smokin’ Pete’s BBQ (Ballard) *dinner only
• Hopvine Pub (Capitol Hill)
• Tutta Bella (Columbia City, South Lake Union, Stone Way, Issaquah)
• Carmelita (Greenwood) *dinner only
• Barrio Restaurant (Madison Park)
• Rusty Pelican Café (Wallingford)
• Casa d’Italia (Wedgwood)
• Fiddler’s Inn (Wedgwood)
• Ten Mercer (Queen Anne)
• Barrio (Bellevue)

After months of slow moving real estate on Queen Anne Ave N, it seems things are finally picking back up. Homegrown is moving into the former Pete’s Coffee & Tea space on caffeine corner, and ‘for lease’ signs are dropping like flies (look more updates on what else is moving into Queen Anne soon).

One prime piece of retail space in Queen Anne that has just been snapped up is the corner spot in the Sweetbrier building (at Queen Anne Ave N and W Crockett St), which will soon be home to Seattle’s first Menchie’s frozen yogurt outpost.

California-based Menchie’s has locations all over the U.S. and Canada, and is expanding like crazy. (According to their website, the franchise is opening new outposts right and left, including locations in Japan, Dubai, Australia and Mexico).

An anonymous reader tipped us off to Menchie’s moving in at 2101 Queen Anne Ave N. They wrote:

These folks came all the way from Tacoma and were disappointed, showing me their iPhones, that they store wasn’t open. They said it is the best yogurt, like Greek yogurt, thick and tangy!

Menchie’s offers a rotating selection of frozen yogurts and toppings—”from fresh, locally grown fruits to classic rainbow sprinkles,” according to the company website. Customers mix and match whatever they want, and pay by weight, not topping number or cup size.

Up until this point the Queen Anne Farmers Market has been using the space as storage for the weekly market through an in-kind donation from the Sweetbier building. Market director Julie Whitehorn confirmed that the non-profit is currently looking for a new storage space.

Menchie’s already has two locations in Washington state—one in Federal Way, and another in Vancouver. According to its website, it will also be opening a new spot on Broadway, though the exact location has not yet been announced. We sent a note to Menchie’s asking when they plan to open the Queen Anne store, but have not yet heard back. We’ll keep you posted as we learn more!

We just came across an interesting liquor license application with a famous name on it.  This application reveals who may be opening a new restaurant in the old Ascada Bistro space on Lower Queen Anne. 

Right now, there’s white paper covering the windows at 621 1/2 Queen Anne Avenue (across from the MarQueen Hotel) with the words “Watch 4 Us.”  The applicants listed on the liquor paperwork are former Seattle Supersonic Shawn Kemp and his wife Marvena.  They apparently plan to turn this space into a restaurant and lounge.  Right now, the business is simply listed as “MTK Ventures.”  We’ll keep you posted as we learn more.