[wine] Fhima Finale

----- Forwarded message from Bruce Adomeit <badomeit(a)startribune.com> ----- Date: Fri, 15 Jun 2007 12:02:28 -0500 From: Bruce Adomeit <badomeit(a)startribune.com> Subject: Restaurant closing Fhima's, in St. Paul, serving its last meal this Saturday Six years after St. Paul spent $700,000 of public money to spruce up space for the trendy Fhima's, the Wabasha Street restaurant is going kaput. Saturday will be the last night for the downtown eatery. The city owns the Lawson Commons retail space along Wabasha and leased the space to restaurateur David Fhima, 46, who also is an executive at Lifetime Fitness. "Fhima's has been a great asset for the last six years, and it's unfortunate he can't continue to make a go of it," said Cecile Bedor, the city's director of planning and economic development. Bedor said city planners have met with two real estate brokers, who expressed confidence that the space can be leased to another restaurant by summer's end. In 2001, city planners lured Fhima, chef and owner at the old Mpls. Cafe, to downtown St. Paul in hopes that his French Mediterranean cuisine and glitzy ambiance would lend hipness to the city's core. Bedor said that LoTo, the other St. Paul restaurant with Fhima connections, will stay in business. It's owned by Lifetime Fitness and overlooks Mears Park. Fhima had been experiencing financial troubles and owes back rent at the restaurant that bears his name. Fhima's Louis XIII in Southdale Mall in Edina went out of business in 2005. ----- End forwarded message ----- -- ------------------------------ * * Dr. James Ellingson, jellings(a)me.umn.edu * * University of Minnesota, tel: 651/645-0753 * * Great Lakes Brewing News, 1569 Laurel Ave., St. Paul, MN 55104 *