Open & Shut: Anchorage adds a Vietnamese BBQ restaurant, a Burger & Brew, a coffee shop, plus a candle-making studio and boutique

Open & Shut is an ongoing series looking at the comings and goings of businesses in Southcentral Alaska. If you know of a business opening or closing in the area, send a note to reporter Alex DeMarban at alex@adn.com with “Open & Shut” in the subject line.

Open

Umami BBQ & Bar: A group of Anchorage friends who are originally from Vietnam opened Umami BBQ this summer.

Minh Thao was the driving force. The 2011 Dimond High graduate worked for several years at her aunt’s restaurant in Anchorage, serving pho.

Umami BBQ & Bar fulfills her dream of bringing traditional Vietnamese dishes to Anchorage, she said.

“I love this a lot,” Thao said, admiring the restaurant on a recent weekday.

Families can cook at quartz-topped tables with natural gas grills, or ask the kitchen to prepare the dishes. Vents, hidden from view, remove smoke and smells.

A robot delivers drink orders with a “thank you,” playing pop tunes. If tables are full, customers can order takeout from a touch-screen kiosk. The restaurant serves beer and wine.

Popular dishes include beef hot pot with beef-bone broth; sizzling ribeye steak plates with a sunny-side up egg and vegetables; and crispy pork-belly lettuce wraps with dipping sauce. Vietnamese crepes are vegetarian or made with pork, shrimp, onions and bean sprouts, she said. The caramelized chicken wings are top sellers, she said.

Thao said that when the pandemic temporarily closed restaurants starting in 2020, she no longer had a job. So she learned to trade stocks and cryptocurrency on YouTube. That helped raise money to pay for the restaurant.

She solicited friends Alex Pham and Tan Tran, who are also originally from Vietnam, to join her as business partners along with their families. Thao even traveled back to Vietnam to take culinary classes before opening.

“I want to open the restaurant so my kids look at me to work hard, never give up, to study well and be successful in the future,” she said.

Umami is located in the Tikahtnu Commons shopping center at 1142 N. Muldoon Road, Suite 135, between Great Clips and Famous Footwear. It’s open 11 a.m.-9 p.m. Monday to Thursday; 11 a.m.-10 p.m. Friday and Saturday; and noon-9 p.m. on Sunday.

Wick & Threads: Two best friends combined their homegrown businesses to launch this candle-making studio and boutique.

Wick & Threads sells vintage apparel and shoes, candles made with natural ingredients, plus crystals and home decor items. It also hosts candle-making courses.

Rylee Lewis brings the passion for candles. She started making her own candles about five years ago after learning that store-bought candles often contained harmful chemicals. That blossomed into Soul Therapy Candle Co., her online business.

Katie Harris curates the vintage clothing. She started selling her family’s secondhand clothes about seven years ago, through online platforms. That grew into Shop K80 (named after herself). The business has several thousand followers on Poshmark, an online marketplace for secondhand clothing.

The friends opened Wick & Threads early this month.

“I like people to feel confident about fashion and developing their own style,” Harris said. “It’s nice to see people feel their best with the clothes they’re wearing.”

Lewis said she opened the store to be a role model for her daughter, Salem, who is 1. “I want to show her you can go for your dreams no matter who you are,” she said.

People can sign up for candle-making classes at soultherapycandlecompany.com. They pick their own candles, jars and fragrances like Sitka spruce, lavender driftwood or cashmere plum. Groups can also rent the entire space and host their own classes, she said.

On Saturdays at 6 p.m., Wick & Threads hosts date nights with wine and candle-making.

The shop is located in South Anchorage, just east of Costco across King Street, at 331 E. 87th Ave., Unit 111. It’s open Thursday to Sunday, 11:30 a.m. to 6:30 p.m.

Alaskan Burger & Brew: This restaurant is now a chain.

Ezequiel Rodriguez just opened his second Alaskan Burger & Brew at 8010 Old Seward Highway near Dino’s Donuts. He’s planning a third.

The second spot features the same menu as the original diner that opened in Midtown a few years ago. It has a similar design, with decorative Alaska animal mounts and skins. But this one comes with a drive-thru.

Rodriguez, part of the Gallo family of restaurateurs, said the salmon burger with avocado dressing is a hit. Another favorite is the burger topped with macaroni and cheese. And people like the breakfast burger that comes with eggs made as the customer chooses, he said. They also sell vegetarian and gluten-free burgers.

To open the second Burger & Brew, Rodriguez purchased Oriental Express, which closed in September. The previous owners were looking to retire, he said. (They could not be reached for comment.)

“I saw this one for sale and I took the opportunity to keep going,” Rodriguez said of his restaurants.

Rodriguez also bought the former Pho Lena restaurant in downtown Anchorage, he said. He plans to open the third Burger & Brew there in a few months.

People like the restaurants because of good customer service and quality, he said. Rodriguez said he’s motivated by his two children, who are 4 years old and 1 month old, to grow the business.

“Family is No. 1, and I’ll do anything that it takes to support them,” he said.

The new Burger & Brew is open daily from 10 a.m.-10 p.m.

City Grind: A coffee shop has opened in City Hall in downtown Anchorage for the first time since the pandemic began in 2020.

Owner Kim Lemish said she launched City Grind after the Kaladi Brothers cafe on Sixth Avenue closed last year, offering an opportunity. Her shop replaces a Cabo Coffee, she said.

The public can access the shop by parking in the City Hall parking lot, Lemish said. The lot is off Seventh Avenue, between F and G streets.

Besides coffees, teas and hot chocolates, City Grind serves breakfast and lunch, including an egg and meat breakfast sandwich, curry chicken salad croissant sandwiches and items named after friends, like Captain Rodney’s spicy tuna sandwich and Ben’s Big Bull roast beef sandwich.

The lunch special rotates daily, said Lemish, a former patient services manager at Alaska Regional Hospital. On Wednesday, she sells a meatloaf plate with mashed potatoes, a veggie and roll for $13. There are also soups and salads, and handmade seasonal muffins such as pumpkin or cranberry orange varieties.

Baker Kevynn Cox, who is originally from Nome and learned to be a pastry chef in Portland, likes to bring new items to the menu, Lemish said.

“It’s just a surprise every week on what we do,” Lemish said.

Lemish fell in love with Alaska during a visit about 10 years ago, she said. She returned to Georgia, sold her house, then moved here and met her husband, a fellow ex-Georgian. She worked at restaurants initially, including as general manager at Benihana, she said.

The shop is open 6:30 a.m. to 3 p.m., Monday to Friday.

Muldoon Pizza: After more than 40 years in business, brothers Jim and Steve Schwarz have sold this East Anchorage landmark.

The new owner plans to keep the Muldoon Pizza name and menu, said Steve Schwarz. He’ll update the restaurant’s original interior, including the velvet-patterned wallpaper.

“It’s and old restaurant in an old building, so he’ll make it real nice,” Schwarz said.

Steve Schwarz started working at the shop in 1977, delivering pizzas in a 1969 Camaro after high school, he said. His brother soon joined him.

By 1982, they saved up enough money to buy the business, Steve Schwarz said.

In recent years, the shop scaled back its hours. It seemed people were spending less because of inflation, he said.

Retirement is bittersweet, he said. “I’m happy but at the same time I’m gonna miss the folks, the customers, the regulars, the employees we work with. You can’t do something for over 40 years and not miss it when you leave,” he said.

Jim Schwarz said on Facebook: “This journey has been one filled with joy, laughter, and countless slices of Muldoon pizza shared with all of you. I’ve had the honor of watching generations grow up visiting and dining with us, celebrating birthdays, victories, and even just the simple pleasures of life over a warm, comforting slice.”

“It’s been more than just a business; it’s been our home,” he said.

The Schwarz brothers’ last day as owners is Saturday, Nov. 30.

SHUT

Spinz Pollo a la Brasa: This Peruvian chicken diner opened nearly three years ago to lines of patrons out the door.

But owner Daniel Mainor said this week it’s now closed, after inflation contributed to unexpected costs and hurt customers’ disposable income. The location, off Mountain View Drive north of the Glenn Highway, also wasn’t ideal, he said.

The concept, Latin American flavors centered around rotisserie chicken spun over wood charcoal, was good, he said. There’s a “strong possibility for a Spinz 2.0″ in a different location, he said.

“I want to give Anchorage a shoutout,” he said. “We made it this long in a city with a great food scene.”

Kiss a Moose: Owner Coby Brock closed this gift shop and photo gallery in downtown Anchorage after two years in business.

He said this week that safety and security were frequent concerns that led to the closing.

Kiss a Moose, which among other items sells Brock’s photos of Alaska wildlife, will focus once again on craft fairs, he said.