Tag Archives: 12th ave

Coming soon to 12th Ave: Kemi Dessert Bar set to create its own identity in Capitol Hill’s cookie, cake, and pastry community

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Black sesame hazelnut thumbprints (Image: Kemi Dessert Bar)

The business has grown with pop-ups and holiday events (Image: Kemi Dessert Bar)

The success of Kelly Miao’s black sesame hazelnut thumbprints, matcha kumquat cakes, and dense slices of Hong Kong milk tea basque cheesecake is so close, you can taste it.

“It’s in the palm of my hand right now. I just need to make it happen,” Miao tells CHS as she prepares for her planned opening next month of Kemi Dessert Bar, a working dessert kitchen and cookie, cake, and pastry walk-up counter planned to open soon on 12th Ave.

Miao comes to Capitol Hill having cut her sweet tooth in New York City’s “Instagram Bakery Scene” — yes, they have one of those — and honing her craft in pastry arts at a prestigious roster of NYC bakeries, bars, and restaurants, including a joint with a Michelin star.

There are no Michelin stars on 12th Ave but Miao arrived in Seattle with the dream of opening her own place here and started to get to work with the locals. Miao joined up with the crew giving Coping Cookies a go on 12th Ave where they combined chocolate chips with support for social causes. Coping Cookies also built out a lovely bakery for the venture.

Soon, the cookie business wasn’t working out and Miao decided it was time to step up. “I’m trying to get my roots in Seattle — I figure I’d shoot my shot and see if I could take over their space.”

Now Kemi Dessert Bar is about to happen. Continue reading →

With Missouri connections and masala, Mint and Martini lined up to fill empty Barrio space on 12th Ave

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(Image: Mint and Martini)

A big hole in the Capitol Hill restaurant scene is set to be filled by a new venture with far flung connections.

The arrival of Mint and Martini will illustrate both the resiliency of the neighborhood’s food and drink industry — and some of changing recipes for success here as a new wave of investors, entrepreneurs, and chefs move in.

Permits and business licensing records show the new Mint and Martini restaurant is being lined up to open in the shuttered 12th Ave space left empty by Barrio’s late summer closure there after 16 years of business.

It won’t be the first Mint and Martini on the planet. Records show ownership of the new Seattle project includes the family who opened a Mint and Martini boasting “fusion dishes like the maharani curry and a Tikka Vikka pizza” and cocktails — along with a chicken nugget-friendly kids menu — last year in lovely Grover, Missouri. Continue reading →

Goodbye to Plum and 20 years of vegan good eats and memories on Capitol Hill

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A family’s more than 20 year vegan and vegetarian connection to the neighborhood is ending and one of Capitol Hill’s few Black food and drink owners is leaving to focus on a new venture in the south of the city. Plum Bistro is now permanently closed.

“We will look back on these past 20 years with great gratitude for your patronage,” chef and extra busy Seattle food and drink entrepreneur Makini Howell said in the announcement. “It’s been such a pleasure to share the joy of vegan food with you.”

The closure will leave a hole in 12th Ave’s dining scene where Plum has neighbored Osteria la Spiga since 2009 in the Piston Ring building. The 12th Ave facing Piston Ring’s connection with the block’s 11th Ave-facing Chophouse Row development has stayed busy with food and drink options through changes big and small over the years. Plum’s exit could make way for one of Chophouse’s existing tenants to move up to the street level — or it could make a place for a new venture to move in. Plum’s small Plum Chopped lunch and salad sibling which opened next door in 2017 is also part of the closure. Continue reading →

028 Barber School is growing on Capitol Hill — Your head can be part of the curriculum

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(Image: 028 Barber School)

This new Capitol Hill shop does more than fades and crops. It is helping create new barbers every day on 12th Ave. If you’re up for having your head be part of the course materials, you can help out by getting a $15 cut.

“The new location we recently opened is a barber school, not a barber shop,” the 028 Barber School tells CHS. “We currently operate four 028 Barber Shop locations, and this new facility is specifically designed to train aspiring barbers in the area.”

CHS reported on the new 028 project in September as the facility took over a former workout studio on 12th Ave inside the Trace Lofts building, part of continued growth for the six-year-old company and owner Bill Shin. It is the second 028 location in Seattle joining shops in Woodinville, Federal Way, and Redmond with traditional barber services focused on walk-in customers.

But the 12th Ave 028 is different. Shin is hoping to train and help grow Seattle’s haircutting skills. Continue reading →

Hazardous material response clears Capitol Hill’s East Precinct and nearby buildings — UPDATE

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(Image: Matt Mitgang)

The Seattle Police Department evacuated its East Precinct and nearby businesses were cleared due to worries about a hazardous material response at the 12th at Pine facility early Thursday morning.

The situation was first reported to Seattle Fire at 7:40 AM and a hazardous materials response team was dispatched to the scene.

Police were also clearing nearby businesses, according to East Precinct radio updates.

(Image: Matt Mitgang)

UPDATE 9:42 AM: Seattle Fire says it was able to determine the bagged material was not hazardous after taking over the scene from SPD’s bomb squad who also investigated the incident. SFD said police were now continuing their investigation. Seattle Fire, however, advised police to clean the carpet the suspicious bag was left on, according to one emergency radio update.

Residents who had cleared from nearby apartment buildings were told they could now proceed through the area to return home.

SPD reported it had taken one person into custody near 11th and Pine. An ambulance was called to that scene for a suspect reported in possible crisis.

Traffic was being diverted in the area around 12th and Pine as police and emergency vehicles responded to the scene.

A Seattle Fire spokesperson said only that the department had responded to the building for the possible hazardous material response and referred all further questions to SPD.

UPDATE: SPD provided little information on the incident, sending only this brief to media:

At approximately 7:30 a.m., an item was found around the East Precinct. The area around the precinct was evacuated and cordoned off as precaution. The item was deemed safe by Seattle Fire Department and SPD detectives in ABS. The streets were reopened approximately 2-3 hours later.

We’ll follow up to learn more about the person taken into custody during the incdent.

 

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As Seattle U continues to grow along 12th Ave including plans for new art museum, school will expand to South Lake Union with Cornish College takeover

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(Image: Cornish College of the Arts)

Seattle University will take over the Cornish College of the Arts in a agreement announced Thursday.

“Seattle University joining forces with Cornish will combine two storied Seattle institutions of higher learning into one,” Seattle U president Eduardo Peñalver said in a statement. “It will create incredible new opportunities for our students to expand their educational horizons and for faculty to pursue innovative interdisciplinary collaborations. This is definitely a case of ‘one plus one equals three.’”

The “modern, progressive, and global Jesuit Catholic university” on the southern edge of Capitol Hill says it is working on a final deal to acquire the college as it undertakes “a thorough due diligence review of Cornish’s finances, holdings and assets, operations, compliance and legal obligations.”

The takeover comes as Cornish officials have said enrollment at the arts college has continued to fade, falling to just under 500 students. Last month, CHS reported on Cornish’s sale of its final physical connection to Capitol Hill as it agreed to sell the historic Kerry Hall studio and performance space to Seattle Theater Group for $6 million.

The addition of Cornish to the Seattle U family won’t change the direction of the arts college’s hopes for growth in South Lake Union. The schools said Thursday the plan is “continuing to educate students at its South Lake Union campus.” Continue reading →

As Voodoo arrives on Capitol Hill, Seattle’s Mighty-O Donuts faces bankruptcy — UPDATE

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(Image: Mighty-O Donuts)

As a doughnut invader from the south prepares its sweet assault on the city with a Capitol Hill beachhead, a veteran of Seattle’s fried dough scene is financially struggling.

Federal court documents show Mighty-O Donuts filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy protection in July in a case where the filings continue over the more than $1 million in liabilities the small Seattle company carries.

CHS has asked the company for more information about its future and its employees after the filing that came as Might-O founder Ryan Kellner saw profits at his four cafes and production facility dip to near zero this summer.

In its filing, the company blames the pandemic and national economic issues for its troubles saying “a combination of factors, including the adverse effects of the pandemic, increased costs due to inflation, decreased sales, and high fixed lease costs” led to the bankruptcy.

“Mighty-O experienced modest growth for many years until the COVID-19 pandemic in
2020,” one document reads. “The pandemic severely impacted Mighty-O’s ability to operate a financially sound business. The company experienced a significant drop in customer traffic and a decrease in employee availability, preventing it from operating at full capacity. Additionally, Mighty-O faced major disruptions in supply chains, vendor services, and rising costs due to inflation.” Continue reading →

911 | Woman critical after 12th Ave crash, man survives I-5 fall, Broadway bike lock cutter works fast

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The Broadway bike lock cutter at work

See something others should know about? Email CHS or call/txt/Signal (206) 399-5959. You can view recent CHS 911 coverage here. Hear sirens and wondering what’s going on? Check out reports from @jseattle or join and check in with neighbors in the CHS Facebook Group.

  • 12th Ave crash: A woman was reported in critical condition after Seattle Fire rescuers cut open the roof of the car she was driving to remove the unconscious patient from the vehicle in a crash involving multiple vehicles Wednesday night in front of Seattle University. Seattle Police and SFD were called to the crash scene just before 11:30 PM to a report of a woman trapped unconscious inside a vehicle following a collision with another car that also damaged multiple cars parked in the area. A Seattle Fire rescue crew was able to extract the 26-year-old and she was rushed to Harborview in critical condition. 12th Ave at Marion was closed to traffic during the response.
  • 10th Ave hatchet arrest: A man was taken into custody Saturday night after reportedly causing chaos with a hatchet at a 10th Ave supportive housing facility. Police were called to the Downtown Emergency Center facility just before 10:30 PM to a report the man was chasing people and trying to chop down doors. Police used a non-lethal taser to subdue the man and take him into custody, according to East Precinct radio updates. Seattle Fire was called to the scene to provide treatment.
  • I-5 fall: A 50-year-old man survived a plunge onto I-5 from Melrose Thanksgiving afternoon. According to East Precinct and emergency radio reports, a man reportedly leapt onto the E Olive Way exit from I-5 just before 3:30 PM Thursday. Seattle Police officers first on the scene reported the man was conscious and alert after the fall. Seattle Fire was called to the scene to provide aid and transport to the hospital in serious condition for further treatment. No vehicles were reported involved in the incident. The exit was closed to traffic during the response. Resources to help those in need: National suicide-prevention hotline: 800-273-8255. Local Crisis Clinic: (206) 461-3222. If you need immediate assistance, call 911.
  • Broadway bike lock cutter: How fast can someone cut a bike lock? This video shared by a member of the CHS Facebook Group last Monday shows a man using a cordless power tool to cut away the lock on a parked electric bike in under 60 seconds before awkwardly riding from the scene as passersby try to sort out what they’re seeing. How fast? This fast:

 

HELP KEEP CHS PAYWALL-FREE
Subscribe to CHS to help us hire writers and photographers to cover the neighborhood. CHS is a pay what you can community news site with no required sign-in or paywall. To stay that way, we need you.

Become a subscriber to help us cover the neighborhood for as little as $5 a month. 

 

‘A Man in a Porsche with a Trump Flag Hit Him with a Baseball Bat’ — More on SPD’s investigation of the possible Capitol Hill Election Night hate crime The Stranger dug up

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While several reports of disturbances involving Trump supporters on Election Night on Capitol Hill involved individuals or groups yelling from passing vehicles, details of an incident reported to have started with hateful harassment that escalated into an assault with a baseball bat on a gay man on 12th Ave have finally been made public.

The Seattle Police Department is looking for the suspects involved in the Election Night assault on Capitol Hill and investigating the incident as a possible hate crime.

The Stranger was first to report the assault investigation Friday reporting “a man in a Porsche with a Trump flag hit him with a baseball bat” and questioning SPD why the department did not go public with the investigation or seek assistance in the case. A spokesperson told the outlet that detectives “may not publicize a case to prevent suspects from destroying evidence, or drawing others who may copy the crime.” Continue reading →

Landlord says shuttered Capitol Hill pizza joint left behind thousands in unpaid rent

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An unsatisfied customer’s contribution in Google Reviews

After three years of bizarre hours and arguably some of the worst slices ever sold on Capitol Hill, Fat Tomato has closed for good, leaving behind around $100,000 in unpaid rent, according to court filings and a notice posted at the shuttered 12th and Pine restaurant.

Court records show Equity Residential Management suing the restaurant’s ownership for nine months of unpaid rent — $96,815.18 as of September.

Photos of the complaint taped to the closed restaurant’s door make up some of the latest Fat Tomato photos posted to social media along with a rogue’s gallery of customers showing off some of the questionable pie they’ve been served over recent years at the corner pizza shop. Continue reading →