Skanska announced today that it leased the final retail space at Alley 111 – its downtown Bellevue, Wash. multi-family development – to Minamoto, a Japanese fine dining restaurant.
Expected to open spring 2017, Minamoto will occupy 3,144 square feet at Alley 111. The restaurant will feature modern Japanese cuisine, specializing in sushi and an Omakase, or chef’s choice, dining experience.
Chef Dylan Xu opened his first restaurant, Iki Modern Japanese Cuisine, in 2015, rated number six on Eater’s list of New York City’s 12 Hottest Sushi Restaurants. He later went on to work as a chef at well-known Manhattan restaurants O Ya, Brushstroke, and Ichimura—where he continued to refine his skills and menu. Xu and Sushi Chef Grant Lin have been a team for years, first meeting in the kitchen of renowned Japanese Chef Masayoshi Takayama at Kappo Massa. Lin later served as head sushi chef at Iki. Minamoto General Manager Issac Zhang also worked with the team at Iki and has a background in Japanese liquor.
“We’re excited to team up again to introduce our first West Coast restaurant in Bellevue at Alley 111. Our years of experience working together and our vision for high-end, Japanese food will create a one of a kind experience in the region,” said Chef Lin.
Minamoto joins Honor Coffee & Tea, a 1,820 square-foot lease, to finalize leasing the 6,000 square feet of retail space at Alley 111. Honor Coffee & Tea was the first Alley 111 tenant, bringing a unique craft coffee experience, through which the founders aim to “bring honor to the very farmer that harvested the bean, and the dozens of hands that have touched it along the way.”
“At Skanska, we have a core value of enhancing the communities that surround our projects, and Minamoto and Honor Coffee represent the desires of our Alley 111 customer and the downtown Bellevue patron,” said Murphy McCullough, Executive Vice President for Skanska in Seattle.
The apartments at Alley 111, a 12-story, 260-unit multi-family building, are now 97 percent leased. Located at 11011 NE 9th Street adjacent to the growing pedestrian entertainment corridor, with easy access to the Transit Center, core business district, the Bellevue Collection and the Bravern, which Skanska also built.
Skanska’s other developments in the Seattle area include 2+U, a 38-story office building with 665,000 square feet office space lifted above 18,500-SF square feet of retail and 30,000 square feet of covered outdoor space, currently under construction in Seattle’s downtown core at Second Avenue and University Street—a prime downtown Seattle location; 400 Fairview, a 14-story Class A office building in South Lake Union, headquarters to Tommy Bahama, Impinj, Car Toys and Delta Dental of Washington, and a ground floor retail market hall; and Stone34, the global headquarters for Brooks Sports, which met the City of Seattle’s requirements of the City’s Deep Green Pilot Program – making it one of the greenest buildings on the west coast.
With more than 70 years of history in the Puget Sound region, Skanska combines generations of local knowledge with the vast tools of a global construction and development firm to build what matters for local communities. Skanska’s portfolio ranges from local landmarks, such as Benaroya Hall and the Museum of Glass, to small tenant improvements and major infrastructure projects like the replacement of the southern mile of the Alaskan Way Viaduct. Recognized as one of the region’s top corporate philanthropists, Skanska is also committed to creating new opportunities for local small, traditionally disadvantaged businesses.