Award-winning chef Ann Kim closes Uptown restaurant

Kim’s, award-winning chef Ann Kim’s Minneapolis restaurant, will close at the end of the month. The Kim’s restaurant group announced the closure of the Korean-American eatery in Uptown.

“Vestalia Hospitality announced today that it will close Kim’s effective August 30, 2024 due to ongoing financial losses,” the statement said.

The press release also states that reservations and gift cards will remain valid until the last day of operation. After the closure, gift cards can be redeemed at Kim’s other restaurants – Pizzeria Lola, Hello Pizza and Young Joni. Kim declined further comment.

The restaurant from the 2019 James Beard Award winner (Best Chef: Midwest) opened in 2021 as Sooki & Mimi in the former space of Lucia’s (1432 W. 31st. St., Mpls.) with a Mexican-Korean tasting menu touted as a “celebration of vegetables and nixtamal” that would evolve. Last fall, Kim ended Sooki & Mimi’s and, after a brief remodel, reopened the restaurant as Kim’s with a menu based on the chef’s Korean-American history. It opened to rave reviews. Bronto Bar, Kim’s underground cocktail lounge, also closed this summer, along with the decision to end a short-lived lunch service.

Both versions of Kim’s restaurant have faced challenges. The highly anticipated opening of Sooki & Mimi had to be postponed because of the pandemic. This spring, Kim’s employees petitioned to form a union, and in late June, 65% of workers voted in favor. The next step was to negotiate a collective bargaining agreement. In early June, the restaurant was vandalized.

Correction: An earlier version of this story contained an incorrect time frame for Kim.