Señor Wong has to be one of the trippiest restaurant names ever to come out of downtown St. Paul. And that's a good thing, because this sleepy city center needs some attention, people.
But even beyond its ridiculously mixed-up name, Señor Wong will catch your eye. Asian-styled, with hints of Latin America, its setting seems to have been assembled by someone with a very specific idea of what they wanted. Like any stylish nightspot, it offers a long drink list, moody lighting and tasty late-night specials. But there's also a swig of casualness -- a pool table and two dartboards have been dropped into the middle of the joint.
That's just what owner Son Truong wanted. But as he tells it, the whole thing started with just a taco.
Truong, 32, and his roommate, Bobby Wong, had mastered their own authentic homemade taco. Every Wednesday the two would invite friends over to share in their chorizo- and pico de gallo-filled delight. They loved it so much that they thought about going into business -- maybe a pushcart in downtown Minneapolis.
Truong found the image of "two Asian guys pushing a cart down Nicollet Mall selling tacos" a bit silly, he said. Instead, he envisioned a funky restaurant and cocktail lounge. He had the experience -- his family has worked in the restaurant business since moving here from Vietnam in 1979. (His father opened Caravelle, his older brother owns Ngon Bistro and relatives run Pho 79.) With help from his younger brother, Lam, he decided to stick with what he knew best: pan-Asian food, but with a place for his favorite tacos.
Thus was born Señor Wong, named after his roommate, who is Chinese and works at the restaurant.
"It flowed better than 'Señor Truong,'" he said.
The whole Asian-Latino thing is reminiscent of Chino Latino, but for my taste, everything here seems a lot less manufactured.
