A new Thai restaurant is moving into the old Typhoon! location on Bond Street, on the first floor of Franklin Crossing.
The restaurant, called Noi, is owned by a Seattle-based Thai family with two existing restaurants in that city, said Darren Powderly, president of Compass Commercial, which assisted in the leasing of the property.
“It is really high quality authentic Thai,” said Powderly. “It’s going to be as good, if not a lot better than Typhoon!”
Typhoon! went out of business earlier this year after the Oregon Bureau of Labor and Industry charged the chain of restaurants with multiple violations of state civil rights laws. BOLI found that the company “used its leverage over workers recruited from Thailand to impose lower pay, longer hours and unfavorable contract terms,” according to a December news release from the agency.
The same owners of Typhoon! had leased a second space in the Franklin Crossing building called Bo Restobar. That location was also closed when the company went out of business. The former Bo space, which features a bar and full kitchen, has not yet been leased, said Powderly.
Powderly said that Noi purchased Typhoon!’s restaurant furnishings and kitchen equipment, but has also acquired a great deal of equipment and décor from Thailand, where the family that owns Noi maintains strong ties.
The lease for the space was actually signed in Bangkok by several family members, said Powderly.
Noi has applied for a liquor license and should open within the next few months.
