Story about Cyclo Cafe, calls Fremont’s Globe “mostly vacant strip mall”
By Matt Artz
Wednesday, July 8th, 2009 at 10:29 am in business.
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By Matt Artz
Wednesday, July 8th, 2009 at 10:29 am in business.
[You can leave a response, or trackback from your own site.]
July 8th, 2009 at 12:07 pm
Matt,
That link didn’t work for me.
July 8th, 2009 at 12:12 pm
Not working for me either.
July 8th, 2009 at 12:49 pm
Link doesn’t work for me either, but here’s the part of the article that talks about Cyclo Cafe:
Tips Included: Cyclo Cafe brings panini and flower tea to Fremont
By Lynn Carey
Contra Costa Times Correspondent
Posted: 07/08/2009 01:00:00 AM PDT
Fremont’s new Cyclo Cafe opened in mid-June. If it’s anything like its chef and co-owner, Jenny Pham, it’s sure to be successful.
Pham, 29, is well-known in fashion circles for her whimsical silk “party dresses,” as she describes them. A childhood penchant for making doll clothes out of scraps led to four Jenny N. boutiques for real girls, including two in Vietnam and one frequented by Hollywood stars on Melrose Avenue in Los Angeles.
“I began making money when I was 8 or 9,” she says with a laugh.
She’s still designing clothes, but Pham’s other passion is food “… thus, the Cyclo Cafe.
“I’ve always had a passion for cooking,” she says. And, much as she taught herself how to design clothing, she never had formal training at a culinary academy.
“I learned to cook from the Food Network,” she says. “I go to book stores and read a lot of cook books. I follow different chefs.”
Pham also spent three months in Bangkok, learning how to prepare Thai food, and time in Paris studying French cuisine and baking. It’s all reflected in the menu at Cyclo Cafe (named for the three-wheeled bicycles popular with tourists in Asian countries — she has two in the cafe, in fact.)
Panini sandwiches on fresh bread are prevalent on the menu, as are salads and side dishes such as egg rolls, sweet potato fries, eggplant fries and a banana wrap (bananas wrapped in rice paper, deep fried and served with chocolate sauce). A vegetarian breakfast panini, for instance, features spinach, sun dried tomatoes, portobello mushrooms and smoked mozzarella ($3). The Tuscan grilled chicken panini ($5) on the lunch menu and Napa Valley smoked turkey panini, made with grilled apples, red onion relish and brie ($5.50, dinner menu) are both served with side salads. The cafe also serves generously sized espresso drinks, complete with Italian-style foam decor on the top; flowering tea in glass teapots and several desserts. The menu will expand in the coming weeks — Pham says she’s adding three burgers this week.
The simple, modern cafe seats about 30 people inside and 12 outside on the patio.
“I just wanted to have a place for people to come in and enjoy food,” Pham says.
Cyclo Cafe, tucked away in a brand new, mostly vacant strip mall, is at 6038 Stevenson Blvd., Fremont. It’s open 7 a.m. to 9 p.m. Monday through Thursday; until 10 p.m. Friday and Saturday, and 7 a.m. to 6 p.m. Sundays. 510-249-9999.
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I haven’t been to the Globe, but I was under the impression that it is primarily vacant – is that incorrect? If memory serves, didn’t reps from a night club go to Planning Commission meetings a while back to talk about putting their business in there?
July 8th, 2009 at 12:52 pm
With her culinary experience, can a seat on the Planning Commission be next for Ms. Pham?
July 8th, 2009 at 4:25 pm
The link works now. Or at least it works for me. Matt, no graphic of the “Wig-o-Sphere” from The Simpsons?
July 9th, 2009 at 6:08 pm
I guess I’m not the only one who remembered that fantastic comment. At the time I thought, “Boy, someone sure has been taking their excitability pills.”
Seeing what it is now, the quote is even more hilarious. Every time I see that billboard on the corner, I chuckle and hope that things improve enough to make it a reality.
You could comment that economic times have changed, but who could have reasonably believed that times wouldn’t when property values in Fremont were climbing at double digit rates? It doesn’t take a rocket scientist to see how that’s unsustainable.
July 26th, 2009 at 5:53 pm
The wife and I checked out the Cyclo Cafe last night… had a little trouble finding it since we had not been to the Globe center before. After going all the way around we found it in a store front facing west.
The decor is pretty cool, you can tell the owner put a lot of effort into it. The staff is helpful, suggested some good options. The panini sandwiches are really good, come with a nice green salad side. We had the Tuscan chicken and the veggie, both were great. These are not like the vietnamese style sandwiches made from baguettes that I’ve had elsewhere, but are panini style.
The Globe center is still pretty empty, though there is a Pho place that was getting some business, and another restaurant to open soon. We liked the Cyclo Cafe, will go there again. I told them this blog was where we first heard about it…