Downtown Minneapolis is about to get a new place to unwind, and it's landing in a spot that has been dark for years. Soho Lounge is opening in the basement of 923 Nicollet Mall, the former home of Ties Rooftop and Lounge. The new venue is targeting an opening before Halloween.
A Quiet Basement on Nicollet Mall Gets a Second Life
This address has seen a lot of turnover. Over the years it has been home to Ling and Louie's, a restaurant named after Minnesota Vikings legend John Randle, and Rojo Mexican Grill. Ties Rooftop and Lounge was the most recent tenant before it closed in 2022, and the basement has sat quiet since then.
Now Seckin Gungordu, who owns the Turkish restaurant Lumi next door, is stepping in to change that. He wants to give downtown workers and visitors a fresh reason to stick around after hours.
What to Expect Inside Soho Lounge
Soho Lounge will run about 2,000 square feet and blend the feel of a lounge, a speakeasy, and a night club. Plans call for roughly five different lounge spaces, and some of them will open up into dance floors as the evening goes on. There will be a full bar, bottle service, and a limited menu of finger foods.
It will operate as its own business with a separate entrance from Lumi, and it's designed to pair nicely with Lumi's Babylon Rooftop for a full night out. [INTERNAL LINK: relevant blog post or listings page]
Why This Matters for Downtown Minneapolis
Here's the bigger picture. Downtown Minneapolis has been working through a quieter stretch since the pandemic, with office and retail vacancies along the Nicollet Mall corridor. When a local owner chooses to invest in a challenged area instead of waiting for it to recover on its own, it sends a signal.
Foot traffic, nightlife, and dining options are part of what keeps a downtown healthy, and each new opening gives residents from across the Twin Cities another reason to come spend time in the heart of the city. For anyone who cares about the east metro and greater Minneapolis, momentum downtown tends to ripple outward. A stronger, more active core supports the whole region, from the suburbs to the city itself.
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