An uber-hip hangout with imaginative, Minnesota-influenced pan-Asian fare.
(612) 326-6356
2550 Nicollet Ave
Minneapolis,
MN
55404
44.9564
-93.2779
Neighborhoods: Powderhorn, Whittier
Azia & Caterpillar Lounge
Last updated 7.24.09
What People Are Saying About Azia & Caterpillar Lounge
The Owner
Azia & Caterpillar Lounge
Owner
Located on eat street in Uptown, Azia has brought a new kind of sophisticated, yet laid-back eloquence to the diversified Nicollet Avenue strip. The winning quality of this restaurant has been recognizes by being named Bon Appetit's "Where to Eat" in 2003 and 2004. As one critic states, "Sacred Asian art meets James Bond chic." Let Chef and Owner, Thom Pham, take you on a culinary adventure ranging from traditional stir frys to a North Woods Walleye in Jalapeno-Basil sauce, to a perfectly braised tenderloin topped with an exotic Asian mushroom demi-glace. When you visit, chances are good…
The Editor
Contributor
Citysearch
In Short – Black leather jackets are de rigueur on Azia's slick clientele, who congregate at high booths and little tables. The place suits any mood, with a bustling bar up front; an inviting main dining room with cranberry-colored walls; a Chinese-inspired black-and-red middle room; and a "Star Trek"-like lounge for sake and desserts. The menu encompasses much of Asia's cuisine with pizzazz: curry with cranberries, spicy cream cheese puffs, fried Minnesota walleye with a neon-green jalapeno-basil sauce.
10/27/09
Amazing Date Location!
by EtotheG at Citysearch
I enjoy a good sake, and this place has got an amazing selection. Go during happy hour and get a ton of appetizers and a flight of sake, you will be happy you did. Their cranberry cream cheese wontons are out of this world as is all of their other food. We just order one of each on the menu in a large group and pass things around family style. I love the decor and service as well!
- Pros: great ambiance, fantastic food
- Cons: sake was pricey, parking is scarce
10/06/09
Horrible sushi for lunch
by picklewaffler at Citysearch
I went in because I was craving sushi and was in the eat street area. I thought I would try out Azia's sushi bar. When I came in, the server and rest of the staff were chatting very loudly and simply put the way the server interacted with me made me feel very awkward. I ordered hotate, unagi, maguro, ika, green tea, and miso soup. Then I got the food. First of all, the miso soup was RED and the ingredients were so coursely chopped that it was hard to enjoy the soup. I understood that it's a "fusion" miso soup, but really they spoiled a good thing and for $5.50 (who ever heard of miso soup being that expensive?). The sushi took forever to come out and the cuts of fish were generous but the sushi rice was UNDERCOOKED! Absolute DISGRACE! There were bits of hard rice which is horrible in the mouth especially when you are trying to enjoy the delicate flavors of the raw fish. Then the worst part, I got the bill and it was $50! They charged me $6 for a pot of green tea, which is horrendous for just hot water. And the sushi was probably $4-$5 more expensive than any of the other good quality sushi restaurants like Origami, Nami, and Sakura. The worst price was their uni at $11 whereas at Nami it is $6.75. The quality of their fish that day was on par with other restaurants but it is not worth paying double and it is certainly not worth getting undercooked rice. Maybe I came in at the wrong time or day but my experience was absolutely dissatisfying. I'm sure the other "fusion" dishes at this restaurant are fine and the atmosphere is pretty hip but they do not deserve to have a sushi bar.
- Pros: nice atmosphere
- Cons: high price, mediocre service, bad sushi
09/09/09
AZIA CHARGED OVER $2000 ON MY CARD!!!
by BAYSHA5 at Citysearch
September 09, 2009 - I HAD THE WORST DINING EXPERIENCE OF MY LIFE AT AZIA RESTAURANT! My husband and I celebrated his B-Day at AZIA 2 nights in a row. The first night we were joined by his friends and our family, and everyone had a great time. When we went back the second night, my husband accidentally ordered raw fish for dinner, all of our appetizers, so far that night had been cooked Sushi and our waiter did not inform us that, Sushimi is raw fish. alone. The waiter was snotty and rude and told us we would have to pay for the uneaten fish, than the manager PAOLO MORALES came over to ask me about the problem. I told him that we had been there two nights in a row and we had already spent a considerable amount of money and we were willing to pay for what we had eaten but not the raw fish which hadn't been touched. Unbelievably, I was unable to reason with the manager PAOLO MORALES. He became completely agitated and told me that if didn't pay the entire amount he would call the police on us, SO I decided to call the police first. The POLICE came. 2 SQUAD CARS, 3 OFFICERS. The police sided with us. One of the officers took my card and allowed PAOLO MORALES, TO SWIPE MY CARD, FOR THE AGREED AMOUNT OF $51.11. I noticed PAOLO MORALES quickly wrote something down and I became immediately suspicious. I asked the Officer what he was writing down and he said, probably your name, just as a scare tactic, AZIA HAS THE RIGHT TO TAKE YOU TO SMALL CLAIMS COURT, BUT I DOUBT THAT THEY WILL. Unbelievable! Now you think that would be the end of that but my husband and I left and I checked my account about 15 to 20 min. later and my account had been considerably drained. OF COURSE I FREAKED OUT. In the morning I figured out that AZIA had charged my account TWICE! The first initial transaction, in front of MPLS'S FINEST and the second, not swiped, typed in, after we left. THE SECOND TRANSACTION, THE ONE MADE AFTER WE LEFT AZIA WAS FOR $2214.50. You would think TOM PHAM, owner of AZIA would have returned our money immediately and fire manager PAOLO MORALES but he did neither. It took 5 days for AZIA to return the money and TOM PHAM TOLD ME IN THIS ECONOMY I WOULDN'T WANT TO FIRE ANYONE, SO I'M HERE TO TELL EVERYONE, IN THIS ECONOMY DON'T GO TO AZIA, THEY HAVE TERRIBLE POLICIES AND THEY HAVE SHADY PEOPLE WORKING FOR THEM, AND IF YOU DO DECIDE TO GO THERE, DON'T USE YOUR CARD OR YOU MIGHT END UP WITH A DRAINED BANK ACCOUNT.
- Pros: NONE
- Cons: SHADY MANAGEMENT AND OWNER
The Details on Azia & Caterpillar Lounge
Where to Sit:
The main dining room offers the best people-watching and the warmest atmosphere.
What to Drink:
The cocktail list is chock-full of tropical delights--don't miss the flaming Molotov mojito.
Save Money:
From 3 to 6 pm weekdays, Azia offers small plates for $4.95, including Tom Pham's famous sushi rolls, potstickers, cranberry cream-cheese puffs and more. Certain red and white wines are half-price, and the normally expensive fruity drinks go for a little less expensive $7.
When to Go:
Late-night crowds gather here of the late-night Happy Hour (same as the one that runs weekdays from 3 to 6pm), and for the DJ spinning club hits in Azia's Caterpillar Lounge. Looking for low-key? Azia has that, too, in the restaurant's main bar and dining area.
Category:
Payment Methods:
American Express, Debit Card, Visa, Discover, MasterCard
Restaurant Special Features:
Local Favorite, Private Rooms, Romantic Dining, Special Occasion Dining, Outdoor Dining, Theater District Dining, Group Dining, Happy Hour, Bar Scene, Notable Wine List
Cuisine:
Eclectic & International, Pan-Asian & Pacific Rim, Japanese, Thai, Vegetarian, Asian, Seafood, Chinese, Vietnamese
Bar & Club Special Features:
Smoking Permitted:
No
Message from Azia & Caterpillar Lounge
- Enticing happy hour features
- Full menu served until 2am
- Music nightly
Located on eat street in Uptown, Azia has brought a new kind of sophisticated, yet laid-back eloquence to the diversified Nicollet Avenue strip. The winning quality of this restaurant has been recognizes by being named Bon Appetit's "Where to Eat" in 2003 and 2004.
As one critic states, "Sacred Asian art meets James Bond chic." Let Chef and Owner, Thom Pham, take you on a culinary adventure ranging from traditional stir frys to a North Woods Walleye in Jalapeno-Basil sauce, to a perfectly braised tenderloin topped with an exotic Asian mushroom demi-glace. When you visit, chances are good that Thom himself is on site and tending to every guest as though he's invited them for a private dinner party. In fact, fundamentally, he has.
Azia also offers a wide variety of original house cocktails, the largest sake menu in Minnesota, a refined wine and list and beer, bottled and on tap.
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