Mi Luna Cuban Cafe has opened at the corner of Union Avenue and Capitol Way South, just north of the Capitol Campus, according to its social media page.
“Mi Luna Cuban Cafe is proud to be Olympia, Washington’s first Cuban restaurant,” the website reads. “We are family owned and operated, and all of our food is prepared using original family recipes.”
So what’s on the menu? Here are the two dinner entrees:
? Lechon: Mojo-marinated slow roasted pork shoulder. Fresh citrus, garlic, and cumin served with rice, black beans and housemade pineapple salsa.
? Ropa Vieja: Cuba’s national dish. Tender shredded steak, simmered in a savory tomato and white wine sauce. Mild peppers, garlic, olives, capers. Rice and beans.
Although the business opened last weekend, it had to close mid-week for kitchen hood repairs, then reopened again, according to the website.
“Our plan is to re-open Thursday–Saturday for our regular hours: 10 a.m. to 2:30 p.m. for lunch and 5 to 8:30 p.m. for dinner.
“Thank you for your support as we continue to get up and running at full capacity!”
Curt Clinton, the fourth generation owner of Clinton’s Music House, a piano retailer on Harrison Hill in west Olympia, has decided to retire, he said this week. He also is selling the building, a transaction that is expected to close around May 1, he said.
The business still has 20 refurbished pianos for sale that Clinton is offering for half off or less.
“Now is the time,” he said.
The business got its start in 1898 in Tacoma and later expanded to Olympia when Capital Mall opened in 1978. The business then moved to its current location on the corner of Harrison Avenue and Plymouth Street in 1997.
During the intervening years, the business regularly sold pianos at area fairs, including what used to be known as the Puyallup Fair, he said. And they did a brisk business, Clinton said.
Now, the piano business is not what it once was, he said. During the Great Recession there was a period where nothing sold for six or seven months, and later the business had to confront the pandemic.
What’s next for Curt? He plans to stay put, he said. His wife continues to run an interior decorating business and he has two sons with grandchildren in the area.
Interested in a piano? Before the music house closes, it is open 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. Mondays through Fridays.
Love it or hate it, work has started on the new Chick-fil-A in west Olympia near Capital Mall, according to a check of the property.
The corner of Capital Mall Drive and Cooper Point Road has been the focus of a multi-year process to bring the business to the site. That effort also forced an existing restaurant, Fujiyama, to move to a new location on Cooper Point Road.
Lacey also has a Chick-fil-A on Marvin Road.
A check of social media shows that some residents are asking about a building taking shape near The Home Depot in Tumwater on Kingswood Drive Southwest.
Kingswood intersects with Littlerock Road.
The structure is the TownePlace Suites hotel, which is part of the Kingswood Commercial development in the area, said Mike Matlock, community and development director for Tumwater, on Wednesday.
That same development intends to bring a Wendy’s, Chipotle, Starbucks, and a Valvoline auto lube business to the site, The Olympian previously reported.
Providence Medical Group Southwest will move two women’s health specialty clinics in Olympia to adjacent locations in the same building, Providence Swedish announced.
Providence Women’s Health Services will leave its space at 3425 Ensign Road and move next to Providence Swedish Obstetrics and Gynecology Olympia at 615 Lilly Road.
Once women’s health services relocates, it will reopen as Providence Swedish Urogynecology and Pelvic Floor, spokesman Chris Thomas said.
“The Providence Swedish Urogynecology and Pelvic Floor team consists of doctors, nurse midwives, nurse practitioners, nurses, certified medical assistants and administrative staff,” a news release reads.
To prepare for the opening, the clinic will be closed to patient care on Thursday, April 24 and Friday, April 25, and may open at 9 a.m. — rather than 8 a.m. — on April 28, according to the news release.
The clinic phone number and appointment scheduling process will remain the same, the release reads.
The vacated space on Ensign Road will be re-designated as a primary care clinic opening this summer, according to the news release.
A Federal Way developer has submitted plans to subdivide a 9-acre parcel into 11 lots that will include 84 apartments on one lot and 10 townhomes on individual lots, according to city information.
Allito Properties LLC intends to develop the project at 7501 Henderson Blvd. SE.
“The development will include infrastructure, frontage improvements, parking and open space,” the city information reads.
The application was submitted to the city on Feb. 28 and deemed complete on March 20. There’s still time to comment but you’ll have to act quickly.
Send your comments by 5 p.m. Friday, April 11, to senior planner Alex Baruch at [email protected].
Obaid Khan has joined the Washington State Employees Credit Union as its vice president of digital delivery, the credit union announced.
Khan will oversee the credit union’s digital systems and product ownership teams.
He previously was the director of IT business solutions at Boeing Employees Credit Union where he chaired a digital steering committee.
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If you know of a retailer, restaurant, coffee shop or other business that is opening, closing, expanding, remodeling, or changing its focus, send an email to reporter Rolf Boone at [email protected].
This story was originally published April 11, 2025 at 5:00 AM.