By Haley Walls
Transcript Correspondent
Typhoon, a new Asian fusion restaurant, is coming to downtown Delaware in mid-November in place of Chandra’s Bistro at 10 N. Sandusky St.
The menu consists of mainly handcrafted Chinese, Thai, and Asian dishes, according to the restaurant’s website. All ingredients are MSG-free and are not pre-processed.
“We use a lot of fresh ingredients as local as possible,” said TJ Wellman, part-owner. “One thing you’ll notice is that we use fresh fish, whereas Chandra’s used frozen.”
The restaurant will serve local beers on tap as well as traditional Asian beverages like sake. Each entrée will be served with white or brown rice cooked fresh every order.
Typhoon will have various options for gluten-free and vegetarian eaters. All of their Asian entrées can also be made vegetarian-friendly by substituting meat for tofu or vegetables, Wellman said.
Wellman and his business partners Xue-gong and Xue-qin Chen also own Royal Ginger, a sister restaurant of Typhoon located in Polaris. The trio previously owned Ginger Asian Kitchen in Athens, Ohio before recently selling it to new management.
Renovations of the restaurant began on Oct. 16. The restrooms have been updated and only slight changes will be made to the dining space, such as changing paint colors and restoring the original wood, Wellman said.
The dining room will seat 40 to 50 people with an extra 12 to 15 seats at the bar. There will be an outdoor patio for use in warmer months.
In addition to traditional dining, Typhoon will offer online ordering for carryout. It will also be available for private parties and events.
The owners purchased the equipment left in the building from Chandra’s Bistro and took over the lease. They also acquired the previous restaurant’s liquor license.
Chandra’s Bistro opened in 2007 and closed near the beginning of October for family related reasons.
The owners of Typhoon are looking to hire 7 or 8 experienced servers. They are bringing in employees from Royal Ginger to help with the restaurant’s opening.
Wellman said they hope to have the restaurant open by Nov. 11. It will be open from 11 a.m. to 10 p.m. Sunday through Thurday and open until 11 p.m. on weekends.