New noodle shop spicing up Kennewick

Two very different kinds of entrepreneurs have staked claims on Kennewick’s high-profile Gage Boulevard. One nurtures the body with food and the other the soul.

Daniel Linton and his wife, Tiffany, converted the former Samurai Sam’s Teriyaki Grill into a noodle shop. And Daniel Martinez is preparing to open a premium cigar store a few doors to the east, just north of Costco.

Noodle Thyme opened at 8530 W. Gage Blvd. in the same strip mall as Graze, Edible Arrangements and The Local Coffee shop.

Linton said his wife, who is Chinese, previously owned a sushi place and wanted to get into the restaurant business.

When the spot that once held the Kennewick franchise for Samurai Sam’s became available, they took it over. The couple, converted the space into Noodle Thyme while retaining its teriyaki history.

The menu includes teriyaki, yakisoba and all manner of noodle dishes.

Business hours are 10:30 a.m. to 9 p.m. weekdays and 11 a.m. to 8 p.m. Saturdays.

Cigar Savvy is another newcomer on Gage.

Owner Daniel Martinez is a 13-year veteran of the premium cigar industry who moved his family from the Yakima area to start his first business.

The first-time entrepreneur draws parallels between producing cigars and the wines his in-laws produce at their Maine winery. Like wine, producing cigars is a labor-intensive blend of art and science. Like wine, the end product is an exceptionally unique product.

Martinez learned the ropes as operations manager for Lil Brown Smoke Shack, a Yakama Reservation-based tribal company that distributes premium cigars to dozens of states. He plans to sell a mix of high-rated cigars as well as brands he has learned through experience that are popular with customers. In time, he hopes to add boutique brands as well.

His store includes 700 square feet of retail space and a walk-in humidor. He stocks about 6,000 cigars. He will hold events with manufacturers and offers an outdoor smoking deck.

The grand opening is March 1. Business hours will be 10 a.m. to 6 p.m. daily except for Sunday.

Keep on food truckin’?

Mobile food vendors would be freed from stationary kitchens under a law that recently cleared the House in the 2018 Legislature. HB 2639, which is pending in the Senate, would change state health law to allow more autonomy for trucks, which are currently required to be based out of stationary kitchens, or commissaries.

If approved, operators would be relieved of the requirement if they have all the tools needed to prepare food and can fulfill all the other requirements of serving the public, including maintaining proper temperatures and having a dedicated hand washing sink.

The Washington State Food Truck Association advocates for parity for what it calls “food truckers” and says the commissary requirement is an unnecessary limit on the growing industry.

Have dining-related news to share? Call me.

This story was originally published February 20, 2018 at 12:59 PM with the headline "New noodle shop spicing up Kennewick."