House of Orient to close Sept. 3

Written by Dave Gallagher | The Bellingham Herald | August 25, 2011

Bellingham’s House of Orient will be closing on Saturday, Sept. 3.

It was a family decision to close the Thai/Vietnamese restaurant, said Danh Huynh, whose family has operated it for four years after purchasing it from the previous owner. He said the lease was coming up for renewal and the new landlord has different plans for the space.

“It was a tough decision, but it’s the right one for the family,” Huynh said.

During the final days the restaurant will be open normal hourse, 11 a.m. to closing on weekdays and 5 p.m. to closing on the weekends. The Huynh family wanted to show its appreciation during the final days by offering half off dinner menu items. On the final day the restaurant will be open noon until the evening hours so some of the regulars will come by to say good-bye.

“We have a lot of regulars we hope will stop by so we can thank them for their support. We’ll miss the customers the most,” Huynh said.

The restaurant originally opened in 1996 at 209 W. Holly St. by Jimmy Nguyen. It moved to the current space at 115 E. Holly St.  in 2005.