More closures in St. Paul, with brewery and American pub the latest to call it quits
Coming in a week in which the Apostle Supper Club announced its closure, citing the decline of downtown St. Paul among its reasons, Burning Brothers Brewery and Chip's Clubhouse are also on the way out.
Burning Brothers Brewery, located at 1750 Thomas Ave. W. near the Hamline-Midway YMCA, confirmed that its final day of taproom operations will be Saturday, May 10.
The brewery was opened in 2014 by former Minnesota Renaissance Festival performers Thom Foss and Dane Breimhorst, the latter of whom has Celiac disease.
"After much consideration, deliberation, discussion, and many difficult heartfelt conversations, we have come to the incredibly heart-wrenching conclusion that we unfortunately cannot continue operations," they said.
"The factors affecting this decision are numerous, complex, and varied, and we have fought hard to avoid reaching this point, but alas, the day we had hoped to avoid has arrived."
Another closure, albeit a quieter one, is Chip's Clubhouse, the American pub at 272 Snelling Ave. S.
A sign on the door announced the abrupt closure, but there has been no official announcement on the business's social media pages or website.
"Sadly, we've made the difficult decision to permanently close our doors. Thank you from the bottom of our hearts for your incredible support over the years. We will cherish the memories made within these walls," the sign reads.
Chip's opened in 2021 initially under an ownership team that included pastry chef Tara Coleman, who owns Hot Hands Pie & Biscuit next door. The venue was sold in February 2024 to chef Nik Donaker.
Businesses at the Grand and Snelling intersection are facing disruptions from road construction, which began in April.
Hashtags
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
Business Insider
11 minutes ago
- Business Insider
A 'seismic' 39% tariff on Switzerland is rocking the watch world, and even pre-owned Rolexes could see price hikes
Watch collectors might want to skip the Rolex boutique and head straight for the pawn shop this year. That is, if the Trump administration's new 39% tariff on goods from Switzerland sticks. The White House released updated tariff plans on Thursday, raising the rate from the proposed 31% announced earlier this year. The tariff escalation caught the watch community off guard. Switzerland is a manufacturing hub for luxury watches like Rolex and Cartier. Eugene Tutunikov, CEO of watch marketplace Swiss Watch Expo, told Business Insider the announcement "was a complete shock" and that "its effects will be immediate." Leading brands, including Rolex, have already raised prices in the US this year, likely in response to tariffs, Morgan Stanley analysts wrote in a July report about the Swiss watch market. US imports of Swiss goods have faced a 10% baseline tariff since April. A new 39% tariff on Swiss imports to the US would put more pressure on luxury watchmakers. That could lead to higher prices on Swiss-made goods shipped to the US, or less inventory for American shoppers. While the Swiss government could still try to negotiate, the tariff is currently set to take effect on August 7. Collectors and watchmakers may soon have to reckon with this new reality. Joshua Ganjei, CEO of watch marketplace European Watch Company, thinks more shoppers will turn to pre-owned models of high-end watches like Rolexes over brand-new ones. After all, a secondhand watch from a US-based seller won't face the added cost of a new Swiss-made model shipped from overseas. "For many American collectors, the 39% tariff instantly turned new releases from Swiss brands into a luxury few can justify," Ganjei said. According to the Morgan Stanley report, pre-owned watch dealers have reported an increase in demand this year since Swiss-made brands began raising their prices in the US. Prices in the secondhand market have been falling since mid-2022, though the rate of decline has narrowed. Pre-owned watches could also get more expensive, though. While the inventory already in the US won't face tariffs, heightened demand could drive up prices on the secondary market as well. Tutunikov said he thinks the pre-owned market will react to higher tariffs "much faster" than large retailers and hike prices sooner. He expects prices on the secondary market to jump as much as 10% in the next month and potentially reach up to 35% in the next six months, "as demand overwhelmingly shifts to available inventory." "This isn't just a tax; it's a seismic event that will cause a stark divergence between the new and pre-owned markets," Tutunikov said.
USA Today
40 minutes ago
- USA Today
Uncertain economic times? That means it's gold's time to shine
What's it worth: From Costco gold bars to pots of gold That's enough for more than 1 billion Olympic gold medals, which are actually primarily made of silver, and about 750,000 pots of gold waiting at the end of every rainbow. Or you'd have to spend $694 billion at Costco on its 1-ounce gold bars, although the $3,410 bar is out of stock. Value of reserves rises and falls with price of gold The price of gold fluctuates, but as of July 2025, the market value of all the gold stored in the New York Federal Reserve vault could be estimated somewhere between $470 billion and $680 billion, depending on the market price of gold, which hit a record high this year. Who owns all the gold in the Fed's stockpile? But none of that gold belongs to the Fed, and most of it isn't American. In 2021, the U.S. Treasury Department reported it only stores about 13.4 million fine troy ounces – about 416 metric tons – there. The rest belongs to foreign governments, other central banks, and official international organizations, who trust the Fed to keep it locked away 80 feet below street level. Golden opportunity for a heist movie? Where is the world's gold stored? The United States stores gold in other places, too. The largest American-owned gold stockpile is at Fort Knox in Kentucky, which houses about 147.3 million fine troy ounces of gold – about 4,583 metric tons. Other countries, including Germany, Italy, and France, also have large gold reserves. More: Trump wants lower interest rates. Will the Fed make cuts? Live updates Why people still like gold Beyond its shine, some investors, central banks, and governments view gold as an attractive asset that inspires confidence, even in uncertain times. 'It's historical money. It goes back several millennia as original money,' said Aakash Doshi, the global head of gold strategy at State Street Investment Management. 'It goes back to biblical times. It was one of the gifts from the three wise men.' While today gold isn't used as a large-scale payment method, it's a highly liquid asset with no particular credit risk and is not directly controlled by any central bank, according to Joe Cavatoni, the senior market strategist for the Americas for the World Gold Council. Some investors still view it as 'real' money – something that can't be printed – and a hedge against market and economic volatility. 'Gold performs in good times as well as in the bad times,' Cavatoni said. Why gold demand surged While the dollar or the euro isn't going away anytime soon, Doshi said the demand for real hard assets that complement fiat currency rose over the last few decades as global debt and governments' share of that debt has increased. In 2024, gold overtook the euro as the second-largest global reserve asset after the U.S. dollar, according to a June European Central Bank report. Doshi listed the 2008 financial crisis, the U.S.-China trade war, shifting trade alliances like the rearrangement of the North American Free Trade Agreement, and expanded sanctions as forces driving some central banks' increased interest in gold, as they seek stability amid economic shocks and geopolitical tension. Cavatoni said that rating agencies' recent downgrades to the U.S. government's creditworthiness and the risks that come with holding treasuries are also likely on people's minds, adding that a lot of the increased demand is coming from emerging market central banks. Gold price jumped since the start of 2024 He said gold is valued higher when market risk is unclear and uncertainty is high, adding, 'that's kind of the world we're living in now.' 'When you think about their absolute level of holdings, they are still very low relative to the percentage of total reserves. And I think that there's still an opportunity for them to continue to grow,' Cavatoni said. 'But I think we're seeing in our second quarter data and other sound bites that they're definitely paying close attention to what the performance is going to look like.'
Bloomberg
41 minutes ago
- Bloomberg
Charting the Global Economy: US Job Market Wavers in Cue for Fed
By and Molly Smith Save The US labor market is wavering after a slowdown in economic growth during the first half of the year — implications of heightened uncertainty tied to trade policy. President Donald Trump unveiled a slew of new tariffs that boosted the average US rate on goods from across the world, forging ahead with his effort to reshape international commerce and bolster American manufacturing. The baseline rates for many trading partners remain unchanged at 10% from the duties Trump imposed in April.
