Updates on Zoe's Chinese and Mixtura, Post-Collapse

Yesterday morning around 9:45, the stone facade of the building housing Somerville restaurants Zoe's Gourmet Chinese Cuisine and Mixtura came crashing down suddenly. Several employees and customers were in Mixtura at the time (no one was in Zoe's), but luckily no one was hurt. Unfortunately the two restaurants will be closed indefinitely — maybe for months — for structural evaluations and repairs. There are a total of about fifteen employees between Zoe's and Mixtura.

Somerville Deputy Fire Chief Kevin Kelleher told Boston.com that the facade "had likely been slowly corroding for years" and was probably jostled by something "routine" like a truck passing by. Mixtura owner Rosy Cerna told Boston.com that she would try to place her employees at her other restaurant, Machu Picchu in Union Square, but there might not be space for them all. (Machu Picchu also has a charcoal-grilled chicken offshoot around the corner.)

Zoe's posted a rare Facebook update confirming that "everyone is ok" and that they'll be "closed for a while" for "inspections and repairs." Zoe's owner Tina Zhou told MassLive.com that if they were to remain closed for a few months, she would probably have to start looking elsewhere to reopen. The restaurant is beloved by locals for its Sichuan and Hunan dishes, and it's one of the only places in the area to find soup dumplings outside of Chinatown.
· Facade of Somerville building collapses; no injuries reported [Boston.com]
· No injuries in Somerville building collapse [MassLive.com]
· Sadly literal breaking news: Zoe's facade collapses