Ming Tsai Is Closing Down Blue Ginger in Wellesley

One of the region’s storied suburban restaurants will close down in early June after nearly two decades. Ming Tsai’s Blue Ginger will have its last day of service in Wellesley on June 3, according to the Boston Globe, as the chef prepares to launch a new restaurant.

Blue Ginger has been a fixture of Greater Boston’s restaurant world for 19 years and spawned a sibling restaurant in Boston’s Seaport District, Blue Dragon, in early 2013. Blue Dragon will remain open.

Blue Ginger is known in part for its allergen-free dining options, including gluten- and nut-free dishes. Tsai has long advocated for allergy awareness, which hits close to home for the chef, whose son David had several severe allergies while growing up.

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The Wellesley restaurant was reportedly coming to the end of its lease, and its closure opens up room for Tsai to pursue a new concept: a fast-casual stir-fry restaurant called ChowStirs, which will take up a build-your-own-bowl type of model employed by a number of restaurants around the Boston area, including Sweetgreen, Verts Mediterranean Grill, Boloco, and others.

ChowStirs will also embrace nut-free and allergy-friendly menus, Tsai told the Globe, and customers will be able to choose vegetables, protein, sauces, and toppings to accompany noodles or grains. The new restaurant will make its debut early in 2018, though the location has not yet been shared. ChowStirs will donate portions of its proceeds to the non-profit organization Family Reach.

In the meantime, Tsai is planning a celebratory yard sale in the Blue Ginger parking lot for June 4, the day after the restaurant closes. Food will be served; a large cache of pots, pans, and other assorted paraphernalia will be sold; and the proceeds will go to Family Reach.

• Ming Tsai Restaurant Blue Ginger to Close [BG]
• Blue Ginger Coverage on Eater [EBOS]