The three new owners of Lake and Bryant Cafe were honored by Mayor Jacob Frey Wednesday night after receiving a Minnesota Promise Act loan to purchase the building and business.

“Lake Street is coming back and it’s because of extraordinary people like you,” Frey said to the cafe’s new owners, Segundo Balvoa, José Yupangui, and Maria Chuma, at last night’s ribbon cutting.

The three co-owners also work at and operate Galapagos Bar and Grill on East Lake Street and were able to purchase the cafe with assistance from a Minnesota Promise Act loan. The grant and loan program in part assists small businesses in corridors that were impacted by the 2020 civil unrest, which includes the Lake Street and Bryant Avenue intersection.

A collection of local organizations came together to help the co-owners receive the loan, including MEDA, a BIPOC business consulting firm, which provided the loan. A spokesperson for MEDA said it has helped two other BIPOC businesses close on Minnesota Promise Act Loans in the Uptown area, Abyssinia Cultural Center, at 322 W. Lake St., and ChiroCenter at 2112 Lyndale Ave. S.

The new Lake and Bryant Cafe owners are maintaining the staff and menu and are aware of the vibrant community at the cafe. Balvoa told Southwest Voices they may update kitchen equipment and some menu items but most things will stay the same.

“We need to keep it local,” Adrian Ruddock of MEDA said. “We want neighborhood businesses to be able to–if they're going to change ownership–be it somebody local, not too far away, continue the neighborhood feel, versus being sold to somebody from another state.”

The City and Hennepin County still list the property as owned by Azad Properties, LLC, the previous owner of Lake and Bryant Cafe.

‍Lake and Bryant Cafe is located at 821 W. Lake St. and is open 8 a.m.-3 p.m. daily.