Bistro opening on Broadway

Spike Nguyen, known for his northeast area restaurant, will soon open one in Midtown.

The Vietnamese-French bistro going in at 3623 Broadway will be called iPho Tower.

Nguyen, who plans to open it in March, met with reporters there Thursday. It is in the south end of the Beaux-Arts Barclay Building that dates to the 1920s.

The place that was once Sidney’s Diner has a totally new look inside.

There is a modern and sleek bar and a long open seating space that leads into a rounded lounge area that will feature live music.

There are two kitchens, and in one the cooks will operate in plain sight of diners.

Nguyen now serves Vietnamese food at Pho Hoa, 1447 Independence Ave. He will soon rename it iPho Tower and also serve the fusion of Vietnamese and French food there.

He, his wife, Jessie, and their chef will work at both restaurants, he said.

They created almost all the recipes themselves, he said. “Our food is very tasty, healthy and very clean – it’s refreshing, it doesn’t linger on.”

Nguyen, 42, was born in Vietnam and arrived in the United States at age 11. He studied cooking in Houston, where he met his wife, and they later moved to Kansas City to raise a family, he said.

Here he worked for 13 years as a finance director at a car dealership before starting his northeast area restaurant three years ago.

“We are a part of that (northeast) community,” he said, and raise money for charity and sometimes cook for the homeless.

He also intends to be part of Midtown, he said, and on Thursday he officially became a board member of the Broadway Westport Council.

“Hopefully we can contribute and do what we can to reach out in this community also,” he said.

“We’ll grow together on Broadway.”