Owner Brahim Hadj-Moussa, 61 told the Pioneer Press that it was time for him to get out of the restaurant industry. With refreshing candor he told restaurant critic Jess Fleming, that while he always loved spending time in the kitchen, making dishes for his guests, that was only 10% of how he spent his time as a restaurant owner. “The other 90 percent is managing the people and the building. That 90 percent sucks, sometimes royally.”
Now that his kids are launched, the house paid off, he’s ready to travel the world, maybe help his nephews open a restaurant in France.
Barbary Fig was long a labor of love for Hadji-Moussa, who prepared ever dish for regulars and neighbors strolling down the scenic Grand Avenue. In a 2013 review Star Tribune’s critic Rick Nelson declared, “I’m so fond of this neighborhood gem.”
The final service will be this Monday September 26, 2016.
- After 28-year run, St. Paul’s Barbary Fig to Close [PiPress]
- Restaurant Review: The Barbary Fig [STRIB]
- All The Shutter Coverage [EMPLS]