At what point is the Chinatown Square Mall going to be renamed Tony Hu Food Court? He doesn’t have all the spaces in it yet, and not all of his restaurants are in there, but the landlord clearly has him on speed dial when it comes to reviving empty spaces. Besides his flagship Lao Sze Chuan, he has Lao Beijing and his newest, Lao Yunnan in the former Spring World space, and now the swanky Lure Izakaya space is about to become Lao Mala, reports Kevin Pang in the Tribune. (Points to our friend and commenter Ed Fisher, who predicted pretty much exactly this when Lure Izakaya closed.) Where his other spots are region-focused, Mala refers to the Chinese term Ma La, which is the tingly numbing heat you get when you bite into Szechuan peppercorns, and the focus will be on spicy street foods like grilled skewers and hot pots. The new spot is said to be having a soft opening today. [Tribune]
