Lovely Hula Hands Closing--For Good--This New Years' Eve

Lovely Hula Hands, the original parent restaurant to the soon-to-open North Portland woodfired pizza joint Lovely's Fifty-Fifty, will be closing on New Year's Eve. Owned by sisters Sarah and Jane Minnick, Lovely Hula Hands opened six years ago with a family member as chef, and that's what they want to get back to with the new Fifty-Fifty. From a carefully-worded email that made its way around the Portland food universe this weekend:

As time went on and this changed, we found ourselves in the position of running a restaurant from the front of the house. That is, we relied on someone from outside the family to direct the kitchen. As you know from the loyalty of our customers and the critical reception that Lovely Hula Hands has received, we have always been lucky with the talented people we’ve chosen. But now it just makes sense for us to focus on our new venture 100 % and have more of a hand in the production of the things we serve.

Things that will stay the same at the new place? The staff, a seasonal menu, buying exclusively from farmers and ranchers, and the validity of Lovely Hula Hands gift certificate. Things that will change? Lovely Fifty-Fifty will be selling ice cream. Six kinds. But until they're ready, the original's open until New Year's Eve, when you can say goodbye to cinderella pumpkin ravioli and espresso-rubbed painted hills sirloin for the last time, strike midnight.
The Plywood Report: Lovely Fifty-Fifty [EaterPDX]
Lovely Hula Hands Gets Lovelier [The Oregonian]
Lovely Hula Hands [Official Site]
Lovely Fifty-Fifty [Official Site]

Hello friends and fans of Lovely Hula Hands-
Our new wood fired pizza restaurant, Lovely’s Fifty-Fifty, should be open sometime in January. There have been a lot of construction setbacks since the beginning of the project, but we are finally awaiting the arrival of the wood oven, ice cream case and other exciting things.
Also, at the end of this month, Lovely Hula Hands will be closing. The reasons for this are many, but in the end it comes down to one thing above all. When we first opened the restaurant six years ago, a family member was our chef. As time went on and this changed, we found ourselves in the position of running a restaurant from the front of the house. That is, we relied on someone from outside the family to direct the kitchen. As you know from the loyalty of our customers and the critical reception that Lovely Hula Hands has received, we have always been lucky with the talented people we’ve chosen. But now it just makes sense for us to focus on our new venture 100 % and have more of a hand in the production of the things we serve.
We plan to have a great final month at Lovely Hula Hands and finish strong with the same seasonal menu, cocktails, etc. New Years Eve will be our last night open. We hope to see many of you this month at least one more time and we hope to keep seeing you next door at Lovely’s Fifty-Fifty. It will have a lot of things in common with LHH- a seasonal menu, buying exclusively from local farmers and ranchers, a hefty list of salads and starters, and even one or two wood fired entrees along with the pizza offerings. We will also have six flavors of seasonal homemade ice cream in a big case up front and people can get a scoop or a pint to go. Our current staff will stay with us and work next door, so no one is being put out of work in this economy.
We want to deeply thank all of our loyal customers and staff for the last six years. It has honestly been a pleasure running this restaurant.
Finally, please note that we will be honoring Gift Certificates for Lovely Hula Hands next door at Lovely’s Fifty-Fifty. If you have one and can’t get in this month, please use it there.

Sincerely, Sarah and Jane Minnick

4057 N Mississippi, Portland, OR 97227