Three Onalaska couples opened Tasty Thai on July 26 in the former Il Luigi Cuisine restaurant at 235 Sand Lake Road in the Center 90 shopping center in Onalaska.

They purchased the furniture and restaurant equipment of the Italian restaurant, which closed on June 29.

Tasty Thai is operated by Zong Lor and his wife Yang Mee Thao, Thao’s parents Ger Thao and Der Yang, and Thao’s brother Kao Thao and his wife Khao Yang. Lor and his wife also operate Mini Boba and Deli, which opened in March 2023, and plan to continue that business.

“We all live in Onalaska,” Zong Lor said, and when they heard Il Luigi was closing, he contacted the restaurant’s owner. “It’s close to home and there was no Thai restaurant in Onalaska, and this one is right in the center of Onalaska,” he said. That prompted the three couples to open their new restaurant, which offers Thai and Hmong cuisine.

Tasty Thai’s most popular menu items include pad Thai, red curry and green curry. “We have a lot of appetizers,” Lor said, such as spring rolls, egg rolls, chicken wings, pork meatballs and beef meatballs. “We make our own meatballs and they are very tasty and very popular,” he said.

Tasty Thai also offers a range of beverages including soft drinks, beer, hot tea, Thai tea and passion fruit basil seed and lychee basil seed drinks. The restaurant’s menu has been posted on its Facebook page.

Tasty Thai’s hours are Tuesday through Thursday from 11 a.m. to 7:30 p.m., Friday and Saturday from 11 a.m. to 9 p.m., and closed Sunday and Monday. For more information, call 608-519-0970 or visit the restaurant’s Facebook page.

Representatives of the JAMP Hotels Group are planning improvements worth $2.5 to $3 million to the Optional extras Hotel at 210 Jay St. in downtown La Crosse, Jaymin Patel, CEO of JAMP Hotels, said Thursday.

A1 Hospitality, LLC, a company formed by the owners of JAMP Hotels, bought the La Crosse hotel in mid-July for more than $14 million, according to property transfer records from the Wisconsin Department of Revenue. It was purchased from 210 Jay Street, LLC, part of the Weber Group, which opened the hotel in 2016. The hotel has 107 guest rooms and 29 employees, Patel said.

“We’ll start this winter” with planned improvements such as all-new furniture, interior and exterior paint and some new amenities, Patel said. It will likely take about a year to complete the improvements, he said.

With the acquisition, JAMP Hotels now operates 24 hotels, all in the Midwest. The four owners of JAMP Hotels all live in the West Salem and Tomah areas. For more information, visit https://jamphotels.com.

Holly and Aaron Clements have purchased Codgers Bar at 301 Depot St. in Chaseburg by Collin and Natasha Olerud. “We opened the bar on June 13 under our management,” Holly said this week. “Everything is the same, with a few improvements. We’re excited for the upcoming Packer season and all we have to offer for it!”

The bar’s new owners plan to celebrate with a “Grand Ol’ Party” on Saturday, September 14th.

Codgers Bar opening hours are Sundays from 11am to 7pm, Mondays and Wednesdays from 3pm to 7pm, Tuesdays and Thursdays from 3pm to 10pm, Fridays from 3pm to midnight and Saturdays from 11am to midnight.

Holly is an employee at Stansfield Vending in La Crosse and has overseen darts and billiards leagues for years. “Aaron has a very successful diesel truck shop in rural Viroqua called Hank’s Welding & Repair,” she said. “Hank’s specializes in everything from diesel truck repair to building dump trucks and other heavy equipment.”

For more information, call Codgers Bar at 608-483-2100 or visit their Facebook page.