Suddenly more changes: four closings, three planned openings.

Siam Royal, next to the Apple Store, closed suddenly a few weeks ago, and has not been replaced. I thought they were doing fine but I guess not.

Patxi’s Chicago Pizza on Emerson has closed recently. They have also closed some of their San Francisco locations. I was never that big a fan of deep-dish pizza, which I thought was mostly just bread, so in Champaign I preferred Garcia’s to Papa Del’s.

Long-time favorite Gyros Gyros is gone. Since renovation began on the old President Hotel (apartments) into what will be a Graduate Hotel, Gyros Gyros had moved down the block on University from the corner of Cowper to right next to the old Varsity Theater now housing Blue Bottle Cafe and the co-working space. Suddenly it is shuttered, to be replaced by O2 Valley, an offshoot of the Cupertino edition featuring Taiwanese fusion cuisine in Bento boxes, and of course Taiwanese tea. This is an even bigger surprise than Siam Royal because Gyros Gyros seemed always to be busy and had a dedicated following.

Also gone, and perhaps less lamented, is Wahlburgers, on Emerson and University. It’s not as though movie star Mark Wahlberg needed the money so it’s not the sad story that the closing of a restaurant run by a small local family would be. But their fried onion rings will be hard to replace, and where else west of Route 128 could you get a frappe? In its place will be Pho Ha Noi Elite, sometime next spring. It’s a big space on a prominent corner so rent I’m sure is high. Still, the Good Earth lasted 25 years in that space (1976-2001) and Lavanda for ten (2002-2012). Since then it’s been one thing after another (Campo Pizzeria, Sam’s Chowder House, Wahlburgers – have I forgotten anything?).

Finally, We Boba will be moving into 125 University Avenue, where the little counter serving buffalo-milk ice cream used to be. Boba tea places used to be the domain of high schoolers. Have they grown up?