Vietnamese restaurant opens for lunch downtown

Pho Vietnamese Cuisine has opened in the food court at Kaleidoscope at the Hub, which is located at 555 Walnut St., Suite 307, in Des Moines. Linh Le and husband De Dang — who used to operate Romance Café about 10 years ago on Second Avenue — opened the restaurant. The restaurant serves spring rolls, Banh Mi sandwiches, rice dishes, Pho soup and other items. Pho Vietnamese Cuisine is open 10 a.m. to 2 p.m., Monday through Friday.

Bail bond drive-thru planned for Polk County
Lederman Bail Bonds, owned by Jacob Lederman and his three brothers, is building a new office near the Polk County Jail, complete with a drive-thru window. The 4,500-square-foot office is being constructed at N.E. 51st Place and N.E. 22nd Street. The building will also have two storefronts available to be leased. Lederman said a large majority of their customers are charged with misdemeanors that require a bail of around $100. For those instances, someone could pull up to the drive-thru, sign some papers and pay a fee, taking about five to seven minutes of their time. More serious offenses would require customers to get out of the car and come inside to answer a more questions. The Ledermans have been providing bail bonds in Iowa since 1965. The new office is scheduled to open Oct. 1.

Bordy’s Pizzeria opens near Drake campus
Paul Revere’s Pizza has been replaced by a new pizza place. Bordy’s Pizzeria at Drake opened recently at 3018 Forest Ave. in Des Moines, near the Drake University campus. This is the second Bordy’s location, opened by Christian Bordenaro, who also operates Bordenaro’s Pizza on S.W. Ninth St. in Des Moines. Darren Marasco also owns Bordy’s with Bordenaro. The pizzeria offers whole pizzas as well as slices, sandwiches, salads, appetizers and beer. It has seating for about 20 people, and customers order and pick up food at the counter. Hours are 11 a.m. to 2 p.m., Monday through Friday for lunch; 5-10 p.m., Monday and Tuesday for dinner; and 5 p.m. to 1:30 a.m., Wednesday through Saturday. It is closed on Sunday. Call 279-1607 or find it on Facebook.

Changes planned for interstate ramp
The bend on Interstate 80/35 known as Rider Corner is due for an overhaul, according to the Iowa Department of Transportation. The DOT plans to close the two entrance and exit loops at N.W. Urbandale Drive within the next five years, adding a flyover from northbound 80/35 to northbound Iowa Highway 141, as well as new interchanges at Meredith Drive and N.W. 100th St. The project will cost about $32.6 million and improve safety. Engineers say it will also ease the congestion at one of the metro’s worst bottleneck intersections. The proposal still requires final approval from the Federal Highway Administration, and while some of the retailers are upset about the proposed changes to Rider Corner, the DOT said it is still accepting public comments on the changes.

Google Express delivery service operating in Iowa
Google Express, the company’s new delivery service, announced earlier in September that it is coming to several states in the Midwest, including Iowa. Google Express is only available in eastern parts of the state for now, including Davenport and Dubuque, and no timetable for service in Des Moines has been revealed yet. With the new service, shoppers can browse and order products from various stores, and Google then ships the order overnight. Subscriptions to Google Express cost $95 a year, $10 a month or $4.99 per delivery. A three-month free trial is available for new members.

Meredith Corp. sold to Media General
Virginia-based Media General announced earlier this month that it purchased Des Moines-based Meredith Corp. for $2.4 billion. The deal will form a new company, Meredith Media General, combining Meredith’s women-focused magazines and 17 local TV stations with the 71 TV stations and digital media assets of Media General. Meredith CEO Stephen Lacy said there are no plans to move the company out of Des Moines, even though it will be incorporated in Virginia. Out of Meredith’s 3,700 employees, between 900 and 1,000 of them are located in the Des Moines area. CV