Was this month the Twin Cities' Saturn return, or something?
Dark Horse is back. Hey Bear! Cafe is back. Pig Ate My Pizza is back, with a second location on the way. Revival’s making a comeback, after being purchased by Jester Concepts, and so is South Side institution The Malt Shop, which allegedly opens… why, this very day. Ono Hawaiian Plates is returning to the North Loop after the closure of its food hall home.
Maybe it’s not astrological; maybe Revival’s return was some kind of spell. (Revival, revival, grant these restaurants survival.) Or maybe in These Trying Times, there’s comfort in banking on a more sure thing—a familiar name, a proven concept, a known comfort. We could all use a little certainty at the moment, eh? And maybe some good fried chicken.
Anyway, on to the news…
Now Open
Jane + Matriarch
Now open in the former Pinoli building is Jane, the low-dose cannabis company founded by Michelle Courtright following a breast cancer diagnosis. Courtright's “flagship lifestyle store” is joined by the plant-forward restaurant Matriarch, with brunch and dinner available Wednesday through Sunday. 1601 W. Lake St., Minneapolis
Aurelia’s Mexican Uptown
Lyn-Lake’s Lago Tacos space didn’t stay empty long. Aurelia’s Mexican Uptown is up and running at the address, with burritos, bowls, nachos, and a whole lot more (birria ramen!). 2901 Lyndale Ave. S., Minneapolis
Hey Bear! Cafe
Hey Bear! Cafe, which just closed in May, is back, with new owners and the same menu of sandwiches and such. Kind of a weird scenario, but former owner Shawn Person, who’s also behind nearby Roundtable Coffee, doesn’t seem miffed: “HB reopening is great for the neighborhood so I’m happy. I can’t dwell on what happened,” he writes in an Instagram comment. And we’re not gonna complain about the return of that excellent Cubano. 791 Raymond Ave., St. Paul
Dark Horse
Another speedy St. Paul revival: After closing in February, Lowertown’s Dark Horse is also back, also under new ownership, in this case Sarah McDonough and chef Shane Oporto. Some friends and I popped in before a Saints game earlier this month, and while the menu and the space have been refreshed, the friendly service and laid-back vibes will be instantly recognizable to anyone who loved Dark Horse 1.0. 250 E. Seventh St., St. Paul
Pig Ate My Pizza
What the hell—one more reboot for ya. Years after the Travail team sunset Pig Ate My Pizza in favor of their Nouvelle Brewing concept, PAMP is back, and those piggy pies are also coming to a new location in Bloomington. (Nouvelle started serving awfully PAMPy pizzas not long after its debut, and it’s never been clear to me if the brand really went away entirely.) Anyway, exciting! The Bloomington location should open this fall, and it’ll have a year-round covered patio that seats 90. 4124 W. Broadway, Robbinsdale; 10700 Bloomington Ferry Rd., Bloomington
Hometowne Pizza
Now open in the former Dulono’s space in downtown Minneapolis, Hometowne Pizza is serving up signature bar pies, salads, wings, and more. (Can’t remember the last time I had a jalapeño popper and now I feel I can’t rest until I fix that.) Here’s local food dude Tony Cu checking out their most popular pie, the Big Dill, with smoked gouda, pickles, and Italian sausage. I want that! 118 N. Fourth St., Minneapolis
Hippo Pockets
Centro’s menu of griddled snack saucers, already available for delivery from the restaurant’s Nicollet Avenue location, have landed in a standalone south Minneapolis spot. Hippo Pockets’ first brick-and-mortar is a teeny space, but I think these portable snack discs will do well there. And hey, if you’re looking for a reason to check it out, you can meet the hippo on select upcoming dates. 735 E. 48th St. Minneapolis
BirdEz
Looks like BirdEz was actually open last month, but here’s your reminder to check out this new halal chicken spot. They’ve got tendies, chicken sandwiches, rice bowls, and something called Ez Style Fries: That’s fries covered in chopped chicken tenders and smothered in sauce and toppings. 800 W. Lake St., Minneapolis
Sizzle
In the old Galactic Pizza space, Sizzle is serving “mouthwatering comfort food” like alfredo pasta, wings, and falafel, plus Egyptian fare like hawawshi and koshari. I’m 99% sure that’s an AI cheesesteak on their homepage; these are strange times we live in. 2917 Lyndale Ave. S., Minneapolis
Stock & Bond Steakhouse
The Farmers and Mechanics Savings Bank building in downtown Minneapolis is now home to Stock & Bond, an 8,340-square-foot steakhouse with 251 seats and more than 350 American whiskeys, bourbons, and ryes. There’s a whiskey-focused cocktail menu and a selection of decadent steaks and seafood, and you can customize your skirt steak or dry-aged tomahawk with yet more indulgent offerings like crab oscar and black truffle butter. 88 S. Sixth St., Minneapolis
Bar Edera
Downtown Minneapolis’s Hotel Ivy has a new bar, Bar Edera, which is serving breakfast and coffee in the morning (smoked salmon tartine, mushroom and goat cheese omelette), followed by lunch (burrata and apple, suya honey chicken wings), and dinner (Edera burger, skirt steak and frites). They’re also working on Thor Cigar Lounge, which will open later this summer. 1115 Second Ave. S., Minneapolis
Arya Cafe
There’s a grand opening August 9, but regular readers of Longfellow Whatever know that Arya Cafe, which is replacing Cafe Ceres’s 46th & Minnehaha location, is softly open now through August 5. They have Ethiopian beans from Up Coffee Roasters and pastries from Rustica Bakery; otherwise, LW reports, it’s “largely indistinguishable” from Ceres—they’re using most of the same furniture. 4605 Minnehaha Ave. S., Minneapolis
The Malt Shop
A Lynnhurst institution since 1973, The Malt Shop closed earlier this year after losing its liquor license (and, um, earning some pretty horrific online reviews in the months preceding that). But it’s back! With new owners! And opening today, if the website is to be believed! 809 W. 50th St., Minneapolis
Closed, Closing, or Changing
Café and Bar Lurcat
Real end of an era stuff here: After 23 years, Loring Park’s Lurcat will close this September when its lease expires. The significance is such that even Mpls.St.Paul Mag editor in chief Jayne Haugen Olson weighed in on it, but lemme tell you something—never been! (Millennials are killing our white-tablecloth restaurants.) 1624 Harmon Pl., Minneapolis
Palmer’s Bar
Now here’s one that hits closer to home. You’ve no doubt already heard that Palmer’s Bar—a goddamn West Bank institution, open since 1906—will close, with its last day set for September 14. The reason? Well, yes, kids don’t drink like they used to… and former co-owner Tony Zaccardi allegedly siphoned close to $400,000 out of the business before his partners cut ties with him. 500 Cedar Ave, Minneapolis
Annie’s Parlour
Elsewhere in dying and dead local institutions: Burger and malt shop Annie’s Parlour closed this month after serving hungry Dinkytowners for more than 50 years. Too bad: The throwback restaurant just reopened last year after an extended Covid closure. 313 14th Ave. SE, Minneapolis
Abang Yoli at Malcolm Yards
Just a few days after closing Abang Yoli’s 38th & Nicollet brick-and-mortar, chef Jamie Yoo announced that the Korean fried chicken joint’s Malcolm Yards location would also shutter. “It’s been my absolute joy to cook for each and every one of you,” Yoo wrote in an Instagram farewell. Abang Yoli’s new Minnetonka location remains open.
Sparrow Cafe
The city water main break that destroyed Paperback Exchange and led to the closure of Terzo has claimed another business: Sparrow Cafe announced this month that it won’t reopen. “It’ll be of little surprise that at this point Sparrow cannot re-open,” owners Jasper and Sheila Rajendren wrote in a GoFundMe update. “The damage done is well outside of what insurance has covered for our business.” 5001 Penn Ave. S., Minneapolis
BŪCH Fermentary & Taproom
BŪCH, the hard kombucha spot that opened in Northeast two years ago, has called it quits. “This decision wasn’t easy, and we’re incredibly grateful for every person who walked through our doors, shared a drink, and supported our small team,” their farewell post reads. 1121 Quincy St. NE, Minneapolis
Heights Bakery
Oh noooo: After 72 years, Heights Bakery will serve its final pastries this Friday. “Running a small business is a special kind of challenge, and like any business, while there are good days and bad days, good months and bad months, a bakery is a particular type of physical challenge,” their closing announcement explains. “After spending their entire working lives on their feet, working overnights, dozing through family holidays, working through their own birthdays, and missing important parts of life, it is time for Dave and Debbie to retire and rest.” We wish you the best, D&D! 4925 Central Ave. NE, Columbia Heights
Sun Street Breads
The sun is setting on the wonderful Sun Street Breads, with owners Solveig Tofte and Martin Ouimet telling MSP Mag that they’re ready to move on. Or… moooove on: They’re planning to move up to Grand Marais and open a sandwich cart and barbecue trailer called Moon Cow BBQ. And you have a lot of time to say goodbye; the lovely little bakery will close in March 2026. 4600 Nicollet Ave., Minneapolis
Wild Mind Ales
One of Minneapolis’s more innovative breweries will close "in the near future," according to a social media post. Wild Mind Ales opened in 2016 with a focus on wild-fermented beers made with local yeasts. Its roster of funky/farmhouse/sour beers was unlike any other in town, and we will miss it (and its daytime coffee shop, Wild Grind). But you still have until “likely” the end of summer to say goodbye. 6031 Pillsbury Ave., Minneapolis
Just Announced and Coming Soon
Lito's Burritos
Absolutely love this news: Lito’s Burritos, which we’re big, big fans of, is opening a Lyn-Lake location at 901 W. Lake St. (Does it make us a little nervous that this is a famously cursed location? Yes, but we remain optimistic.) The excellent burrito pop-up, until now located inside El Tejaban Mexican Grill in Richfield, will continue to operate out of that first location; in fact, they’re having a fundraiser for the new restaurant there on August 6. 901 W. Lake St., Minneapolis
Aubergine
The former Revival space on St. Paul’s Cathedral Hill will soon become Aubergine, “a restaurant that celebrates Lyonnaise cuisine with Minnesota ingredients,” per the Star Tribune. Bjorn and Megan Jacobse say you’ll see a lotta eggplant at their new restaurant, hence the name, along with other seasonal French fare. Look for it to open this fall. 525 Selby Ave., St. Paul
Revival
And speaking of Revival… it’s back! (Yes, yes: It’s a Revival revival.) The local fried chicken chain abruptly closed all of its locations in January, but Jester Concepts, the same group that owns Parlour and a bunch of other local restaurants, has bought the brand and is planning a comeback. The food truck will turn tires again this summer, with brick-and-mortars on the way.
Ono Hawaiian Plates
The North Loop Galley, which was home to Ono Hawaiian plates, closed earlier this summer. But Ono is sticking around; they announced this month that the restaurant will head for the former Guacaya Bistreaux space, not far from their former food hall home. They hope to open by the end of September. 337 N. Washington Ave., Minneapolis
Cardigan Donuts
Cardigan Donuts is working on a third skyway location in downtown Minneapolis, the Strib reports. The U.S. Bank Plaza outpost will open this fall, with espresso drinks, kombucha, and ice cream in addition to those delightful donuts. 200 S. Sixth St., Minneapolis
Animales
It’s been almost a year since the announcement that Animales BBQ Co. was going brick-and-mortar, and MSP Mag took a look inside the in-development space earlier this month. Among the plans for the 12,500-square-foot space: live music and line dancing, smoked Philly cheesesteaks, and a pastry and bread program led by longtime Animalian Amber Wedell. They’re planning to open in September. 241 Fremont Ave. N., Minneapolis
Saturday Dumpling Co. at Malcolm Yards
Hey, neat: Saturday Dumpling Co. is taking over the Momo Dosa stall at The Market At Malcolm Yards. They’ll have their dumplings and a selection of scallion pancake wraps, plus “dumpling poppers” in flavors like buffalo chicken and crab rangoon. Also up and running at TMAMY, a pop-up from the EGGFLIP/SUSHIFLIP folks called CHICK’N FLIP. They can’t keep flipping things like this! [Update: The Strib reports that there's yet another SDC in the works—a standalone in the former Cafe Ceres at 5401 Penn Ave. S. in Minneapolis.] 501 30th Ave. SE, Minneapolis
In the Works
As previously reported in the Racket Restaurant Roundup…
Downtown Food Hall
Can a 30,000-square-foot food hall save downtown Minneapolis? Hey, worth a shot. The folks behind The Market at Malcolm Yards are working with Hempel Real Estate to plan a 30,000-square-foot food hall on the ground floor of LaSalle Plaza, reports the Biz Journal. Per the plans, it’s going to have 700 seats, with 16 restaurant spaces, two bars, and a self-serve beer wall, plus an event space, a play area for kiddos, a pickleball court, and shuffleboards.
Nokko
Look, we all miss Fast Eddie’s Pizza and agree that the way the pizza shop was pushed out by its landlord is evil bullshit. That being said… I’m not not looking forward to a new Southside sushi restaurant from Hide Tozawa, co-owner of Okome House and co-founder of Kyatchi (where he’s no longer involved). Nokko is headed for the former Fast Eddie’s space at 4747 Nicollet Ave. S., Minneapolis, per the Biz Journal. I have complicated feelings about this!
Tono Pizzeria + Cheesesteaks
We first noticed Tono’s rapid expansion back in 2022, but the pizza and cheesesteak shop hasn’t slowed down a bit. After launching in 2019, an 11th Tono is being planned in the North Loop, reports the Minneapolis/St. Paul Business Journal. It’s headed for 250 Third Ave. N., Minneapolis, and should open summer 2025.
Marrone’s
The Star Tribune has the scoop on Marrone’s (4250 Nicollet Ave., Minneapolis), a new woodfired pizza restaurant from Steven Brown (Tilia, St. Genevieve). The vibe here will be inspired by late ’70s New York City (the phrase “pizza oven that looks like a disco ball” appears in that Strib story), and while it’s still in the early stages, they’re looking to open before the year is out.
Silverbird Roasting Co.
Aaaand not far from Marrone’s, Silverbird Roasting Co. is coming soon to the former Kruse Markit space (4237 Nicollet Ave. S., Minneapolis), reports Bring Me the News. (Justice for Racket commenters who asked, “Why don’t they just put a good coffee shop in there?”) It’ll be the first brick-and-mortar for Silverbird’s Caitlin and Tony Querio, who’ve been roasting beans for local and national shops since 2020.
Prince Coal-Fired Pizza
Tono Pizzeria + Cheesesteaks and Andrea Pizza are getting to work on yet another pizza place. Prince Coal-Fired Pizza is heading for the former Black Sheep Coal Fired Pizza spot in downtown St. Paul (512 N. Robert St.). Expect a full-service restaurant with a full bar and takeout, but not another Tono; “We will have a specialized menu that will include coal-fired pizza, meatball sandwiches, appetizers and other sandwiches,” co-owner Shaz Khan tells the Pioneer Press.
Namos Restaurant and Lounge
A “luxury” sports bar, Namos Restaurant and Lounge, is heading for the old Erik the Red space steps from U.S. Bank Stadium, according to Downtown Voices. A recent Instagram post from Namos says it’ll be "a fusion of culture, cuisine, and live sports like you’ve never seen." I doubt that very much, unless Vikings players are doing a Coyote Ugly thing on the bar after each game—but hey, maybe they are!
Chi-Chi’s
Well goddamn! A good 20 years after shuttering its last location, the Minnesota-born Tex-Mex chain Chi-Chi’s is staging a comeback right here in MN. Michael McDermott, son of Chi-Chi’s founder Marno McDermott, has reached an agreement with Hormel Foods (which owns the CHI-CHI'S™ trademarks) to bring back the classic chain with “modern influences,” per a press release. The Star Tribune reports that the first two locations will be in the former Rojo Mexican Grills in St. Louis Park and Maple Grove.
Bubble Line Brewery
Brittney Mikell—who honed her skills as an assistant brewer at La Doña Cervecería—is readying to open the state’s first Black woman-owned brewery in the Rondo neighborhood of St. Paul. You can find the latest updates from Bubble Line Brewery on Instagram.
Billy Sushi x NOLO Kitchen Concept
Billy Tserenbat of Billy Sushi and Marty Collins, co-owner of NOLO’s Kitchen, are working on a new North Loop restaurant, the North Loop Neighborhood Association reports. They’ve already got the keys to the Washington Avenue space between Borough/Parlour and Bar La Grassa, and the restaurant will be "inspired by the legendary chaos and charm of places like Chino Latino and Bella Notte." Love the sound of that, personally.
Asia Village
As it prepares to open inside Blaine’s Northtown Mall, Asia Village has announced that 85°C Bakery & Cafe, a Taiwan-based chain, and local Vietnamese restaurant Pho Mai will be among the vendors at the all-Asian food court, according to the Strib. The building is 90% leased, per the developer, with a tentative opening planned for early 2026.
Bellecour | Cooks Split
After teaming up during the pandemic, Cooks of Crocus Hill and chef Gavin Kaysen’s Bellecour Bakery are parting ways—Cooks will return to its classes-and-retail mission, and “Bellecour 3.0,” a bakery and bistro, will open in the North Loop later this year. Mpls.St.Paul Mag has the whole scoop.
ŠHOTÁ Indigenous BBQ by Owamni
Sean Sherman’s nonprofit, North American Traditional Indigenous Food Systems (NATIFS), is opening its very own food building. NATIFS Wóyute Thipi is taking over the former Seward Co-op Creamery Café space (2601 E. Franklin Ave., Minneapolis), and will soon house a commissary kitchen for Indigenous foods, a coworking space that will support BIPOC businesses—and an Indigenous barbecue restaurant, ŠHOTÁ Indigenous BBQ by Owamni. Expect a mid-2025 opening.
Saffron
Just know this news has the foodie in your life all a-tingle: Saffron, Sameh Wadi’s popular, groundbreaking, and much-missed Middle Eastern fine-dining restaurant, which closed in 2017, will make a return. That’s according to this scoop from Mpls-St.Paul Mag, whose Stephanie March caught up with Wadi earlier this month to talk about opening Saffron, closing Saffron, and the yearslong process it’s been to bring it back. (Did you know he was just 23 when Saffron opened? Wild stuff.) No lease yet, but it’s reportedly in the works.
New North Loop Project from Tim McKee
James Beard Award-winning chef Tim McKee (La Belle Vie, Sea Change, Octo Fishbar) has his eyes set on the North Loop for a new project inspired by the Basque region of Spain. He's being tight-lipped about the new Minneapolis endeavor for now, but the restaurant will be in the new West Hotel and should theoretically open eventually.
