The Tap: Restaurant Openings and Closings in Late November

The Tap by James Norton

Banner for the Tap: Food and Drink News

This week in the Tap: Local restaurant openings and closings.

The Tap is the metro area’s comprehensive restaurant buzz roundup, so if you see a new or newly shuttered restaurant, or anything that’s “coming soon,” email Tap editor James Norton at editor@heavytable.com.

NOW OPEN

Becca Dilley / Heavy Table
Becca Dilley / Heavy Table
  • Dumpling, 4004 Minnehaha Ave S, Minneapolis | Not to be confused with Mrs. Dumpling at Lyn-Lake. Some love for their food in the Hot Five.
  • Tullibee, 300 Washington Ave N, Minneapolis | Nordic fare from nationally known chef Grae Nonas at the Hewing hotel.
  • Punch Bowl Social, The Shops at West End, St. Louis Park
  • Cafe Alma, 528 University Ave SE, Minneapolis
  • Sum Dem Korean Barbecue, 735 E 48th St, Minneapolis
  • McKinney Roe, 530 4th St S, Minneapolis | Contemporary American food by the owner of O’Donovan’s Irish Pub and Lola’s Lakehouse.
  • Tori Ramen, 161 Victoria St N, St. Paul | Chicken-focused ramen shop in the former Lee and Dee’s.
  • Augustine’s Bar and Bakery, 1668 Selby Ave, St. Paul | Another spot from the owner of The Happy Gnome, with an odd bakery-bar hybrid thing going on.
  • Fitzgerald’s, 173 Western Ave N, St. Paul |Pub fare in a casual setting, replacing the Salt Cellar.
  • Mercury Dining Room and Rail, 505 Marquette Ave S, Minneapolis | Scratch fare from the Blue Plate Restaurant Company in the old Brasserie Zentral space. Here’s our report on some of their cocktails.
  • Crisp and Green, 755 East Lake Street, Wayzata | Autumn| Owned by restaurateur Ryan Burnet (Burch, Bar La Grassa); menu will feature salads and grain bowls. A North Loop location will open next spring in the former Sapor space.
Becca Dilley / Heavy Table
Becca Dilley / Heavy Table
  • Erik the Red, 601 Chicago Ave, Minneapolis | Here’s our first look at Erik Forsberg’s latest project with a report on the smoked brisket.

CLOSED / CLOSING:

  • Mr. Robert’s Resort | Restaurant opened near Hibbing by Sarah Master.
  • Heartland (closing Dec. 31)

    Natalie Champa Jennings / Heavy Table
    Natalie Champa Jennings / Heavy Table
  • Harriet Brewing (closing Jan. 31, 2017)
  • Krungthep Thai | Our review.
  • Rachel’s (rebooting as a new concept with same owner in early 2017)
Sarah McGee / Heavy Table
Sarah McGee / Heavy Table
  • Mai Village
  • Barbary Fig (closed after 28 years in business)
Becca Dilley / Heavy Table
Becca Dilley / Heavy Table
  • Yogurt Lab (Uptown location at 2935 Girard Ave S, Minneapolis — reopening as SotaRol)
  • Restaurant Alma, 528 University Ave SE, closed until Friday, Nov. 25 | The wait is almost over: The cafe and hotel are open, and the restaurant is opening in a matter of days.

COMING UP:

Minneapolis

Brenda Johnson / Heavy Table
Brenda Johnson / Heavy Table
  • Five Watt (Roastery and Cafe), 2904 Harriet Ave S, Minneapolis | Autumn | Former Uptown Imports location.
  • Mrs. Dumpling, 700 W Lake St, Minneapolis | December | Not to be confused with Dumpling in Longfellow.
Becca Dilley / Heavy Table
Becca Dilley / Heavy Table
  • 510 Lounge & Private Dining, 510 Groveland Ave, Minneapolis | Summer 2017 | Private event space and open-to-the-public lounge run by Chef Don Saunders (The Kenwood).
  • Bad Waitress (second location), 700 Central Ave NE | November
  • Rustica Cookies & Creamery at the Mall of America | Winter
  • Young Joni, 165 13th Ave NE, Minneapolis | A new wood-fired pizza and Korean spot by Pizzeria Lola / Hello Pizza boss Ann Kim.
    Esker Grove, Walker Art Center | December | A Doug Flicker / Culinaire project is the latest crack at a dining solution for the finicky Walker space.
  • Barbecue Joint Name TBA, 816 Lowry Ave NE, Minneapolis | 2016 | A Kansas-City-style barbecue place “with no chairs and tables” opened by some combination of the Travail team.
  • Red Rabbit, 201 Washington Ave N, Minneapolis | Autumn | Red Cow owner Luke Shimp’s new spot will offer “a variety of dishes including handcrafted pizzas, oysters, pasta, fresh salads and more.”
  • Kaiseki Furukawa, 30 1st St N, Minneapolis | January 2017 | Classic kaiseki (progressive small courses) dining. We can’t wait.
Becca Dilley / Heavy Table
Becca Dilley / Heavy Table
  • Brut, Location TBD | 2016? | With all the culinary firepower of Erik Anderson (above) and Jamie Malone, Brut promises exciting things, but the lead-up has been disturbingly long.
  • Crisp and Green, 428 Washington Ave N, Minneapolis (former Sapor space) | Spring 2017 | Owned by restaurateur Ryan Burnet (Burch, Bar La Grassa); menu will feature salads and grain bowls. A Wayzata location will open this autumn at 755 E Lake Street.
  • Utepils (formerly Bryn Mawr) Brewing, 225 Thomas Ave N, Minneapolis | Winter

St. Paul

  • Barrel Theory Beer Company, 248 E 7th St, St. Paul | Early 2017 | As per the Growler: “A partnership between Surly Brewing Company’s former director of technology Brett Splinter, former Surly brewer Timmy Johnson, and CPA Todd Tibesar.”
  • J Selby’s, 169 Victoria St N, St. Paul | “by January 2017” | Vegan restaurant that prefers to call itself “plant-based.”
  • Keg and Case revitalization of the Schmidt Brewery, 928 W 7th St, St. Paul | Summer 2017 | Featuring restaurants by the teams behind Corner Table, Hola Arepa, and Five Watt.
  • Revival, 525 Selby Ave, St. Paul (former Cheeky Monkey space) | Winter? | A second location for the popular fried chicken spinoff of Corner Table. The original location will also be expanding and offering takeout.
  • Babani’s (second location), Wabasha St S | Autumn | A second location for the country’s oldest Kurdish restaurant.
Sarah McGee / Heavy Table
Sarah McGee / Heavy Table
  • Ha Tien Grocery (second location), 1959 Suburban Ave, St. Paul | “Undecided,” per their website | One of our favorite stops on our Green Line Checklist is expanding into a second location.
  • Bottle Rocket, 1806 St. Clair Ave, St. Paul | 2016 | A reboot by the Blue Plate Restaurant Company of the former Scusi space with craft cocktails. Now hiring, which means open doors may be imminent.
Katie Cannon / Heavy Table
Katie Cannon / Heavy Table
  • 11 Wells Millwright Cocktail Room, Historic Hamm’s Brewery, St. Paul | 2016 | From the website: “We’ll have a full fledged cocktail room as well as a restaurant so come hungry and thirsty.”
  • The Lexington (new ownership), 1096 Grand Ave, St. Paul | ??? | It’ll be interesting to see how the ambitious team behind this revamp and relaunch tackles the task. Between its facade, its location, and its glorious but stuffy, old-school feel, we’ll find it tough to sort the baby from the bathwater on this one. Their Facebook page says, “Keep calm. We are opening soon.” Last Facebook update: March 8.

Greater Twin Cities Area and Beyond

  • 1.2.3. Pasta, 6508 Cahill Ave, Inver Grove Heights | Delayed by parking and permitting issues.
  • Baja Haus, 830 E Lake St, Wayzata | January 2017 | A second restaurant by Billy Tserenbat of Sushi Fix, focused on Mexican seafood and scratch margaritas.
  • Second Gavin Kaysen Restaurant Name TBA, 739 E Lake Street, Wayzata (former Blue Point Location) | 2016 | A second restaurant for the much-heralded chef owner of Spoon and Stable. This one will be a French brasserie style as per Rick Nelson.
  • Blacklist Brewing, 120 E Superior St, Duluth | December | Taphouse opening in the once notorious, now rehabbed former Last Place on Earth location.
  • Oakhold Farmhouse Brewery (formerly Oude Oak) Midway Township | 2016 | Construction has started for this new sour beer-only brewery planned for just south of Duluth.

The Tap is the Heavy Table’s guide to area restaurant openings, closings, and other major events. The Tap is compiled and published biweekly by the Heavy Table. If you have tips for The Tap, please email James Norton at editor@heavytable.com.