DeRusha Download: Maple Grove Restaurant Capital of MN? Uptown Picks
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My good friend Anthony invited me to the Timberwolves game last Saturday afternoon (whoa those seats!!), and besides the electric atmosphere in Target Center I was struck by the community of chefs that David Fhima has assembled. In the Lexus Club, Ann Ahmed was serving up an amazing green curry while Marc Heu shared his stunning desserts. Gavin Kaysen was there too (his company cooks for players and their families). Fhima & the Wolves deserve a ton of credit for elevating the food at the games and for giving a platform to some of our best chefs. It’s what I’ve tried to do here - elevate the good, be honest and compassionate, and have some fun. Go Wolves!
TOO BUSY TO DOWNLOAD?:
My picks for great places to eat / visit in Uptown Minneapolis
Chilango from Jorge Guzman - first look
Click the banner ABOVE to join me on a 20-mile beer/pizza/fun bike ride NEXT SATURDAY
New Punch, Ecuadorian, and new in Wayzata
Who you should really be mad at - Maple Grove as “Restaurant Capital of MN”
If you enjoy the Download - forward it to a friend! Invite them to sign up at JasonDeRusha.com!
DOWNLOAD DIALOGUE: Uptown Minneapolis was in flux before the pandemic and the riots, but no neighborhood has felt the pain of the last couple years like the one centered at Hennepin and Lake in Minneapolis. I have a theory that our population can only support two major 612 nodes and right now those nodes are North Loop and 50th & France, and yet there’s such a population base by Uptown and still tons of reasons to go support the businesses there, even during intense construction.
I’ll be honest: Hennepin & Lagoon and Lake are a mess. You may have to park and walk a couple of blocks. I know this is a lot to ask for some people! But the rewards are there if you make the effort. On X this week I started making a thread of great spots in the broader Uptown area. [@DeRushaJ on X: https://fluence-media.co/4d3DHDv}
Ann Kim’s terrific Uptown spot Kim’s started taking reservations this week in order to help people feel confident that they’d have a table if they made the effort [RESY: https://fluence-media.co/4dcAAZG]. There’s still plenty of walk-in seating, but we may not quite be ready to be as spontaneous as Ann was hoping.
DERUSHA’S PICKS FOR UPTOWN:
In the Uptown core: Black Walnut Bakery, Lake and Irving, Kim’s, Tasting Room (wine bar), Red Cow, Nico’s Tacos, Brim, Penzey’s Spices, Magers & Quinn Booksellers, Perennial Cycle
Lyn/Lake: Abi’s Salvadoran Restaurant, Bryant Lake Bowl, Wrecktangle Pizza, Union Hmong Kitchen, Moto-I, Icanos Gastro Cantina, Up/Down, Fool Me Once
West Lake: Rustica, Chilango, Punch, the new restaurant in the Waterbury Apartments.
Lowry Hill: LITT Pinball Bar, Sebastian Joe’s Ice Cream
Your feedback welcome at Jason@JasonDeRusha.com
JOIN ME ON A RIDE NEXT SATURDAY: Let’s do the Fulton Gran Fondo! I’m riding the Piccolo - 11 miles to Pizza Luce, 11 miles back to the brewery - great for families or beginners! Saturday, May 4th, the 100 mile Gran Fondo starts at 9am, a 50 miler at 10am, and the fun 22 miler goes from Fulton to Pizza Luce and then back at 11am. Use the code DRIVETIME10 to save $10 on your registration here: https://fluence-media.co/4cK0dAS (Glad to partner with my friends at Fulton Brewing to encourage cycling and fun!)
GROCER’S TABLE GETS A SISTER: A dark, moody, elegant sister named Eloise will open this fall next to Wayzata’s The Grocer’s Table. Owner Lindsay Pohlad guarantees me it will become my new nighttime cocktail spot. Dinner + drinks, 85 seats, lounge-feel designed by Shea, should be open by mid Fall.
CHILANGO FIRST LOOK: I am drawn to non-fussy, elevated, soulful food - and if you are too I think you’re really going to enjoy Chilango. We visited on day 4 of operation, so I hesitate to make any sweeping statements, but the food was fun and delicious, and the cocktails were excellent. Service is still a work-in-progress: a common theme these days everywhere. Check out more detailed thoughts on what we ordered: MINNESOTA MONTHLY: https://fluence-media.co/4d7ylaa
CSA GUIDE: Nice write-up by Steph March about all the great community supported agriculture (farm share) options around town. MSP MAG: https://fluence-media.co/4aMIoQx.You can still use the DERUSHA $10 off code at The Good Acre for their CSA - thanks to a partnership we had for newsletter subscribers! bit.ly/tgacsa
SAMMY’S OWNER DIES: Sammy McDowell, owner of Sammy’s Avenue Eatery, died during a church service on Sunday. From MN Reformer: “When a homeless person came in, and they couldn’t afford to pay, he said, ‘Just make them a sandwich, don’t ask any questions,’ said Lillian Toins, who once worked at Sammy’s.” [MN Reformer https://fluence-media.co/3QdcV1m]
RESTAURANT CAPITAL OF MINNESOTA: “We invite you to dine in Maple Grove, recently named the Restaurant Capital of Minnesota by Experience Maple Grove.”
Experience MG: https://fluence-media.co/4dn4LxE . Full disclosure, EMG has approached me about doing some influencing / social media marketing as I live in Maple Grove. No deal yet, but I want to be straight with you guys! My thoughts: Marketing can be fun, putting a flag in the ground and saying “come to Maple Grove to eat” may not be of high interest if you live in Minneapolis/St. Paul, but it sure is if you live in Albertville, St. Cloud, greater MN. Many independent restaurants and local multi-units here, plus the national chains. With nearly 150 spots, why not?! If this marketing irritates you, it doesn’t matter, you’re not the intended audience. Also a reminder of how the state and the city of Minneapolis could do a more aggressive job of marketing us a food destination! Don’t be mad at Maple Grove - ask the city tourism people why they didn’t do something like this first?
WHY IS ITALIAN EATERY CLOSING?: I’m rarely stunned by news of a restaurant closing, but i.e. Italian Eatery and it's parking lot spot un dito have been hugely successful in South Minneapolis. We had Eric and Vanessa Carerra on my show in November, they just completed a record year. So why the announcement this week they were closing? They’re not saying, yet. Eric & Vanessa are great people - I wonder if they got an offer they couldn’t refuse by someone to buy the property. I will say I don’t quite follow the current buzz that they’re focusing on their other spot, St. Paul’s due focacceria. WCCO podcast: https://fluence-media.co/3JCUcJe
CHIMBORAZO ST. PAUL: Via Facebook, a terrific Northeast Minneapolis Ecuadorian restaurant opened Monday in St. Paul. Easy to get to at 35E and Randolph, near the Trader Joe’s. Think slow-roasted meats, rice, a wonderful brunch too. https://fluence-media.co/3UdsLu3
PUNCH PIZZA WEST END: Tuesday is opening day for Punch Pizza in St. Louis Park. Via Punch’s Instagram, they open April 30th at 11am. It’s just east of Costco and right next to Lakeshore Learning Store. This is location #12. (Pro-tip, even if you’re dining in, order ahead on their app. Since so many people take out now, this gets you in the queue. PUNCH LOCATIONS: https://fluence-media.co/44dZ1SL
CORNER COFFEE DOWNTOWN: Monday is opening day for Corner Coffee across from the Minneapolis Nicollet Mall Target in the gorgeous Young Quinlan building. It’s in the former Coconut Whisk spot, Haskell’s had a wine bar there before that. News Release: “We are thrilled to welcome Corner Coffee to the Young Quinlan Building and Nicollet Mall,” said Robert Greenberg, president of The 614 Company. “Corner Coffee will serve as a dynamic hub for building tenants, visitors and surrounding businesses.” CORNER COFFEE INSTA: https://fluence-media.co/3Uu3VYd
STARLING EDINA soon: Jester’s Starling did a fundraiser dinner for the U of M’s Masonic Children’s Hospital this week and they’re in soft opens right now. They’re planning on being walk-in only, no reservations.
DRIVETIME ON DEMAND
STATE REP SHARES HIS STORY OF BEING ABUSED: Rep. Jim Nash suffered brutal abuse as a child at the hands of his dad. He’s sharing his story to change a state law. LISTEN: https://fluence-media.co/3Uz3N9T
MY NAME IS JASON AND I’M A WATER BOTTLE ADDICT: On a rainy weekend of spring cleaning, what do you have too much of at home? https://fluence-media.co/3UgRpdB
JAMES LILEKS: So entertaining and smart - great chat on architecture, humor, blogging, the Star Tribune too. https://fluence-media.co/3UjCAH0
“YOU GUYS ARE HIPPIES”: Couldn’t help myself as I was drawn in by the passion and mission of Bang Brewing’s Jay & Sandy Boss Febbo. https://fluence-media.co/4dbpG6x
LEA B. OLSEN: The former Gophers hoops star and outstanding Timberwolves sideline reporter was on air with me as we learned Naz Reid won the NBA’s Sixth Man of the Year award. https://fluence-media.co/3WebeEQ
WORK IS OUT, PLAY IS IN: Would you be surprised Minneapolis had the best downtown recovery over the last year than any other DT? We dig into the reasons https://fluence-media.co/44xLKoh
FIND DRIVETIME WHEREVER YOU GET PODCASTS!
We upload every segment so you can listen on your own time!
YOUR FEEDBACK:
Food/Vibes/Service - rate them:
“I will put a ‘contrary’ vote in…my order is Food, Service then ambiance.
I totally agree they all matter and if any one of them is horrible, that can wreck the entire experience. But, I rank food and service before ambiance because some of my favorite places are old, neighborhood/small town dives. The place may be “rustic” but good food and good people will always win out for me.” - Tom
My only pushback is that rustic vibes are still vibes!! Is the food objectively awesome, or is it awesome for the surrounding and the feel you get there. That’s why I put food as #3 on my list!
“I’m going to go food first - after all I’m going out for something great tasting, or unique and that sets the tone for my experience. Then comes Service - nothing worse than a staff that can’t get the order right or has a bad attitude. Then comes ambiance - sure , I enjoy a classy and unique atmosphere, but I’ve had some really great food and service in some complete dives.” - Doug
“Jason, you have the ranking of restaurant attributes in exactly the right order. As a former restaurant owner and industry veteran, I can attest that the reason service and ambience are most important is because they are the hardest to achieve and the most likely point of failure. That assumes that the kitchen staff can produce food with some level of professionalism.” - John
On BBQ:
“I discovered a couple of gems out in St Bonifacius off Highway 7. St Boni Bistro & Buddy Boy Fine Barbeque. They deserve some attention. They are both worth the drive. They each have interesting stories.” - Steve (I have to check out the Boni Bistro - I’m a longtime fan of Buddy Boy!)
COMMENTS? THOUGHTS? WANT TO PARTNER? Don’t forget to sign up to ride the Fulton Fondo with me! The partners make it possible for me to do this — so do you! Thank you for reading!! I love seeing your feedback - so please share thoughts and news tips to Jason@JasonDeRusha.com.
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