The Twin Cities’ Most Anticipated Fall Restaurant Openings

Minneapolis and St. Paul are fresh off a season of big new restaurant openings, including, most recently, a cozy neighborhood bistro dishing up ravioli du Dauphine and salted chocolate chip cookies, a supper club-y new St. Paul restaurant from the owners of Lake Elmo Inn, and a fancy new sports bar from chef Daniel del Prado, among others. Fall has even more in store: Stay tuned for an ultra popular dumpling pop-up-turned-permanent-restaurant and a hifi wine bar coming to Northeast Minneapolis; a revived cocktail lounge and New Orleans-style restaurant opening on Lake Street; a low-key Japanese cafe coming to the North Loop; and more. Here are this fall’s most anticipated Twin Cities restaurant and bar openings.

Zenska Glava sommelier Sarina Garibović and songwriter and musician Sam Cassidy have teamed up to open Small Hours, a bar built for wine and music lovers, in Northeast Minneapolis. Most wines will be served by the bottle, so that customers can “immerse themselves in the culture and story behind each bottle,” per Garibović, though there will be a rotating by-the-glass menu. There’ll be a food menu of small plates that complement the wines, too, like tinned fish served with fresh-baked bread from local bakers Sisters Mpls. Beyond the wine, high-fidelity music is the focus at Small Hours: The bar has an assortment of both new and vintage sound equipment, including a floating turntable and a rotary mixer, not to mention a thorough record collection. Opening September 21. 2201 NE 2nd Street, Minneapolis

Cafe Yoto

Chef Yo Hasegawa, a 10-year veteran of acclaimed omakase restaurant Kado No Mise, will soon open a North Loop cafe of his own, according to Downtown Voices. Cafe Yoto promises a casual vibe, counter service, and a focus on takeout. Earlier this year, Hasegawa teamed up with Kado No Mise chef Shigeyuki Furukawa for a two-night, walk-in-only pop-up called Yo Monday Cafe — its menu of sauteed ribeye bowls, assorted sashimi, and soba noodles crowned with fried tofu may offer a hint of what’s to come at Cafe Yoto. Look for an October opening. 548 N. Washington Avenue, Minneapolis, inside the Duffey Building

Linda Cao and Peter Bian’s immensely popular dumpling pop-up Saturday Dumpling Co. is opening as a permanent restaurant in Northeast Minneapolis this fall, in the former Glam Doll space on Central Avenue. The vision is for a counter-service set-up, where customers can order pan-fried, steamed, or deep-fried dumplings, plus rice bowls and special items like SDC’s popular scallion pancake burritos, per details from Mpls.St.Paul Magazine; there’ll be a deli case, too. Saturday Dumpling Co. has also launched a restaurant fundraiser page where supporters can buy merchandise (not the least of which is a limited edition Saturday Dumpling Co. Baggu bag) and private dumpling classes, or “adopt” a piece of equipment. An opening date hasn’t yet been announced. 519 Central Avenue NE, Minneapolis

Aster House

Aster House — the newest venture from Jeff Arundel of Aster Café and Jefe Urban Cocina — will open in the Brown-Ryan stable house near the riverfront on St. Anthony Main this fall. A supper club-style menu from chef Karyn Tomlinson of Myriel blends modern and retro vibes, featuring straightforward dishes that make use of regional ingredients — think wild rice croquettes, Hasselback potatoes with sour cream and chives, and the like. Keep an eye out for an early fall opening. 25 SE Main Street, Minneapolis

A new bakery is set to open on St. Paul’s Grand Avenue this fall, bringing a menu of challah, pita, slow-fermented sourdough loaves, and bagels (served with schmears and butter, of course) in tow. Razava Bread Co comes from head baker Omri Zin-Tamir (of farmers market mainstay the Bakery on 22nd Street) and owner Steve Baldinger, whose family founded Baldinger Bakery in West St. Paul circa 1888. An opening date hasn’t yet been announced, but in the meantime, keep an eye on Instagram and catch Razava at local farmers markets. 685 Grand Avenue, St. Paul

Du Nord Cocktail Room and Lagniappe

Chris and Shanelle Montana, founders of Du Nord Distillery, are both opening a new restaurant and reviving their south Minneapolis cocktail room, which closed in 2020, in Lake Street’s newly renovated Coliseum building. Lagniappe’s New Orlean-style menu will feature dishes like redfish on the half-shell and shrimp remoulade; the Montanas are steadily rolling out sneak peeks of the cocktail menu, which promises frothy espresso martinis and an apple Old Fashioned. On Saturday, September 21, Du Nord is hosting a free “Krewe Du Nord” New Orleans-style music festival at the Coliseum building — Big 6 Brass Band is traveling all the way from the Big Easy for the event. An opening date hasn’t been announced yet. 2700 E. Lake Street, Minneapolis

A new restaurant from Jeff Watson — executive chef and culinary director for Dani del Prado’s restaurants; also an alum of Isaac Becker’s Bar La Grassa and Burch Steak — is set to open in Northeast Minneapolis’s former Erté & the Peacock Lounge this fall. Per the Star Tribune, expect a menu that delves into East Asian cuisine, especially Korean dishes, featuring barbecued meats, hearty noodle bowls, and plenty of banchan. A bar program from del Prado bar maven Megan Luedtke promises highlights of sochu and makgeolli (an effervescent Korean rice wine). Look for an early fall opening. 323 13th Avenue NE, Minneapolis