Vita.mn magazine's early November issue featured their list for the best 101 restaurants in the Twin Cities, as food critics and readers weighed in on who they felt had the best food, prices, and atmosphere. The areas surveyed included Downtown, Northeast, and South Minneapolis, as well as the city suburbs. Finding themselves in some very good company were seven of Shea's recent design offerings:

101 Restaurants: pullout guide to the best dining in your neighborhood

Sea Change

• Cuisine: Seafood.
• Price range: $$$.

The Guthrie Theater's principal dining venue, formerly Cue, has changed hands, hired the area's highest-profile chef, Tim McKee, and is offering a sustainable-seafood focus. Much of the food is sublime, the room has had an attractive redo and the prices (with the exception of wine and desserts) are kept reasonable. Tantalizing small plates await you at the raw bar. Dishes from the beet salad to the smoked salmon are artfully presented. Stellar entrees (average price: $21) include a satisfying bouillabaisse, ocean trout, a memorable cassoulet and an elegant beef tenderloin. Complaints? Service glitches, trying-too-hard desserts, steep prices for wines by the glass, some clunkers on the entree list, and lack of offerings for vegetarians. Overall, this is a change we all can believe in. --Rick Nelson

Barrio

Cuisine type: Mexican.

• Price range: $$.

Staples of the Mexican chain-restaurant stable get invigorating new life pumped into them. The mahi-mahi taco is rapturously good, the succulent fish enrobed in a gossamer beer-batter tempura and paired with a cool cucumber pico de gallo. I love the robust red chile enchilada, flecked with a peppy chorizo and topped with a gently fried egg. Cinnamon-kissed carnitas is served two ways, either as a taco or crowning a pair of sopas and finished in a rich ancho-tamarind sauce. The chicken enchilada pretty much shows how the genre is done. --Rick Nelson

Midtown Global Market

While it's probably easier to describe what's not available at the labyrinthine MGM, there are certainly some highlights. The cupcakes and coconut macaroons of Salty Tart are some of the best in the Twin Cities; the delicious tamales of La Loma have blown the once-humble shop up into a powerhouse; and the straightforward but satisfying Mideast fare of Holy Land Deli gets workers lining up on lunch break. Specialty groceries are an added appeal. Shops open in the market with some frequency, so gastronomic explorers should find themselves consistently entertained. --James Norton

Brasa

• Cuisine: American, African, Caribbean.
• Price range: $$.

To a gal with Deep South-ophilia like me, Brasa is just plain old soul food. Nothing fancy, but every bite a cacophony of rich, warm, hearty flavors that put the heart and gut right. The grits are thick with sharp orange cheddar, with a texture both squishy and solid, the hallmark of good grits. The greens are marvelously soft but not overdone, with bits of smoked turkey. The red beans (or black beans) and rice were a bit dry, but that didn't stop me from shoveling them into my mouth with decadent abandon. And those yams with Andouille sausage? Those flavors, those textures, they are meant to be together. The rotisserie chicken was good, but man, I was in it for the pork. That melange of gristle, juice, seasoning and tender meat. I was not disappointed. --CityGal (user's choice)

Crave

• Cuisine: American casual.
• Price range: $$$.

Chef Eli Wollenzien clearly crunched the numbers at a place seemingly aimed at female diners, crafting a menu with no surprises, no unwelcome wackiness. Instead, something to suit just about every craving. Sushi, wood-fired pizzas, rotisserie chicken, salads, sandwiches, pastas, a big New York strip with creamy mashed potatoes: It's all there. Some things (a superb burger, a bunch of super-fresh salads) are better than others (tuna tartare, the sea bass, a not-that-chocolatey chocolate lava cake). --Rick Nelson

Yum! Kitchen and Bakery

• Cuisine: American casual.
• Price range: $$.

This dine-in/take-out venture hasn't changed dining as we know it, but through smart packaging and an obvious attention to detail, Patti Soskin has forged a concept that feels perfectly calibrated to our casual, time-pressed times and comfort-seeking tastes. The menu has a similar ease: nothing fancy, just fresh ingredients, clean flavors and uncomplicated preparations. --Rick Nelson

Galaxy Drive-In

• Cuisine: American casual.
• Price range: $.

New owner Steve Schussler slaps a dramatic makeover on the former Wagner's Drive-In. The menu covers the drive-in basics. First and foremost are a few hand-formed quarter-pound burgers (as well as double and triple variations), made with buttered and toasted buns and finished with grilled onions, thick bacon, a few cheeses and tangy pickles. There's a grilled chicken breast-bacon sandwich, a hoagie stuffed with sirloin and provolone and several variations on the all-beef hot dog theme. The carhops are so enthusiastic you wonder if Schussler limited his recruitment efforts to cheerleading squads. It's tough to find a price over $5. --Rick Nelson

Vita.mn speaks up for Lyndale Tap House

Tom Horgen of Vita.mn magazine offers his take on The Lyndale Tap House:

In defense of the Lyndale Tap House

by Tom Horgen

Photo by Joel Koyama

Expectations were high for the Lyndale Tap House, the new bar in a location most recently occupied by JP's American Bistro. So, of course, the Twin Cities blogosphere took aim at the new spot a few weeks after its late-September opening. Online chatterers called the decor sexist, the room loud and the food in need of work.

But on any given weekend, the bar is buzzing with business, which made me think: This place can't be half-bad, right? Affirmative. Yeah, it could use some tweaks. But the bar is bringing crowds to the resurgent corner of Lake and Lyndale, and for good reason.

The concept: Some people are confused about what exactly the Lyndale is trying to be. Is it a bar? A restaurant? A gastropub? Its focus seems pretty obvious to me: It's a bar with decent food. And how about those sexist photographs? Hmm ... seems more like harmless kitsch than anything else. The decor in question is basically artsy, pinup-style portraits of busty women posing with livestock on a central Minnesota farm. Moo.

At the end of the day, this is a neighborhood bar that reminds me of the Bulldog. Any good neighborhood bar needs only to follow these simple guidelines.

Good food: While the pit grill meat is interesting, make sure you try the beer mussels and the handmade pretzels.

Good beer: The 18 taps aren't revolutionary, but there's a healthy mix of American craft brands (Tyranena, Victory, Founders, etc.).

A good, lively crowd: On weekdays, the Tap House draws a fun, relaxed neighborhood crowd for happy hour. On weekends, it starts out as a dinner destination and then transforms late-night into Lyn-Lake's version of a party bar. While this isn't everyone's cup of tea, the cross-section of jocks and hipsters makes for some fascinating people-watching. The place also has a working photo booth.

Needs work: If you're going to call yourself a Tap House, your draft selection should be on par with such beer bars as the Bulldog or the Muddy Pig. "We will be adding more and more taps to the point where we will be competing with some of those places," owner Gene Suh said.

The place also needs a DJ to go along with the jukebox. Suh said the city wouldn't grant the bar the appropriate license for a DJ. He said he'll revisit the issue with the city.

Impact: The bar's addition to Lyn-Lake almost makes you think a little renaissance is happening at this corner (after what seems like years of road construction). A growing number of bars and restaurants -- including sake brewpub moto-i and the rock club Sauce -- have made this a nightlife destination to watch. Add the Lyndale Tap House to that list.

Shea featured in Vita.mn

Click on the link to see Shea featured in vita.mn's new "@work" feature:

@work: designer dining
click here

Twin Cities Metro Magazine heralds four new Shea-designed eateries

This month, Twin Cities Metro magazine's Eat & Drink section focused on the new hot food spots opening up around the area, and four Shea projects made the list. Perhaps you can't have too much of a good thing...


There’s a new gastropub lighting up the old jP restaurant space in LynLake. The Lyndale Tap House (2937 Lyndale Ave. S., 612.825.6150) offers a menu centered around meats such as pork and beef that are slow-roasted on an oak-fired pit grill, with 18 beers on tap and a full bar.


Crave launched yet a third outpost (in addition to its Galleria and MOA locations) in the brand-spanking new Shops at West End (1603 West End Blvd., St. Louis Park; 952.933.6500). Housed in an enormous space with ample outdoor seating and a private party room, it serves the same eclectic, seasonal menu of sushi and wood-fired grill items, with many locally sourced ingredients.


The Loring Kitchen & Bar (1359 Willow St., Mpls; 612.843.0400) possesses much of the comfort food flair of its sister restaurant, Birch’s, in Long Lake, but with an urban setting that features floor-to-ceiling glass windows overlooking Loring Park and a portico that provides partial cover for al fresco dining. You’ve got to try the mini fried chicken on the small plates menu – it’s top notch.


The Kona Grill (11997 Singletree Lane, Eden Prairie; 952.941.3262) is enticing diners in the Southwestern ‘burbs with early and late happy hours, and an über-diverse menu featuring a sushi bar, Asian-inspired dishes like sweet chili-glazed salmon and American favorites like big island meat loaf.

Shea-designed Ten 22 debuts in Old Sacramento, California

Shea worked with Harvego Enterprises on the development of Ten 22, a new restaurant brand that opened to the public on November 13. The grand opening attracted lots of enthusiastic visitors, including Sacramento Mayor Kevin Johnson, and Greg Majewski of the Sacramento Press. Read on for Greg's take on Day One:

Ten 22 holds soft opening last night, opens today
by Greg Majewski, Sacramento Press, November 13, 2009 at 3:59PM


After months of careful planning, countless focus groups and likely many sleepless nights, the big day is finally upon Terry Harvego. Today Harvego opens his new restaurant, Ten 22. So with every obstacle overcome but today’s first day of business, one wonders how Harvego feels.

“I’m not nervous — I’m very confident and I just want to do this now,” Harvego said at Thursday evening's soft opening. “Sure, there will probably be some mistakes the first day, but it is what it is. I know it will be great."

Ten 22’s soft opening the night before its grand opening the next day was a laid-back affair, with the 100 or so attendees inside the restaurant’s simple, refined interior fully living the business’ motto, “Eat Drink Relax."

Waiters moved from the standing groups of chatting people that dotted the softly lit main room, taking drink orders and shuffling trays of appetizers along the way. Salmon and cheese served on toasted baguette slices, open-faced pulled pork mini sandwiches and thin-crust margherita pizza were some of the more popular platters making the rounds.

“We will have about 20 to 30 items on the daily menu," executive chef Andrea Reiter said. “This is the first brand new restaurant I’ve ever worked on, so I’m really excited. One of my favorite dishes is the braised short ribs because they have a really unique taste that’s unlike anything I’ve ever had before."

With the menu generally falling under what Reiter calls “American cuisine with a twist,” Ten 22 is family-friendly without being “kiddy."

While kids are most certainly welcome, Ten 22 has an impeccable variety of adult beverages. As expected, the bar area’s tap selection rivals most actual bars in town, with 24 beers available on draft and four in the bottle.

"I can’t wait until we open tomorrow," bartender Rich Miramontes said. “I start at 4 p.m. and the bar is open until 11 p.m. I love this place because there’s really nothing like it in Old Sac."
Ten 22’s uniqueness is what drew general manager Richard Beyerl to the restaurant, as did a little help from the Web.

“I actually found out about Ten 22 on careerbuilder.com,” Beyerl said with a laugh. “I had a restaurant elsewhere in the Central Valley but when we close I decided to look for something in Sacramento since my wife owned a restaurant here and we only saw each other on weekends. This restaurant is in you’re in Old Sac but you don’t feel like you are."

Among those in Old Sac Thursday evening were Mayor Kevin Johnson, who stopped by to say a few words about the new establishment.

“We are very thankful for this family,” Johnson said of the Harvego’s, including Terry’s father, Lloyd, who owns The Firehouse on the next block. “Sacramento is a city that emphasizes strong family values and a sense of community, and they truly represent this."

When asked before his speech if Ten 22 will become the new hot spot for Johnson and his fellow politicians, he replied, “Well, I have to try the food first, so we will see!"

Johnson and the rest of Sacramento will finally get a taste of something new now that Ten 22 finally opened its doors to the public at 11:30 a.m. today. Go try it for yourself at 1022 Second St.

More attention for The Lyndale Tap House

The Lyndale Tap House continues to grab all kinds of attention and it gets a great review in today's Star Tribune:

Opened just six weeks ago, the Lyndale Tap House has found a winning formula.
By TOM HORGEN, Star Tribune
November 13, 2009 - 9:15 AM

Expectations were high for the Lyndale Tap House, the new bar with some big local names behind it in a location most recently occupied by foodie favorite JP's American Bistro. So, of course, the Twin Cities blogosphere took aim at the new spot a few weeks after its late-September opening (a little early for snarky remarks, in my book). Online chatterers called the decor sexist, the room loud and the food in need of work.

But on any given weekend, the bar is buzzing with business, which made me think: This place can't be half-bad, right?

Affirmative. Yeah, it could use some tweaks. But the bar is bringing crowds to the resurgent corner of Lake and Lyndale, and for good reason.

The concept:
Some people (OK, mostly just bloggers) are confused about what exactly the Lyndale is trying to be. Is it a bar? A restaurant? A gastropub? The next Bulldog? Owner Gene Suh, 31, and his partners were initially a little uncertain themselves. They were first going to call it the Anchor Bar, but later switched to the Lyndale Tap House (so as not to be confused with Anchor Fish & Chips in northeast Minneapolis).

Its focus seems pretty obvious to me: It's a bar with decent food. They had no intention of re-creating JP's, people. The remodeled floor plan (courtesy of Shea, the design firm behind Barrio, Crave and many other restaurants) features all dark wood and a repurposed bar. It's now the room's centerpiece, stretching from one end to the other.

At the very least, Suh said he always envisioned the Lyndale as a bar with chef-driven comfort food. He suspects that the fickle foodie crowd was drawn in by the pedigree of his partners: Josh Thoma, Ryan Burnet and Tim Rooney. (The trio are partners at Barrio and Bar La Grassa, while Thoma also has La Belle Vie and Solera.)

Still wanting to give the bar some kind of edge, chef Phil Dvorak is specializing in Baltimore-style pit meat. He marinates cuts of beef and pork for three days before cooking them over a 6-foot-long oak-fired pit grill (a Baltimore tradition).

And how about those sexist photographs? Hmm ... seems more like harmless kitsch than anything else. The decor in question is basically artsy, pinup-style portraits of busty women posing with livestock on a central Minnesota farm. Moo.

What's to like:
At the end of the day, this is a neighborhood bar that reminds me of the Bulldog. Any good neighborhood bar needs only to follow these simple guidelines.

Good food: While the pit grill meat is interesting, make sure you try the beer mussels and the handmade pretzels.

Good beer: The 18 taps aren't revolutionary, but there's a healthy mix of American craft brands (Tyranena, Victory, Founders, etc.).

A good, lively crowd: On weekdays, the Tap House draws a fun, relaxed neighborhood crowd for happy hour. On weekends, it starts out as a dinner destination and then transforms late-night into Lyn-Lake's version of a party bar. While this isn't everyone's cup of tea, the cross-section of jocks and hipsters makes for some fascinating people-watching.

The place also has a working photo booth.

Needs work:
If you're going to call yourself the Tap House, your draft selection should be on par with such beer bars as the Bulldog or the Muddy Pig. Suh said the bar's general manager (and partner), Phil Immerman, was against the Tap House name, fearing it would draw the ire of beer geeks (smart guy). But they went with it anyway. "We will be adding more and more taps to the point where we will be competing with some of those places," Suh said.

The place also needs a DJ to go along with the jukebox. While jukeboxes are great and all, the late-night clientele picks a strange mish-mash of gangsta rap and rock songs that sounds like two teenagers fighting over the radio. Suh said the city wouldn't grant the bar the appropriate license for a DJ. Suh wants to follow the Barrio model: dinner first, followed by a DJ who provides good vibes, but not necessarily a nightclub. He said he'll revisit the issue with the city.

Impact:
The bar's addition to Lyn-Lake almost makes you think a little renaissance is happening at this corner (which is emerging from what seems like years of road construction). A growing number of bars and restaurants -- including sake brewpub Moto-i and the rock club Sauce -- have made this a nightlife destination to watch. Add the Lyndale Tap House to that list.
thorgen@startribune.com • 612-673-7909

LYNDALE TAP HOUSE
Where: 2937 Lyndale Av. S., Mpls.Hours: 4 p.m.-2 a.m. Mon.-Fri. and 11 a.m.-2 a.m. Sat.-Sun.Info: 612-825-6150 or http://www.thelyndale.com/.

Midtown Global Market makes Bon Appetit's top ten

Bon Appetit magazine just put out their December picks for the top ten in-store dining stops in the country, and Shea project Midtown Global Market was among some very impressive company with the nation's top "retail-restaurant hybrids." Read on for details:

The Hot 10- The Best in In-Store Dining
by Andrew Knowlton

Holiday Shoppers rejoice: There's a delicious alternative to mall food. The trend of retail-restaurant hybrids - spots that combine gifts and the gift of good food - ensures that browsing need not be done on an empty stomach.

midtown global market - minneapolis

With more than 40 independent, locally owned shops under one roof, this United Nations of markets was made for the globe-trotting foodie. Foods (try the tacos from Taqueria Los Ocampo) and artisanal crafts (perhaps a bracelet from Ecuador) from regions including Latin America, Scandinavia, Asia, and the Middle East are all represented - 920 East Lake Street; 612-872-4041: midtownglobalmarket.org

Also making the list were:

surfas - culver city, california
oxbow public market - napa
cane rosso - san fransisco
bin 36 - chicago
stir - boston
despaña - new york
3 cups - chapel hill, north carolina
bolsa - dallas
cowgirl creamery - washington, d.c.

Rick Nelson reviews Sea Change at the Guthrie

Star Tribune food writer Rick Nelson stops by yet another Shea project, this time Sea Change. Read on as he breaks down the "cozy" design, the "sublime food," and asks chef Tim McKee, "What's next?"

Catch of the day: The Guthrie's Sea Change is a keeper
by Rick Nelson
Photo by Tom Wallace

Much of the food is sublime, due to both Tim McKee's prodigious culinary gifts as well as his deep talent pool, most notably chef de cuisine Erik Anderson and sous chef Jim Christiansen.

It has been a watershed year for chef Tim McKee.

Along with overseeing four top-performing restaurants -- La Belle Vie, Solera and Barrio in Minneapolis and Smalley's Caribbean Barbeque in Stillwater -- he and business partner Josh Thoma opened their second Barrio in St. Paul's Mears Park neighborhood in June. A few weeks earlier, he was the first Minnesotan to be named Best Chef: Midwest by the James Beard Foundation, his industry's equivalent of being handed an Oscar. Oh, and in July, McKee launched a little enterprise called Sea Change.

The name has several meanings. First, the obvious: The Guthrie Theater's principal dining venue, formerly known as Cue, has swapped management (now Dallas-based Culinaire), hired the region's highest-profile chef (McKee) and been transformed into a seafood-focused restaurant.

Another switch: By pledging to source all underwater proteins from what he calls "sustainable fisheries and environmentally responsible farms," McKee is communicating a break from harmful production practices.

But to this diner, the name signals an exciting new epoch in the local seafood dining category. Sea Change is clearly the genre's first notable player since the Oceanaire Seafood Room dropped anchor more than a decade ago.

Much of the food is sublime, due to both McKee's prodigious culinary gifts as well as his deep talent pool, most notably chef de cuisine Erik Anderson (previously at Porter & Frye and Auriga) and sous chef Jim Christiansen (a longtime pillar in the La Belle Vie kitchen). Prices rarely land above the low-$20s, which represents another about-face. McKee told me that many diners viewed Cue, fairly or not, as too expensive and, let's face it, when Minnesotans hear the word "seafood," our brains automatically start thinking "Ka-ching."

Kudos to raw

But not at Sea Change, particularly at its raw bar -- the seafood shrine -- where a small investment can yield outsized results and where subtle incursions of unexpected flavor combinations add to, but never overwhelm, the pristine seafood.

Plush cubes of ruby-red yellowfin tuna melt in the mouth, their cool flavor chased by a gently spicy heat. Hefty chunks of sweet crab, rearranged in the shell like a nautical twice-baked potato, are lightly dressed with a preserved lemon emulsion. Shears of supple albacore tuna and rich, translucent lardo play nicely against tiny cubes of crunchy vegetables. Shimmering prawns, split lengthwise and garnished with red chile flakes, finish with a teasing rosemary tang.

Other small plates similarly delight. Delicate croquettes sing with fresh clam and tarragon flavors. Octopus, slow-cooked for 10 hours until it's mouth-meltingly tender, is finished on the grill and paired with a lively salsa. Pairing rich pork belly and gently fried oysters, slider-style, is a stroke of genius. A green curry-coconut milk broth adds distinction to steamed mussels.

Appearances matter here. Raw oysters are artfully arranged, and steamed shrimp are plated to spotlight the crustacean's lovely C-curve. A contemporary Nicoise tastes as good as it looks. Smoked salmon is admirable not just for its luscious flavor but also for its meticulously sliced garnishes (seriously, the kitchen's precise knife skills are a joy to behold), and the eye-catching roasted beet salad seems inspired by the onion domes of Russian Orthodox churches.

Entrees with class

The slightly more conventional seafood entrees still bear McKee's sure-handed touch, and with an average price of $21, they're within reach of the rush-ticket crowd. The deconstructed bouillabaisse, fragrant and satisfying, just might be the dish I'll return to all winter for internal warmups. I loved how pickled burdock and gently braised butter lettuce brought additional color and texture surprises to gorgeous orange-fleshed ocean trout. Swordfish has replaced sturgeon in a memorable cassoulet brimming with shrimp and zesty garlic sausage, and artichokes and perfectly cooked white beans were a fine foil to crisp-skinned arctic char. Another plus: The vast majority of the menu takes a very light approach, an asset when going upstairs and settling into a long-winded Guthrie evening.

The menu's "Not Fish" section could be subtitled "Hedging Our Bets," with well-crafted crowd-pleasers that range from comfort-minded short ribs and a succulent grilled duck with cherry accents to an elegant beef tenderloin. In that same vein, a handful of beef, pork and chicken starters are perfectly pleasant but are frankly outshined by their far showier seafood counterparts.

Lunch grabs a few greatest hits off the dinner menu, then adds a few terrific sandwiches -- a stack of thin-sliced veal, grilled trout with a curry aioli, a crab-cake BLT, an exceptional burger topped with blue cheese and sweet caramelized onions -- and the bar's superb fish and chips. Most prices fall in the $12-and-under range.

Although it's still not really a daytime room, the dramatic surroundings were tweaked by Shea Inc., the omnipresent Minneapolis design firm, and the revisions are almost all for the better. Graphics inspired by sea currents and seaweed-tinted accents introduce an aquatic theme without overdoing it (although an ample emerald-and-sage-colored mobile seems to reflect the urge to buy a painting because it matches the sofa). These lively color bursts also break up the unrelenting blue-on-blue-ness.

Well-placed cabinets and cone-shaped light fixtures do their part to cozy up the cavernous space -- now, when it's half-full it doesn't feel empty -- and chalkboards listing the provenance of the day's catch add a much-needed casual note to what had been a too-formal setting.

Best of all, the space remains a magical evening destination, twinkling and glowing like a scene out of big-budget production of "A Midsummer Night's Dream." Soften it with a little candlelight, and even a schlub like me would feel like a movie star.

A few suggestions

Complaints, I have a few. General manager Lorin Zinter -- another well-schooled La Belle Vie veteran -- has injected a welcome dose of hospitable warmth into a previously chilly room, but that doesn't mean I didn't encounter a few rookie service glitches. Pastry chef Niki Francioli's intellectual, high-concept desserts are noteworthy for their intense flavors and clever textural juxtapositions, but they can sometimes feel as if they're trying too hard, and it would be nice to have an option or two below the $8 to $10 range.

Speaking of expensive, the wines-by-the-glass list averages a somewhat tone-deaf $11 (perhaps management is trying to pay off the uncomfortable bar stools, slick and undoubtedly pricey holdovers from the Cue era). The menu is not without its clunkers (a drab linguine with shrimp, a peculiar scallops preparation) and vegetarians are pretty much out of luck. More than once my nose caught an overly fishy scent slinking past our table.

"So you didn't like it?" asked my friend as I bored him while rattling off my beefs. Where did he get that impression? On the contrary: With McKee & Co. at the wheel, this is change we can all definitely believe in. Heck, if McKee said he was opening a taco truck, I'd camp out overnight to be first in line.

But since he and Thoma are already a few inches away from launching a portable Barrio (grilled shrimp tacos, coming to a corner near you), what's left? World domination, perhaps?

"No, I'm not doing anything else," McKee told me last week. "Then I laugh because I've said that seven other times."