The Twin Cities’ Most Anticipated Spring Restaurant Openings

Fried chicken tenders and sake, yuzu and taro croissants, and neighborhood restaurant revivals to look forward to

2024 restaurant openings in the Twin Cities have kicked off at a breakneck pace, and the rest of the year promises much of the same. As spring quickens to summer, get ready for bakery revivals, splashy new food halls, French pastries infused with Southeast Asian flavors, lakeside Mex-Tex, wood-fired Hmong meats, and more. Here are the biggest anticipated restaurant openings in Minneapolis and St. Paul this spring, in no particular order.

Keefer Court

Beloved Chinese bakery Keefer Court, first opened by Sunny and Paulina Kwan in Minneapolis’s Cedar Riverside neighborhood in 1983, is stepping into a new phase of life at Eden Prairie’s Asia Mall, under Pho Mai owners Michael Bui, Mai Bui, and Peter Do, after the original location closed in 2022. A soft opening is planned for March 14 from 11 a.m. to 4 p.m., and though the new space, with gold-edged glass shelving and lacquered subway tile, has a different feel from the old Keefer, many staples — including the bakery’s famous barbecue buns — are back. 12160 Technology Dr., Eden Prairie

Julie Zhou/Eater Twin Cities

Ate Ate Ate

Construction is underway at Ate Ate Ate, the massive new food hall coming to Burnsville. The Chicago-based Windfall Group purchased Burnsville Center in 2022, partnering with the Pacifica of Burnsville group — consulting company Hospitality HQ, helmed by New York-based chef Akhtar Nawab, has been tapped to bring the food hall to life. The space is big, at 13,320 square feet — expect a roster of nine food vendors, a bar and beer pull wall, decor that nods to pan-Asian street markets, according to a press release, and an outpost of Enson Market, the Asian supermarket that will anchor the the space. Ate Ate Ate is soliciting one last food vendor to join its roster. Look for a late spring opening.

Tender Lovin’ Chix

Super-popular fried chicken food truck Tender Lovin’ Chix is opening a permanent in the former Fire & Nice Ale House space on Lyndale Avenue in Uptown. Marques “Ques” Johnson and Billy Tserenbat (of Billy Sushi) are the names behind this spot — Tender Lovin’ Chix has made its name on its Tokyo-fried-rice-and-chicken-tender combo, so expect more of that, plus a sake bar. Look for an April opening, Johnson tells Eater. 2700 Lyndale Ave S., Minneapolis

Tap In

North Minneapolis restaurant Tap In, which has radically transformed a Lowry Avenue gas station into a lush, earth-themed space for dining, artist residencies, and social gathering, is about to debut on Lowry Avenue. Tap In has had a winding road to opening since construction started in the summer of 2022, including a delay in licensing, but it’s finally in the home stretch. Interior features from designer Sophie Weber include luminous tile work, sculptural alcoves, and a “Tree of Life” fixture above the bar made with driftwood collected on the banks of the Mississippi River. 2618 Lowry Avenue N., Minneapolis

Tap In

Vinai

Chef Yia Vang’s long-awaited Hmong restaurant, Vinai, will open in the former Dangerous Man taproom in Northeast Minneapolis later this spring. Vinai is a love letter to Vang’s parents, Hmong immigrants who fled persecution in Laos after the Vietnam War. Expect a “choose your own adventure” menu broken into several sections — small treats, appetizers, wood-fired grilled meats, vegetables, rice, and pepper sauces — and a big bar. 1300 NE 2nd Street, Minneapolis

Chilango

James Beard-nominated chef Jorge Guzmán (of Petite León) is opening his second restaurant in Minneapolis’s Calhoun Beach Club. Chilango’s focus will be, as Guzmán puts it, “Mex-Tex” food, with a menu that leans into Mexican dishes but leaves room for Texan flair. As the opening approaches, Guzmán is warming things up with a taco omakase pop-up at Harriet Brasserie, promising suadero, papadulze, cochinita, and corn-waffle tacos, and more, and offering a first taste of Chilango’s menu. As far as drinks go, expect tequila, slushy frozen drinks, imported Mexican beers, and various cocktails. 2730 W. Lake Street, Minneapolis

Diane’s Place

Last year, Beard-nominated pastry chef Diane Moua announced she was leaving Gavin Kaysen’s Bellecour Bakery, where she’d gained acclaimed for her crepe cakes, ethereal kouign-amann, and other impeccable pastries, to open her own restaurant, now named Diane’s Place. Set to open in Northeast Minneapolis’s Food Building this spring, the restaurant will pair its main menu — featuring modern savory dishes and Hmong home cooking tied to Moua’s family’s Wisconsin farm (think guinea hens, bitter melon, pork fat with mustard greens, etc.) — with pastries that meld traditional French forms with Southeast Asian flavors (yuzu, taro, etc.). Moua will also be collaborating with Erik Sather of Lowry Hill Meats. 1401 Marshall Street NE, Minneapolis

Libby Anderson

Lynette

There’s a spark of new life in the former Riverview Cafe and Wine Bar in Minneapolis’s Longfellow neighborhood: Lynette, a new restaurant from Billie Conaway, Travis Serbus, and Melissa and Ben Siers-Rients, is set to open there this spring. Mpls.St.Paul Magazine has the details on what to expect: neighborhood-y, bistro-like dishes like fresh pasta, rotisserie chicken, duck fat fries, and sourdough pizza, for one, plus wine and cocktails. Serbus and Ben Siers-Rients are among the co-founders of Lyn65, the beloved, now-closed Richfield restaurant that transformed a strip mall space into cozy, time-worn haunt, and Lynette is likely to have a similar unpretentious, lived-in feel. 3753 42nd Avenue S., Minneapolis