The Best of Dara's Most Anticipated Restaurants Round-Up

At Mpls.St.Paul Magazine, Dara Moskowitz Grumdahl has an epic guide to the most anticipated restaurants of 2014. But beyond the usual info on Coup d'Etat and Travail/the Rookery, there's lots of brand-new news about other local projects and some returning rockstar chefs. Here are some of the brand-new info highlights:

· The Minneapolis project from Meritage's Russell Klein will be not one but four projects: the 150-seat Brasserie Zentral (otherwise known as the star of the show), the skyway Café Zentral (grab-n-go European street food), street-level wine bar Foreign Legion, and a Zentral retail wine shop.

· Smack Shack owner Josh Thoma is opening Paddy Shack, which will focus on hand-cut fries. That's right, a focus on fries. Plus fish and chips, shepherd's pie, and full Irish breakfasts.

· One-time Minneapolis chef Erik Anderson (who moved to Nashville's renowned Catbird Seat) is back, and apparently he is close to finishing the "financial stuff" for a new restaurant that will focus on classic French technique. In the meantime, he will be doing various pop-ups around town, with his first two planned for Haute Dish on February 4 and 18th at $200/head (with wine pairings included). Also, all the chefs at Borough helped Anderson unload his U-Haul. Awwww.

· And, there's one more big chef return: Todd McDonald, who has been in the kitchen at New York's Bouley and Cru. He's looking for a restaurant in South Minneapolis and getting a little help from Tilia's Steven Brown.

· Lots more on Saint Dinette, Heyday, and, of course, Coup d'Etat and Travail & the Rookery.
· Fame, Fortune, Pop-Ups...and Dumplings? [Mpls.St.Paul Magazine]