Cafe Maude, Bastion of Cocktails and Fancy Mac and Cheese, Will Close July 31

Cafe Maude on Penn Avenue South just off 54th Street in the Armatage neighborhood will shutter on July 31. For 10 years it was the neighborhood cafe with the full liquor license on the edge of Edina and Minneapolis that launched great bartenders and soothed diners with delicious comfort food.

The restaurant was named for Maude Armatage and long touted itself as the home for “civilized leisure.” A neighborhood cafe awash in scarlet and orange hues it was the place that was at the cocktail forefront as drinking styles in the Twin Cities changed from bottled mixers and rail booze to what it is today. Maude has also long been a supporter of local musicians, the GLBT community and a wise selection for a long brunch on the weekends.

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Cafe Maude briefly expanded into a second location in Loring Park, but that outpost closed after just 16 months in 2013 and was taken over by Kim Bartmann. Bartmann is the prolific restauranteur who also owns and operates Cafe Barbette, Bryant Lake Bowl, Bread & Pickle on Lake Harriet, Pat’s Tap, Tiny Diner and Red Stag Supperclub. Bartmann turned that location at 1612 Harmon Place into the Third Bird, that then switched to Bearcat for a month and now is a breakfast place going by the moniker The Bird.

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The interesting legacy is that Bartmann will now take over the original Cafe Maude space. She is partnering with chef Asher Miller, who made his name locally as the chef at 20.21, Wolfgang Puck’s short-lived Minneapolis restaurant. Miller had been working with Andrew Zimmern inside his AZ Canteen operation (a food truck and stand inside the Vikings Stadium.)

When those two take over, the space will be lightly remodeled and likely reopen as a new restaurant some time this fall.

• Cafe Maude at Loring Park [ETC]
• Bearcat Closes In Record Time [ETC]
• All Kim Bartmann News [ETC]