The Country Bar Becomes a Blue Door Pub

Fans of TLC’s Cake Boss will be lining up out at the Mall of America on Saturday for a chance to meet the show’s star, Buddy Valastro. His Carlo’s Bakery is opening inside Bloomington’s mega mall in the Culinary North (don’t-call-it-a-food-court) section. A ribbon cutting ceremony will take place at 7:00 a.m.

—Bulldog Northeast is closing October 2. The restaurant known for its fancy tots and burgers will flip to become The Stray Dog according to GoMN.com. The change in pedigree comes with an ownership change as the current executive chef Kevin Kraus takes ownership. The restaurant will continue to serve a wide selection of burgers and open officially, the second week of October.

Two other Bulldog locations in Lowertown and Uptown remain open and operating under different ownership.

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—The Country Bar is closing: again, according to City Pages. The dive bar turned regular bar closed for a change of ownership and a makeover last year. Unfortunately, the dangling antlers, ample cowhides and Shorty & Wags wings weren’t enough to keep the business alive at 3006 Lyndale Avenue. Instead, the fast-expanding local burger chain Blue Door Pub will open its first Lyn/Lake location.

Blue Door Pub first opened near Selby and Fairview in St. Paul’s Merriam Park neighborhood in a restaurant with a blue door. Since then, BDP, known for its cheese-stuffed burgers called “blucy’s” has opened in Longfellow and Como neighborhoods. Saturday will be the final night of the current Country Bar and the Blue Door plans to start serving as soon as November 1.