The Most Anticipated Twin Cities Restaurant Openings for Winter

Willard’s

Location: 135 Main Street South, Cambridge, MN

Key Players: Erick Harcey

Opening: December 11

The chef was a beloved member of the Twin Cities culinary scene, until the surprising closure of his Linden Hill’s Uptown 43 and northern Minneapolis’ Victory 44. He had intended to relocate to the North Loop, but the more time he spent around home with his kids and wife, the more he realized that the arduous commute from their home in Cambridge to Minneapolis might not be worth the cost in time. A new opportunity presented itself close to home in a 100 year old Leader department store. Harcey is putting together an all-day restaurant that will pull in some old favorites like Victory 44’s perfect burger and Upton 43’s meatballs, and the new menu will continue to pull inspiration from the restaurant’s namesake, Harcey’s grandfather, Willard.

The restaurant will have 68 seats in total, including a counter with an open view of the kitchen. What will follow is one of the most creative chefs in the Twin Cities serving main street dishes straight from his up-north heart. Reservations are available now.

Libby Anderson/Demi

Demi

Location: 212 2nd Street North, Minneapolis

Key Players: Gavin Kaysen, Adam Ritter

Projected Opening: Late-January

Chef Gavin Kaysen’s third restaurant will be a tasting-menu only space located directly behind his first restaurant, Spoon and Stable in Minneapolis’ North Loop. Spoon’s chef de cuisine Adam Ritter will move over to be Kaysen’s second in command in this kitchen.

P.S. Steak/Facebook

P.S. Steak

Location: 510 Groveland Terrace, Minneapolis

Key Players: Mike DeCamp, Wyatt Evans

Projected Opening: Mid-January

The building that once held La Belle Vie will again hold an elegant restaurant with chef Mike DeCamp in the kitchen. P.S. Steak is the newest restaurant for the Jester restaurant group, for which DeCamp serves as culinary director. The new restaurant will have not one, but two bars, both overseen by Jesse Held. Wyatt Evans, who last owned and operated St. Paul’s farmhouse-styled Heirloom will over see the kitchen.

Katie Cannon/Eater Twin Cities

UMAMI

Location: 1930 Hennepin Avenue, Minneapolis

Key Players: Mike Brown, Bob Gerken, James Winberg

Projected Opening: January, tickets on sale now

The first mega-pop up from the merry band of chefs behind Travail will be returning for a few brief moments on Hennepin Avenue. Inside the dining room, tickets for a pre-fixe menu that includes some dim sum courses, sake bombs and more will be available for $85 per person. At the bar, there will be some dishes available for take-out.

The pop-up is coming into the former Bradstreet Craftshouse/Rye Deli/Auriga space. UMAMI will last for a while, before the team turns it over into another as-of-yet unnamed concept as they wait for construction on downtown Robbinsdale’s new Travail location.