‘Top Chef’s’ Southern Eatery Relocates to Downtown Minneapolis

Top Chef star Justin Sutherland’s contemporary Southern restaurant Pearl & the Thief will relocate to downtown Minneapolis this summer.

Originally housed at 112 North Main Street in downtown Stillwater, it was home to whiskey-fueled cocktails, an expansive seafood menu with creative takes on southern classics, all served in a beautiful cerulean and white dining room.

Kevin Kramer/Eater Twin Cities

Just seven months into a bustling year in Stillwater, Sutherland announced that the restaurant would close at the end of 2018, in preparation for a move to the Twin Cities. Now, Pearl & the Thief has found a home on Washington Avenue North and Third Avenue, in the Moxy Downtown Minneapolis and Ironclad Residential.

While the restaurant will maintain its Southern roots, chef Brandon Randolph will update the menu, keeping a number of favorites while expanding the oyster selection and adding new dishes. The cocktail and beverage program will also be updated to serve the new locale, with an emphasis on locally distilled stuff.

Slated to open later this summer, it will maintain original design elements from its Stillwater location, as architect and designer Jacque Bethke rejoins the project to design new plans for the significantly larger space.

• Inside Stillwater’s Pearl & the Thief [ETC]
• Justin Sutherland’s Stillwater restaurant is closing to relocate [ETC]