A Handful of Twin Cities Restaurants Remain Temporarily Closed While Others Return to In-Person Dining

January marks a time to “start fresh” for many people, a month typically involving fewer comfort meals, less alcohol, and stricter spending habits. For restaurant owners, this often means a season of low sales. Thanks to the brutalizing pandemic, the already hurting industry faces no easy decisions for early winter 2021. Many area restaurants have announced temporary closures to ride out the depth of winter, despite the ability to now reopen at reduced capacity. For some, the promise of sales balanced with re-hiring, re-stocking, and knowing that it all might grind to a halt again is too much. Others are just hoping to take a breather before February, when a typical year’s restaurant sales would eke back up.

These are the restaurants that have announced temporary closures for winter.

Minneapolis

Colita has moved all takeout operations to Martina

Side Bar by Surdyk’s

Meteor Bar

Eli’s Food & Cocktails

Saint Paul

Handsome Hog, reopens February 1

French Hen/Moonflower Pizza

French Meadow, St. Paul location only

Monkey Temple, permanently closed

Saint Dinette

St. Paul Grill

Pillbox Tavern

Alary’s Bar

• These are the restaurants that permanently closed in 2020 [ETC]
• Justin Sutherland’s Handsome Hog shuts down takeout after this weekend [ETC]
• Minnesota restaurants and bars pause indoor dining again [ETC]
• Winter patios open in Minneapolis and St. Paul [ETC]