Farmers Kitchen + Bar Opens Downtown With a Burst of Locally Sourced Eats

The Minnesota Farmers Union’s first restaurant just debuted in the former Spoonriver space, bringing the historic Mill District neighborhood a new sit-down spot for hyperlocal meats, cheeses, and produce. Farmers Kitchen + Bar opens as a coffee bar with caffeinated concoctions such as a State Fair maple cream nitro starting at 7:30 a.m. daily (750 S. 2nd Street).

Executive chef Kris Koch blends his Midwestern upbringing and extensive experience to create a lunchtime menu full of appetizers, soup, salad, sandwiches, and picnic platters from 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. (There is talk of “supper,” though that menu hasn’t been released just yet.) Minnesotan-influenced dishes like walleye “tots,” bison wild rice meatballs, fried cheese curds, and wild rice Waldorf salad will change with the seasons.

Farmers Kitchen + Bar/Facebook

Sit-down service for farm-fresh meals is just a slice of the setup. A market features seasonal produce, locally sourced eggs, meats, cheeses, and bottled jams, and maple syrup. A pantry section also sells a curated selection of shelf-stable items that’ll rotate in and out.

As of now, there are a total of 27 farmers and friends listed on the site. The grassroots organization’s main mission is to “protect and enhance quality of life for farmers, ranchers, and rural residents alike.”

Farmers Kitchen + Bar/official photo