The owners of Minneapolis' beloved First Avenue music club are opening a new bar and restaurant – this time in St. Paul.
In 2010, the club debuted the Depot Tavern, a casual pub that abuts First Ave. Now they're adding a similarly adjoined bar and restaurant to the big St. Paul venue they co-manage: the Palace Theatre.
The new restaurant will move into the current Wild Tymes location, with First Ave taking over the lease on Nov. 29 and then remodeling and rebranding the space.
"An adjoining bar and restaurant was always part of the plan with the Palace Theatre project," said First Ave general manager Nate Kranz. "We have a lot of ideas about how we can use that space as a really complimentary room to the Palace."
Right now, there's no name, and Kranz said the new concept is still being "fleshed out." As for the remodel, Kranz said they want to move the bar and "open up the space a little bit" while leaving the kitchen and restrooms mostly intact.
Kranz said he expects the vibe to be similar in some ways to the Depot but stopped short of confirming that the menu would be mostly pub-focused.
The Palace, which was originally unveiled in 1916, reopened earlier this year after sitting mostly dormant for four decades.
"I see that area as the connector between Lowertown and West Seventh," Kranz said. "It's got a lot of charm, and it's just active. We think it's really up and coming and the Palace is a big part of that."
