Around the world from the West End

By RICK NELSON, Star Tribune

Last update: October 28, 2009 - 1:38 PM

There's more to dining and drinking in the West End -- that sparkly new lifestyle center going up near Interstate 394 and Hwy. 100 in St. Louis Park -- than the much-discussed Crave and Cooper and the opening-next-spring Toby Keith's I Love This Bar & Grill. The neighborhood's up-and-coming big talker is going to be Ringo.

The restaurant, a partnership between retired Cargill executive Jim Ringo and chef Ryan Aberle (formerly of North Coast in Wayzata), will feature dual menus. While the larger of the two will focus on classic comfort fare (a few variations on steak, a tableside Caesar salad), its smaller companion will be continent-bouncing, illuminating flavors and traditions from a different global region each month.

"But you won't find us featuring, say, Provence," said Aberle. "People already know that food. We want to highlight thought-provoking regions where people say, 'I've never had that cuisine,' or 'I've never been to such-and-such place.' "

Sao Paulo, Brazil, for example. "Most of us have been to Fogo de Chao by now and understand what gauchos eat, but Sao Paulo is about so much more than the meat-centric world of the churrascaria," he said. "Everything from great fisherman's stew [moqueca] to pamonha [sweet corn purée steamed in corn husks] and feijoada [Brazil's answer to cassoulet] are all absolutely fantastic and almost completely unknown in these parts."

The common denominator in all this culinary globetrotting will be an attention-grabbing charcoal grill. "We knew we wanted charcoal, because when you talk about the great cuisines of the world, no one cooks on gas or wood -- they cook on charcoal," said Aberle. "It will be a showpiece, the first thing you see when you walk in, and the first thing you smell when you walk in."

The grill will be surrounded by a bar where customers will be able to interact with the kitchen staff. "We're going to train our cooks to communicate with our guests," said Aberle. "We're cognizant that people are looking for fun in their dining experience. Dinner on its own is great, but giving guests something to interact with, something to be entertained by, is going one step better."

Aberle and Ringo have partnered with a travel agency to conduct tours of the regions highlighted in the kitchen. Construction of the 200-seat restaurant should begin in mid-November, with an opening date in late February or early March. In the meantime, remembering the name won't be a problem.

"We're discovering that everyone has a relationship to the name Ringo," said Aberle with a laugh. "Along with Ringo Starr, I hear Western fans asking about Johnny Ringo. It just clicks with people. During my days at North Coast, it was a challenge to get people to remember where I was, because it was such a blah, forgettable name."

Suburban seafood

The lights are back on at the former Copper Bleu in Lakeville. Milwaukee-based Molly Cool's Seafood Tavern (17516 Dodd Blvd., Lakeville, www.mollycools.com/lakeville) is now occupying the place, serving everything from lobster rolls and salmon BLTs to straight-up grilled swordfish or tuna, fresh oysters, fish and chips, peel-and-eat shrimp and paella with mussels and clams.

RICK NELSON