Farm-to-fast casual restaurant Brim opening in the suburbs this week

Early in the pandemic, a customer came in to Brim, on W. Lake Street, and ordered a kimchi rice bowl to go. Owner Kate Sidoti peeked into the kitchen and called out, “One poached egg, please!” as if a line cook were on the other side of the door. In reality, the windows to the Minneapolis restaurant were boarded up, her staff was at home, and Sidoti was working the register, the kitchen, and everything else by herself.

“I was so self-conscious that it was just me in the restaurant,” she said.

Looking back, the days when Sidoti could manage most things on her own feel almost quaint. Seven years after opening her first health-focused cafe, near Bde Maka Ska, Sidoti is about to expand the business she built from scratch.

This week, Brim launches a second, larger outpost near Southdale Center, with accessible parking, a significantly bigger kitchen, space for grab-and-go meals and family-style offerings, and an expanded catering operation. With even more suburban locations on Sidoti’s radar, Brim has evolved from a scrappy startup into a multi-location enterprise.

Just like the original, the new Brim is grounded in local sourcing. Chicken and eggs come from Larry Schultz Organic Farm, vegetables from members of the Hmong American Farmers Association, and breads, always gluten-free, are from local bakers Heaven and Sift.

The menu leans heavily on vegetables, but meat and dairy come in their highest-quality forms in bowls, sandwiches and soups with rich broths, alongside plenty of kid-friendly options. The cafe also brews up seasonal lattes and housemade baked goods for snacking. The kitchen maintains a celiac-safe environment, something Sidoti herself needs. She has had to navigate a wheat sensitivity ever since she was a teenager.

To Sidoti, healthy eating is not about avoidance, but abundance.

The Minneapolis native trained as a chef in New York, at a culinary school that focused on healthier, largely plant-forward cuisine. “It was not French-style, more alternative,” she said.

Working later as a private chef in Park City, Utah, Sidoti catered day and night for a family that entertained often. “It was very intense, and I loved it. I loved being that fulfilled, but it does take a toll.”

She returned to Minnesota to visit and, on a run around Bde Maka Ska, met her future husband, Patrick, at a stoplight. They continued on around Lake of the Isles together, and married a year later.

One of the first meals he ever made for her — a griddled nut butter sandwich — became the inspiration for Jammy Sammies by Brim, a Minnesota State Fair stand Sidoti launched as a healthful alternative to traditional fair food. But with a toddler at home, Sidoti ended her six-year State Fair run after the 2024 season. The good news: a version of Jammy Sammies will reappear at the new Brim.

The Southdale-area cafe occupies the former Red Pepper Chinese Restaurant space, a total renovation designed by Christian Dean Architects.

With 1,000 square feet more than the Minneapolis restaurant, there’s room for a greenhouse area featuring a stone floor, forest-green metal patio furniture, streaming sunlight and plants grown by a University of Minnesota student. Mycelium lights, fully compostable and created by a Brooklyn artist, hang on one wall. Outside, a large patio with a fountain will have more seating.

“My goal was to create a space that felt healthy, not just from the food, but your whole experience,” Sidoti said. “When you walk in, what do you see? Down to the music, just a really relaxing, peaceful, healthy experience.”

Takeout and family meals were priorities that made their way into the design. Orders are placed at the counter, whether dining in or picking up a family-style meal that feeds four, for $70. Soups are available by the quart, along with other grab-and-go items, and there is a small market for nutritious snacks.

Sidoti wanted the market and grab-and-go counter to be “reminiscent of Lucia’s To Go,” she said, referring to the beloved Uptown Minneapolis farm-to-table spot that closed shortly before the first Brim opened.

The bigger kitchen allows Brim to cater larger events as well as for local professional sports teams.

Though the W. Lake Street location remains a neighborhood mainstay, Sidoti looks forward to the broader clientele the Southdale space could draw from nearby medical and corporate buildings. She hopes this will be the first of many new suburban homes for Brim.

“I cannot wait,” she said. “I wish I could share the feeling of seeing it full, with all these people getting their nourishing meals. I would love to bring Brim to new neighborhoods, but we’re really happy to be here right now.”