Business briefs: Beer and bocce ball coming to Apple Valley

Crooked Pint Ale House, a pub-style restaurant that features 30 tap beers, is building a new restaurant in Apple Valley.

It will be the second location for the business, which already runs a restaurant on Washington Avenue in Minneapolis.

The Apple Valley City Council recently approved plans for the 5,488-square-foot restaurant in the Cobblestone Lake area at 157th Street and Pilot Knob Road.

Cobblestone Lake is a 230,000-square-foot retail center developed by Ryan Companies and anchored by a SuperTarget. The new restaurant will be adjacent to the Pizza Ranch, which opened late last year.

"Thanks for investing in Apple Valley," Mayor Mary Hamann-Roland said to the restaurant partners after the plans were approved unanimously. She and other council members said the restaurant will be a welcome addition to the Cobblestone Lake commercial district.

Crooked Pint was launched as a restaurant concept in 2011 by Green Mill Restaurants. Paul Dzubnar, CEO of the St. Paul-based restaurant company, said plans are underway for another Crooked Pint in Minneapolis at an unspecified location.

Construction of the Apple Valley restaurant is expected to begin this spring, with completion set for August or September, Dzubnar said. Plans call for an outdoor patio and bocce ball court.

Baldy's BBQ, which has operated in Lakeville for about three years, is opening a second restaurant in Farmington.

Brian Wheeler, who owns and operates the restaurant with business partner Natasha Coursole, said he expects the new location at 122nd and Elm Street to open later this month, with about 20 employees.

The menu will be identical to the one at the Lakeville restaurant, which features ribs, smoked meat, Italian sausage, sandwiches and salads.

Wheeler and Coursole recently received a $15,000 business development grant from Farmington to help finance renovations for the new restaurant, which previously was a Burger King outlet. Wheeler said the cost of remodeling the business was about $75,000 and included new seatings, signage, kitchen equipment and a computer system.

Single-family home construction activity continues to be robust throughout Dakota County, with Lakeville still ranking as the county's busiest market.

Other Dakota County communities with brisk building through the end of March included Mendota Heights, with 37 permits; Eagan, with 29; Rosemount, with 23, and Farmington, with 21. Apple Valley reported 13 permits. Burnsville had eight and Inver Grove Heights had five.

Elsewhere in the south metro area, Prior Lake recorded 41 permits, Savage had 27 and Shakopee had 19 for the three-month period.

Send your Dakota County business news to susan.feyder@startribune.com.