Counter intelligence: Blue Point expanding to Bloomington

Blue Point expanding to Bloomington After 23 years in Wayzata -- 21 of them under the ownership of John and Margaret McDonald -- the Blue Point (739 E. Lake St., Wayzata, www.blue pointrestaurantandbar.com) is opening a second location. "We're really excited about it," said John McDonald. "We've been working on it for quite a while, and as a small independent, it has always been about finding the right location."

For the McDonalds, that's the ground floor of the Two MarketPointe complex at 4400 78th St. in Bloomington, otherwise known as the northwest quadrant of Interstate 494 and France Avenue S.

Blue Point 2.0 will be slightly larger than its sibling -- 220 seats vs. 180 -- and its much more contemporary look will feature an exhibition kitchen and large patio. The project is being designed by Partners & Sirny in Minneapolis, the firm behind Porter Creek Hardwood Grill in Burnsville and Mission American Kitchen in downtown Minneapolis.

Longtime chef Patrick Donelan will transfer to Bloomington, and current sous chef Steve Prigge will be promoted to top toque in Wayzata. The restaurant's seafood focus will remain the same, but the new location will also offer lunch service -- with a broader, more-than-seafood menu -- to cater to the surrounding office towers. Lunch is a relatively new concept for the McDonalds, who have pretty much stuck to a dinner-only format over the past two decades.

"We served lunch twice, once back in the early 1990s, and again in 2003, but downtown Wayzata just doesn't have the demographics for it," said John McDonald. "We loved serving lunch; there just weren't enough people coming through the door."

A second location brings up that age-old restaurateur's question: In a business built on personal contacts -- dine at the Blue Point, and the McDonalds are in the house -- can a person really be in two places at once?

"I'm not going to sugarcoat it -- it's going to be tough," said John McDonald. "But the good news is that we have a lot of staff who have been with us for many years, and so we can have a core management team come to the new spot without cannibalizing the old place. We're giving people an opportunity to expand their roles, and that's exciting. And of course, we'll be there, running things."

Around town Academy Award watchers, Jan. 25 is your day. Head down to Thom Pham's Wondrous Azian Kitchen (533 Hennepin Av. S., Mpls., www.wondrous mpls.com) at 7 a.m. and watch a live broadcast of the Oscar nominees announcement, enjoy dim sum and catch a red carpet-inspired fashion show, featuring clothing created by local designers. It's a free (RSVP suggested, 612-280-4256) kickoff for the Aegis Foundation's annual Oscar night fundraiser, to be held Feb. 27 at the Hotel Ivy (tickets $40 to $125, www. aegisfoundationinc.org) to benefit youth programs.

Thank you, Sebastian Joe's (1007 W. Franklin Av. and 4321 Upton Av. S., both in Mpls., www. sebastianjoesicecream.com), for celebrating Minnesota winters. Every day, the premium ice cream maker plots the predicted low temperature from Paul Douglas' Star Tribune forecast into a grid: The colder the day, the bigger the deal on all ice cream products (except wholesale tubs). The peak is 10 to 20 degrees below zero, which translates to 25 percent off. Make mine a double scoop of hazelnut coffee, please.