Pracna on Main, the St. Anthony Main eatery that billed itself as "the oldest restaurant on the oldest street in Minneapolis," will reopen in early May after shutting its doors abruptly in January.
Owner John Rimarcik told the Minneapolis/St. Paul Business Journal that the restaurant would reopen with a "very" limited food and drink menu. At the time of the closure, Rimarcik said that the restaurant's lease had ended at the end of 2014, and that he hoped to reopen it with possibly a new concept, one that was better integrated with the St. Anthony Main movie theater next door, which he also owns.
Rimarcik is still considering revamping the restaurant, but wanted to keep the establishment functional until that could be completed, he told the Business Journal. "We just didn't want it to go dark for spring and summer."
Pracna boasts a front patio with a panoramic view of the Minneapolis skyline across the Mississippi River. It first opened as a restaurant and bar in 1890, but fell victim to Prohibition. The building was renovated in the early 1970s and reopened as a restaurant, helping to jumpstart the riverfront revival. Pracna on Main still boasts its original brick walls, arched entries and stained glass.
