Music: 21st-century supper clubs

"It might be a little early for this one."

Black Audience singer Jayanthi Kyle offered this warning as her Irish/gospel/folk ensemble started up "Tell Me Ma," a traditional song that all-out requires the audience to sing and clap along.

Funny how 10:30 p.m. can seem "early" to a musician. To the staff at the Red Stag, as at most restaurants, it was late in the day -- but not too late to bring in a new crowd using an old formula.

The Red Stag and several other hip eateries in town are rekindling the concept of the supper club, taking full advantage of their space and their liquor licenses and booking live music to attract a post-dinner crowd. Likewise, more bands of note are warming up to the idea of performing in eateries, which offer a comfortable setting and decent pay.

"It's a good way to generate crossover for us and the bands," said Red Stag owner Kim Bartmann. "Our regular diners might stick around longer if there's music. And we draw new people who otherwise maybe wouldn't come."

It's hardly a revolutionary idea. Bartmann based her northeast Minneapolis eatery on supper clubs she grew up with in northern Wisconsin. Anyone who has been to the Red Stag's East Hennepin neighbor Nye's knows what supper clubs were in their post-World War II heyday. Plus, the Dakota on Nicollet Mall has long been one of the preeminent music venues and restaurants in town.

These aren't your daddy's kind of supper clubs, though.

At the Acadia Cafe -- which became more supper-club-like when it relocated to the Cedar-Riverside area last year -- rock bands with expletives in their names and hip-hop acts are on the calendar, and 27 beers are on tap, including one called Yellow Snow Ale. Mmm.

"It's a little unnatural for someone to have to yell right into a bartender's ear to order a sandwich," admitted Acadia owner Ted Lowell, who said he has turned down the volume on a lot of acts in keeping with the cafe-vs.-nightclub format.

The owners of a popular northeast Minneapolis music haven, the 331 Club, plan to open their own version of a supper club in downtown Minneapolis in April, called the 501 Club. They can probably take pointers from Lowell on what a difference the music-and-food combo has made at the Acadia, which had its music split off in a separate room at its previous location.

"There's more of a movement about the room this way," Lowell said, pointing to higher bar sales as a result. "It's a very different vibe -- more laid-back in a way."

That variation in vibes is one of the things musicians like about these venues.

After a gig at another eatery favored by (and run by) musicians, the 318 Cafe in Excelsior, Rue noted the difference between playing on a stage above and away from the audience and being eye-to-eye with it.

"It can be a little distracting, but any good band should be able to go out and do your business regardless," he said.

Any stigmas for musicians playing a restaurant gig are falling by the wayside, said keyboardist Tasha Baron, a regular at both the Red Stag and Maude with her instrumental ensembles Lil' Black Blondie and Hips Don't Lie.

"The music is still the focus at these places, instead of it being something off in the corner for background," Baron said.

These eateries generally pay equal to or a little less than most clubs. However, the take-home is usually a guaranteed flat rate instead of the always-unpredictable cut of the door money (most of these restaurants don't charge a cover). And there's one added bonus that every musician seems to appreciate.

Chris Riemenschneider • 612-673-4658