When Matty O'Reilly and Rick Guntzel, buddies since high school, decided to venture into business together, they figured they had two options. One was starting from scratch, "and spending a half-million dollars to build out a kitchen," said O'Reilly. The more fiscally prudent choice was remaking an existing establishment, "something that had lost its momentum," said O'Reilly.
They chose the latter, and settled upon the former Sgt. Preston's, a Me Decade landmark that had long since faded into the background of its Seven Corners neighborhood. O'Reilly, co-owner of the Aster Cafe in Minneapolis and the 318 Cafe in Excelsior, and Guntzel, who spent a decade in the Jake's sports bar empire, took title of the property in May. Seventeen action-packed days later, they rechristened it Republic (emphasizing "pub," get it?). The turnaround has come to symbolize the modern-day neighborhood tavern.
Craft beer lovers will feel right at home. The bar taps a hefty 32 labels, leaning toward the ever-proliferating number of fine locals, but leaving room for noteworthy nationals and a few Europeans. The average price is a reasonable $5, and a three-pour flight ($10) encourages exploration.
But this isn't just a drinking story, because someone in the kitchen clearly cares about food. His name is George Finn, and while his work isn't propelling bar food into a new culinary universe, it does quietly demonstrate how basics can taste anew, given care, imagination and first-rate ingredients.
That attention-to-detail message comes through loud and clear in the well-executed burgers. They're made with beef (ultra-lean, wonderfully flavorful meat from grass-fed cows) or turkey (Minnesota-raised, the clean flavor fortified with jalapeño and chive) and grilled to perfection. The embellishments don't miss a trick, right down to the toasted brioche buns, the first-rate cheeses, the excellent slab bacon and the obviously fresh guacamole.
There are long, meaty, slow-roasted pork ribs, marinated overnight in orange and soy, glazed in a hoisin-honey sauce and seasoned with a traditional five-spice mix. The flavorful, sweetly caramelized meat can be nudged off the bones with very little effort. Soft corn tortillas, overflowing with lightly fried tilapia, crunchy slaw and tons of cilantro and lime, are irresistible.
Yum, yum, yum
Count me a fan of the ricotta fritters, the kind of labor-intensive snack that doesn't make the rounds in too many beer joints. Finn binds fresh ricotta with Parmesan and rolls each cork-shaped snack in panko before gently frying them, their delicate bite accented by a drizzle of pale, floral-scented honey. Ditto the hearty plate of grilled Kramarczuk pork and chicken sausages, served with a kicky raisin mustard and a pretty medley of roasted potatoes.
