The Pines is bringing farm-to-table fine dining to the North Woods

Trees hold great significance in Grand Rapids, Minn. They grow in regimented rows on the outskirts of town and frame the Mississippi River that winds through the middle of it. And they serve as the anchor and inspiration for a new restaurant downtown.

Amanda and Kyle Lussier opened the Pines in June with a seasonally evolving menu, polished service and sleek Scandinavian design. It’s the kind of restaurant that would do just as well on any bustling corner of the Twin Cities, but it’s built by and for the people of this northern Minnesota town.

The seedling of the idea began during the pandemic, when the couple relocated to Kyle’s hometown. “Back when everything was weird,” said Kyle. Both of their hospitality jobs changed dramatically during the shutdown.

“We had the chance to stop and think, if we can live anywhere, where do we want to be?” he said.

They were drawn to Grand Rapids, a tight-knit community where you’re just as likely to run into your fourth-grade teacher at the grocery store as you are to spend a day on the lake with the loons as a soundtrack. Kyle had left after high school for what he calls “normal college” in New York. He graduated as an English major, which didn’t lead to a solid career path; he leaned on hospitality jobs for income.

“I always thought if my jazz drumming doesn’t work out, I can cook,” he quipped. But it was after relocating to Minneapolis that he discovered the culinary program at the now-defunct Art Institutes International Minnesota.

“It blew my mind that art could be food,” he said. The improvisation he used in his musical passion served him just as well in this new vocation.

Meanwhile, Amanda’s experience was with people, art and beer.

“I’ve always worked in guest-facing positions,” she said. She studied art and art administration at the University of Wisconsin-Milwaukee, and worked in museums around the country before her sister encouraged her to move to Minneapolis.

She joined her sister working at Tiny Diner. While bartending, she got the phone number of one particularly cute customer: Kyle.

Bartending led to an interest in craft brewing, which led her to Pryes Brewing. While she loved learning about the process, there weren’t many social interactions when scrubbing out tanks. “I missed the customer-service-facing part of the job,” she said.

When the pandemic halted the hospitality industry, the couple seized the opportunity to swap concrete sidewalks for nature, knowing their skills were easily transferrable. To find her small-town footing, Amanda sought work in independently owned small businesses.

Meanwhile, the Itasca Economic Development Corp., a nonprofit that works to diversify the economy in Itasca County, was vacating the building at 12 NW. 3rd St. The location was zoned to attract a restaurant, part of the city’s five-year plan to create a walkable downtown.

Rob Mattei, the city’s director of community development, said the initiative is working. “Residents and visitors alike are gathering downtown, enjoying a dynamic atmosphere and a true sense of place at the heart of our community.”

The location was perfect for the Lussiers: three stories framed by tall windows on the street and second level. The basement had been dug out of ancient rocks, and featured giant rough-hewn beams from trees harvested from the area generations ago. A kitchen, dining room and bar would occupy the main level; upstairs, a second dining room would lean into Scandinavian design that suits the historic elements. Artistic splashes of color would liven up the entire space, a vision brought to life with the help of DSGW Architecture of Duluth.

In March 2024, the Pines was Instagram official. The Lussiers followed that by vending at the city’s Riverfest festival. There was crowdfunding, community listening opportunities and business plans. More people joined the restaurant dream: Dan and Cynthia Margo and Tony and Crystal Serratore signed on as partners. Construction began that November.

Kyle had connected with Brynden and Wil Lenius of Bryndlewood Gardens while working at another restaurant in town. He knew that when he opened his own restaurant, the menu would star their locally grown produce.

“We went through a seed catalog and it felt like Christmas,” Kyle said.

On June 27, the door swung open, the kitchen lines fired up and cocktail glasses clinked as they were filled with ice. Reservations immediately became a hot commodity.

“We’ve worked really hard to make sure that people understand that this is something for Grand Rapids,” said Amanda, noting that it’s a small town with plenty of sophistication.

Dinner begins with an amuse bouche, a taste of something creative from the kitchen. Those in the know will follow that closely with an order of popovers; rumor has it the recipe is from the Sawmill Inn, a now-closed steakhouse that used to be at the edge of town.

Servers recruited from the high school, trained by Amanda, glide through the rooms delivering information and dishes with practiced confidence that belies their age. The pastry chef trained at the Culinary Institute of America, but had been working at the local grocery store bakery before the Pines opened. The bar staff shakes up classic drinks on the main level or in the subterranean bar.

But on a warm Saturday night, soft light spills out of those tall windows, illuminating the street of a town where the restaurant is ready to welcome its neighbors. The dining room is filled with smiling faces.

Amanda recalled a recent diner who looked up from his plate with tears in his eyes. “He said he’d never dined like this in Grand Rapids,” she said. She thinks about him often.

“The people of Grand Rapids deserve this,” said Amanda. And the couple relish the chance to feed them at the Pines. Because this town? “It fed us, too.”

The Pines Restaurant & Lounge, 12 NW. 3rd St., 218-999-0658, Grand Rapids, thepinesmn.com. Open Sunday, Wednesday and Thursday from 5 to 10 p.m., and Friday and Saturday from 5 p.m. to midnight.