North Loop food hall gets saucy new vendor
Now open inside North Loop Galley food hall: Ottimo. The new food stand is the work of chef Duran Ross, former sous chef with the Minnesota Twins. Ross' concept puts his "Minneapolis Marinara" sauce front and center with rigatoni and meatballs. Other comfort dishes include mac and cheese, ricotta wontons and a smashburger.
The new stand joins vets Wrecktangle Pizza, Ono Hawaiian Plates and Kawae at 729 Washington Av. N., Mpls., northloopgalley.org.
Sprinkle-coated cotton candy is back in St. Paul
Spinning Wylde is now open inside St. Paul's Union Depot. The creative cotton candy company with the whimsical treats has relocated from W. 7th Street (first inside Keg and Case, then across the street) to the historic Lowertown location. Spinning Wylde is now open on weekends and during the holiday market at 214 E. 4th St., spinningwylde.com.
Vegan cafe leaning into its baked goods
Hark! the gluten-free and vegan cafe in downtown Minneapolis, has announced it will trim back its full menu of offerings, but the good news is that the bagels and coffee are here to stay. Rather than being all things at all times of day, the cafe will focus more on its service as a coffee shop and bakery with a new focus on catering, wholesale distribution and nationwide shipping.
The full food/menu will be available through the end of the year, and then starting Jan. 3 its new hours will be Tue.-Fri. 7 a.m.-2 p.m. and Sat.-Sun. from 8 a.m.-1 p.m. Starting Jan. 10, look for a fully stocked baked goods case with new savory offerings and frozen bagel four-packs. Hark! Cafe is at 430 1st Av. N., Mpls., harkcafe.com.
Tullibee launches chef's dinners
Tullibee chef Marque Collins has launched a new series of intimate seven-course chef's dinners in a private dining room at the Hewing Hotel restaurant (300 Washington Av. N., Mpls.). Each installment is expected to change with the seasons; a recent dinner highlighted autumnal produce in a shaved vegetable salad and a luscious celery root agnolotti. Grilled scallops were served over parsnip cream, butter-basted sweet potatoes were the star of a fish course, and 90-day dry aged beef tenderloin came with grilled porcini mushrooms that had been preserved since their foraging. Only 12 seats are available, and tickets are $125 for dinner, plus $60 for a generous course-by-course pairing of wine and cocktails or nonalcoholic drinks. Reservations for the Feb. 2 and Feb. 23 dinners are available at hewinghotel.com/events.
It's a global soup cookoff
Taste a dozen custom soups with influences around the globe created by Midtown Global Market chefs Dec. 17 from noon-2 p.m. Participating restaurants are: Andy's Garage, Arepa Bar, Grass Roots Gourmet, Indigenous Food Lab, Manny's Tortas, Momo Dosa, Moroccan Flavors, Pham's Rice Bowl, Sabbai, Salsa a la Salsa, Soul to Soul Smokehouse and the Kitchen by Baked Brand. Requested donation to sample all 12 is $20; proceeds will be shared with Open Arms. Midtown Global Market is at 920 E. Lake St., Mpls., midtownglobalmarket.org.
