Diners accustomed to Marketplace Cafe, the utilitarian eatery inside the Mall of America's Nordstrom store, will be unprepared for Ruscello, the great-looking, well-managed, sort-of Mediterranean restaurant located in the chain's new knockout of a Ridgedale location.
Befitting the tradition of department store dining, the menu emphasizes salads, eight fairly familiar but well-composed choices ($10.95 to $15.25) that range from a Caesar topped with blackened salmon to plump, snappy grilled shrimp paired with spicy arugula, tasty polenta croutons and a creamy, not-shy-with-the-garlic vinaigrette.
A gas-fired pizza oven turns out a handful of thick, chewy-crust pies ($11.25 to $11.95), and a half-dozen sandwiches go beyond chicken salad: a stack of roasted vegetables and Havarti on slices of a sturdy country loaf, tender and liberally spiced pork tenderloin piled on a Cheddar-baked ciabatta and topped with a crunchy Napa cabbage slaw.
Kudos also to a handful of meant-to-share items ($8.50 to $10.75), including a lively hummus.
The menu thoughtfully includes the caloric content of each dish, and some of the figures are shockers: 1,165 calories for a plate of rosemary-scented roasted chicken with potatoes, 1,127 for potato gnocchi with chicken in a heavy carbonara sauce. Somewhat reassuringly, portions belong in the plus size department.
As for dessert, go for the crazily towering slice of chocolate cake ($7.50). At our table, it was split three ways, and there were still leftovers.
The bar makes an earnest attempt at craft cocktails (11 choices range from $9 to $11), and the modest wine list sticks to recognizable labels at upper-middle prices (16 by-the-glass options average about $10.25). The half-dozen beers and hard ciders ($5 and $6) are well chosen and locally sourced. Service is prompt and personable.
The sun-filled restaurant has a first-rate location. The second-floor space is framed by an enormous bank of east-facing windows that overlooks — it's the suburbs, so what else? — a parking lot. Still, the views stretch beyond to a serene wetland, and at night, those windows glow like a beacon. Nice touch.
