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Re: Downtown Minneapolis Restaurant News

Posted: December 17th, 2018, 10:52 am
by Tyler
I've thought about for about five minutes, and I don't get how avoiding fast food for "healthy eating" is funny. And I like to mock and ridicule just as much as the next guy.

Re: Downtown Minneapolis Restaurant News

Posted: December 17th, 2018, 11:33 am
by grrdanko
The article said Northstar wouldn't offer a log term lease to Arby's.

I remember about a year reading that they were thinking of converting the building to apartments. Could this possibly be the reason they aren't offing a longer lease?

Re: Downtown Minneapolis Restaurant News

Posted: December 17th, 2018, 11:36 am
by twincitizen
Pretty disingenuous to make that map of "the biggest and cheapest fast food chains" and not include Subway, which has 6+ locations downtown.
Agreed. Not including Subway, Jimmy John's, etc. on the map is dishonest. Subway has more US locations than McDonalds, so does Starbucks (McD's is #3 now). Specifically, the stale old burger chains are struggling while every other segment is doing fine. How many new salad/bowl type places have opened in the last 5 years?

That said, Minneapolis could/should have like at least 3 more Taco Bells (Tacos Bell?) Not specifically downtown, just everywhere. 35W-Lake and Franklin-Minnehaha are not nearly enough to serve all of South.

Re: Downtown Minneapolis Restaurant News

Posted: December 17th, 2018, 11:51 am
by QuietBlue
I've thought about for about five minutes, and I don't get how avoiding fast food for "healthy eating" is funny. And I like to mock and ridicule just as much as the next guy.
From the article: "Some will call the development a sign of improving tastes and healthier eating. But fast food giants are thriving nationally, and plenty of pizza, burgers and dressing-soaked salads are consumed downtown."

It's not that fast food is healthy, because it generally isn't. It's that the other things people are eating that are supposedly better, really aren't. Carbs and fat are carbs and fat regardless of where they come from.

Re: Downtown Minneapolis Restaurant News

Posted: December 17th, 2018, 11:52 am
by LakeCharles
That said, Minneapolis could/should have like at least 3 more Taco Bells (Tacos Bell?) Not specifically downtown, just everywhere. 35W-Lake and Franklin-Minnehaha are not nearly enough to serve all of South.
Haha, I always forget how crazy this forum is for Taco Bell.

Re: Downtown Minneapolis Restaurant News

Posted: December 17th, 2018, 12:05 pm
by zlkahn
Bus Stop Burgers & Brewhouse is getting extremely close to opening...wild considering it was still a dirt floor less than 2 months ago. The interior looks to be almost completlely built out and they've announced the Bears/Vikings game on December 30th as their grand opening (although guessing the soft open a few days before): https://www.facebook.com/events/743967302631918/

Re: Downtown Minneapolis Restaurant News

Posted: December 17th, 2018, 12:24 pm
by xandrex
Lotta Strib commenters who (of course) made a point of blaming this on the minimum wage, which seems pretty unlikely given that we are nowhere near $15/hr yet.

That said, I don't think salad/bowl places opening are really in the same league. What downtown is really hemorrhaging are standardized, cheap places to eat. Meanwhile, the "pick your green + protein" places will charge you a cool $15 for a glorified salad after tax. Not a bad thing, but it's just really not the same.

One thing that is interesting is that I kind of think downtown Minneapolis and the rest of Minneapolis kind of have opposite problems. Plenty of places to get junk food elsewhere in the city (although...yes, give us more Taco Bells), but whenever I want "fast casual," I find myself coming up short on nearby options. Downtown actually has a pretty healthy supply of those types these days.

Re: Downtown Minneapolis Restaurant News

Posted: December 17th, 2018, 12:30 pm
by 5th Ave Guy
People are willing to eat unhealthy food, as long as it's local, authentic, unhealthy food.

Re: Downtown Minneapolis Restaurant News

Posted: December 17th, 2018, 3:25 pm
by mister.shoes
GTFO with your Taco Bell fandom. TACO JOHNS FTW.

Re: Downtown Minneapolis Restaurant News

Posted: December 17th, 2018, 3:43 pm
by mattaudio
s i x p a c k a n d a p o u n d

Re: Downtown Minneapolis Restaurant News

Posted: December 17th, 2018, 5:44 pm
by Multimodal
This is absolutely an urban design problem, and Jane Jacobs nailed it 50 years ago.

All this new housing downtown is great, but we allow developers to buy the whole block, which means all the retail & restaurant space is shiny & new—and expensive.

Think of your favorite inexpensive food places, and ask yourself if they’re in a new, mixed use building.

We’re starting to encourage NOAH—naturally occurring affordable housing—but what about NOARRS—naturally occurring affordable retail & restaurant space? (I just made that acronym up)

Re: Downtown Minneapolis Restaurant News

Posted: December 17th, 2018, 8:33 pm
by mattaudio
There are plenty of affordable food options around Downtown Minneapolis. They're just not greasy national burger chains. That's ok.

Re: Downtown Minneapolis Restaurant News

Posted: December 17th, 2018, 9:08 pm
by twincitizen
There are plenty of affordable food options around Downtown Minneapolis. They're just not greasy national burger chains. That's ok.
From 9am-3pm tho. Aside from the Potbelly in IDS and Chipotle on Nicollet & 11th, basically none are open after work hours or on weekends. The only places to eat after 4pm are sit-down restaurants, most of them higher-end. That's still a huge problem.
One thing that is interesting is that I kind of think downtown Minneapolis and the rest of Minneapolis kind of have opposite problems. Plenty of places to get junk food elsewhere in the city (although...yes, give us more Taco Bells), but whenever I want "fast casual," I find myself coming up short on nearby options. Downtown actually has a pretty healthy supply of those types these days.
This is a great observation. Outside of busy areas like Uptown, West Maka Ska, the U, and Near Northeast (CenHen, whatever), you can hardly find a damn Chipotle or Noodles or whatever. Outside of the areas mentioned, we could honestly use more chains, not fewer. I wish I didn't have to go to Highland Park for everything fast casual. You're right though, outside of downtown there's no shortage of McDonalds and Subways.

Note: I don't particularly care for Noodles & Co, just using it as an example since they are so ubiquitous in the suburbs. There's like 3 of them just in Richfield.

Re: Downtown Minneapolis Restaurant News

Posted: December 17th, 2018, 9:49 pm
by Silophant
Especially living on the north side of downtown, it's endlessly frustrating that the only fastish thing open after 4pm is a) Five Guys, and B) closes at 7.

Re: Downtown Minneapolis Restaurant News

Posted: December 17th, 2018, 10:08 pm
by twincitizen
and C) isn't very good ;)

Re: Downtown Minneapolis Restaurant News

Posted: December 17th, 2018, 10:17 pm
by mattaudio
I've had a late night Block E Jimmy John's on quite a few occasions. Yes, let's get more fast casual open in the evenings... but who really wants chains? Do people really drive to Highland Park or Richfield to eat chain food? That's sad? @twincitizen you have the best $6 burritos south of Lake Street a half mile from your house, and I'm sure Chris and Rob's and Bill's Garden have cheap eats too.

It's almost like we'd have more cheap evening eats if we didn't have skyways.

Re: Downtown Minneapolis Restaurant News

Posted: December 17th, 2018, 10:29 pm
by Silophant
and C) isn't very good ;)
That was A! If it was a restaurant I could stomach more than a couple times a year that was open until 7, that would be a (slightly) different story.

Re: Downtown Minneapolis Restaurant News

Posted: December 17th, 2018, 10:37 pm
by twincitizen
There's gotta be a street-level Chipotle in the works for the north end of Nicollet or Hennepin, right? How long can this market be ignored. I can't imagine it would get less business than the one at Nicollet & 11th...

Re: Downtown Minneapolis Restaurant News

Posted: December 17th, 2018, 10:57 pm
by Silophant
Right? Like, there's 2,500 people living within three blocks of the library that weren't there five years ago. At some point someone's gotta take the wild leap of faith that a few dozen of those people per evening would purchase some sort of reasonably quick dinner that isn't a sub.

Re: Downtown Minneapolis Restaurant News

Posted: December 17th, 2018, 11:20 pm
by MattW
I have the same feelings about the North Loop. There's NOTHING there. Having walkable fast casual or flat out fast food is a big net positive for an urban community.