Latest news with #SpoonandStable
Eater
09-06-2025
- Entertainment
- Eater
The Team From Kingfield's ‘Midwest French' Bistro Is Still Digesting Its James Beard Nomination
Jeanie Janas Ritter and Adam Ritter first found out that their Kingfield bistro, Bûcheron, was a finalist for the James Beard Award for Best New Restaurant in a text from their former boss, Minneapolis culinary icon Gavin Kaysen. The husband-and-wife duo had made a name for themselves working at Kaysen's celebrated restaurants — including Spoon and Stable, Demi, and the soon-to-be-revived Bellecour — before opening Bûcheron just over a year ago. The intimate restaurant quickly earned a devoted following for its refined, French fare. 'We were stunned. It was a couple of crazy days of people emailing and texting us,' says Jeanie, the restaurant's hospitality director. 'One of my favorite moments was when we shared it in our team group chat because of the genuine excitement and pride. It was clear to me that it's everybody's recognition.' Bûcheron is one of 10 nominees in the category and the only restaurant from the Midwest and Great Lakes regions. (The only other Minnesota restaurant ever nominated in the category was Owamni, which brought home the award in 2022.) This year, they will be joined by a cadre of other Minnesotans for Best Chef: Midwest nominees, including Shigeyuki Furukawa of Kado no Mise, Diane Moua of Diane's Place, and Karyn Tomlinson of Myriel. Bar Brava is a finalist for its notable wine program. Jeanie sees a common thread among the Twin Cities restaurants that are garnering national attention. 'I think that Minnesota cuisine is defined by the ingredients rather than the technique,' says Jeanie. 'And when you think about the most exciting restaurants in Minneapolis that people are talking about, the techniques at each of those places are pretty dramatically different, but I think there's a similar thread of ingredients that you start to find.' The menu at Bûcheron is often described as a Midwestern interpretation of the French bistronomy movement, which seems in line with the clear-eyed vision for the restaurant. 'We approach [the food] as 'Midwest French.' Like using a French technique for a Midwestern dish or a French dish with Midwestern ingredients,' says chef Adam Ritter. 'A lot of places you go nowadays, it's like a hodgepodge of different cuisines. So we try to stay in that lane.' Adam isn't interested in over-manipulating components or disguising their origins. He says that guests and other chefs were pleasantly surprised when he served celery root tortellini in an acorn broth earlier this year. At a dinner last June, he fashioned a tiny frozen tree out of a dolgo crab apple and lilac bushes to mimic a photo in a book by local artist Mary Jo Hoffman. Ingredients from local producers embed a sense of place into Bûcheron's menu — wild rice from the Indigenous Food Lab, beef from Fellers Ranch, and jam from Adam's uncle's raspberry bushes. To keep ingredients as local as possible — Adam insists Minnesota chanterelles are better than those on the West Coast — his team freezes local produce at peak ripeness to serve year-round. 'Everything needs to taste like what it is, so if a carrot is on the plate, it should taste like a carrot,' says Adam. 'I want to make it delicate to where you can taste everything that's in the dish harmoniously.' The Ritters' decision to open a restaurant was motivated by both the needs of their growing family and their passion for excellent food and hospitality. The couple, who have two toddlers, wanted to create a positive work environment for their family and employees. 'We were on a walk with our baby right before I went back from maternity leave,' says Jeanie. 'Being in the restaurant business with young children is really hard, there's a lot of nights solo parenting. We knew if we wanted to do this and make it work, we needed to do it on our own terms.' Being independent restaurant owners has allowed the owners to have more control over their schedules and realize their vision for the menu. The Ritters made time for their family by hiring a team of trusted and familiar faces — both in the kitchen and front of house — that hold the same high culinary standards that they have. A few of Adam's former Demi colleagues joined the Ritters at Bûcheron, including chef de cuisine Cory Western and general manager Tyler McLeod. And thanks to years of developing relationships with the Twin Cities' most discerning diners, the Bûcheron team enjoys the company of many old friends throughout the week. One of the ways their community comes together is through bimonthly tasting dinners, some centered on the cuisines of regions in Spain or France, and others based on a fellow chef's memoir or a book of photography, like Hoffman's. 'We've built up a really good community of guests at other restaurants over the last eight years,' says Jeanie. 'We've gotten so close with so many of our regulars that when we have a hog roast for our team twice a year, a lot of them come.' With the James Beard spotlight now shining on Bûcheron, the Ritters remain committed to improving the day-to-day experience of running a neighborhood bistro. Reservations are booking out faster than ever, though they're quick to note that the bar is always open for walk-ins. Amid the buzz, the Ritters are still focused on the fundamentals: improving building operations, deepening relationships with local producers, and chipping away at their SBA loan. While staffed by many industry veterans, the Bûcheron team is still learning the day-to-day realities of overseeing a small neighborhood bistro. It's housed in an older building, and while guests might admire the ambiance by Christian Dean Architecture, behind the scenes, much of the first year has been spent steadily making improvements. Each season brings its own challenges — freezing temperatures, spring rain, and blazing sun which means problem-solving so the patio tables aren't baking hot. Recognition is exciting, but success still looks like hard work, smart decisions, and dishes that taste like home. Sign up for our newsletter.
Axios
13-05-2025
- Business
- Axios
Restaurant Roundup: Hey Bear! Cafe will close May 14
Cooks of Crocus Hill and Gavin Kaysen 's bakery Bellecour are ending their five-year partnership, per a release. The Edina location of Cooks | Bellecour will close entirely on June 1, while the Bellecour within Cooks in North Loop will also exit the same day. But, Kaysen plans to open two stand-alone Bellecour outposts this fall — one in the shuttered Edina location, and one near his North Loop restaurant Spoon and Stable. Hey Bear! Cafe, the bargain breakfast joint off of University Avenue in St. Paul, is shutting down Wednesday after less than a year in operation. Staff member Oskar Johnson cited disputes with the building's landlord on the Instagram post announcing the closure. The chef behind Guacaya Bistreaux, the North Loop Latin-Carribean restaurant that abruptly closed late last month, plans to open North Star Deli in Kingfield, Southwest Voices reports. No word yet on an opening date. Lake Harriet's park restaurant Bread and Pickle reopened for the season on Monday, according to its social media.
Yahoo
17-04-2025
- Entertainment
- Yahoo
Spirited Awards lists 2 Minneapolis bars among the best in the country
The Tales of the Cocktail Foundation, the hospitality nonprofit that hosts the annual spirits conference of the same name, has announced the Regional Top 10 Honorees for its Spirited Awards. The awards have honored outstanding work in cocktails since 2007, and this year, a couple of Twin Cities bars are getting some well-deserved recognition. The foundation's list of Regional Top 10 Honorees recognizes the work of individuals and bars/restaurants from around the world, including three regions in the U.S. Among them is Meteor in Minneapolis, which has been listed in two categories: Best U.S. Bar Team - U.S. Central and Best U.S. Cocktail Bar - U.S. Central. The bar was listed for Best U.S. Bar Team in 2024 as well. Meanwhile, the Gavin Kaysen-led Spoon and Stable has been listed in Best U.S. Restaurant Bar - U.S. Central, a category where it was listed in 2024, 2023, and 2022, among other honors it has received from the foundation. That's not the only recognition that Spoon and Stable has received recently. Earlier this year, it was announced that Spoon and Stable bartender Jarod Schiebout is a finalist to compete in the U.S. Bartenders Guild's national competition. The pair of Minneapolis drink hubs, as well as Public Parking in Madison, Wis. (Best New U.S. Cocktail Bar - U.S. Central), are the only watering holes to make the cut from Iowa, Minnesota, North Dakota, South Dakota, or Wisconsin. Though, the central region is represented by a broad swath of the country, with finalists in states that include Ohio, Michigan, Missouri, Louisiana, and Texas. The 2025 Spirited Awards will be celebrated in a ceremony at the Tales of the Cocktail conference in New Orleans on July 24.
Yahoo
20-02-2025
- Business
- Yahoo
Minneapolis bartender will compete for U.S. Bartender of the Year
The U.S. Bartenders Guild has unveiled its Top 30 World Class U.S. Bartenders, a list of finalists slated to compete in a national bartending contest this spring. Among the finalists is bartender Jarod Schiebout from Spoon and Stable in Minneapolis. Schiebout, who joined Spoon and Stable in 2023, will head to Athens, Ga., for the National Finals in May, where just one bartender will earn the right to represent the U.S. in the global finals, where someone is crowned the bartender of the year. He has been mentored by Soigné Hospitality's Beverage Director Jessi Pollak, who won the Diageo World Class National Finals and was named Bartender of the Year in 2022. She was the first Minnesota-based bartender to qualify for the national competition. The competition's judging panel narrowed the field from 100 down to 30 for the national finals, selecting 10 bartenders each from three regions. To get there, each mixologist had to breathe "new life into a retro classic cocktail" with a menu of three drinks that showcased the drink's past, present, and future. Judges then recreated one cocktail from each menu for a blind tasting. At the finals in Athens, bartenders will be tested on their ability to highlight the flavor profile of a Bulleit variant in a cocktail paired with a southern dish, draw inspiration from "Mexican commerce and community life" for a cocktail with locally sourced ingredients, and create high-quality drinks quickly from a pop-up menu.
Yahoo
04-02-2025
- Entertainment
- Yahoo
Spoon & Stable's 2025 guest chef series will feature Emeril Lagasse and others
Spoon and Stable, the Minneapolis eatery that was recently named a James Beard semifinalist for Outstanding Restaurant, has unveiled the guest chefs who will take part in the 2025 installment of its Synergy Series. The restaurant and chef Gavin Kaysen will bring in five chefs for four dinners, continuing a series of food and conversations that began in 2015. This series will feature Chef Stefano Secchi of Rezdôra in New York, Emeril Lagasse and his son EJ Lagasse of Emeril's in New Orleans, Gregory Gourdet of KANN in Portland, and Claudette Zepeda of Chispa Hospitality in San Diego. The series services a collaboration between guest chefs and the culinary team at Spoon and Stable as they work on a menu that embodies the vision of the guest chef. The dinners are, on a separate night, accompanied by a discussion of stories that shaped each guest's journey in food. The first three dialogues in this year's series will take place at the American Swedish Institute. The Synergy Series will also celebrate the release of a self-published book from Kaysen about the history of the series. 'When we created this series, I never thought it would take on the life that it has,' Kaysen said in a statement. 'What I have come to understand is that we are all students in life and learning. Staying curious and humble are keys towards success. I am so grateful to work alongside these chefs, all of whom I look up to and respect. Cooking with Chef Emeril and his son will be a full circle moment for me, as I have known him and his family for 15 years.' These are the dates for each event in the 2025 Synergy Series. April 10-11: Chef Stefano Secchi, Rezdôra (New York, NY) July 17-18: Chefs Emeril Lagasse & EJ Lagasse, Emeril's (New Orleans, LA) September 11-12: Chef Gregory Gourdet, KANN (Portland, OR) December 4-5: Chef Claudette Zepeda, Chispa Hospitality (San Diego, CA) Individual dinner reservations, which cost $495 per person, are available on the first of the month prior to each event. A season pass will become available on Feb. 17 and costs $2,500 per person and includes access to all four dinners as well as the chef dialogue events. That ticket also comes with the full tasting menu, beverage pairings, and a gift at each dinner. Bar and lounge seating, available two weeks in advance of each event, costs $195 per person. Tickets to the dialogues are available on the same day as individual dinner reservations and cost $10 per event. Kaysen is also hosting Michelin-starred guest chefs throughout the year in the North Star Series at Demi, which features appearances from the chefs at San Francisco's Mister Jiu's, New York's Saga, and Healdsburg's SingleThread.
