The team behind Lake Monster Brewing Co. will launch a new distillery, cocktail bar and pizza restaurant this summer in St. Paul's Vandalia Tower, just across the plaza from the brewery.
Attention, St. Paul: There's a new distillery coming your way this summer
King Coil Spirits will open a distillery, cocktail bar and pizzeria in the Vandalia Tower.
"We are thrilled to open another business at Vandalia Tower," Matthew Zanetti, who co-founded the spirits company with Matthew Lange and Jeremy Maynor, said in a statement. The trio named the distillery for its location — the former King Koil mattress factory.
Lange, the brewmaster at Lake Monster, will be King Coil's head distiller. "Brewing was my first passion," he said, "but I have a huge interest in cocktails and spirits, so transitioning into distilling is a logical next step."
Lange has been experimenting with tinctures, botanicals and infusions for more than a decade, and has developed a selection of housemade gin, run, vodka, blended whiskeys and liqueurs that will drive the cocktail menu.
On the food side, King Coil will bring Roman-style pizza to the table; the dough and mozzarella will both be made in-house. Known for its rectangular shape, the pizza will be available by the slice and whole pies for both dine-in and takeout. The seasonal menu also will include a selection of starters and signature pizzas.
Cunningham Architects of Minneapolis is designing the 140-seat cocktail room in Vandalia Tower, which is on the National Register of Historic Places. The complex also will have private event spaces and a 60-seat patio.
An exact opening date for the distillery (550 Vandalia St., Suite 140, St. Paul, kingcoilspirits.com) hasn't been set — think summer, though — but you can keep up to date by following their social media.
Lefse-wrapped Swedish wontons, a soothing bowl of rice porridge and a gravy-laden commercial filled our week with comfort and warmth.