A planned Lowertown St. Paul building renovation has left two restaurants without a home, but one will find new life in Cathedral Hill.
The Park Square Court building on 6th St. E. across from Mears Park is converting into an apartment building, and construction would have shuttered two of chef Justin Sutherland's restaurants, Handsome Hog and Public Kitchen + Bar, for up to 16 months, Sutherland said.
Instead, Sutherland is closing Public permanently, and moving the neighboring Handsome Hog to the home of another of his projects, deep-dish pizzeria the Fitz (173 Western Av. N., St. Paul).
The takeover of the Fitz was practical, Sutherland said. "It was just beginning when the COVID stuff happened, so it wasn't a good time to go shopping for a new restaurant space."
Handsome Hog's original space, which hugged the corner of the building, wasn't large enough to adapt to social distancing once the state allows dining rooms to reopen. The new space is far larger, giving Handsome Hog a chance to survive at reduced capacity.
In addition, a newly constructed patio will begin seating customers as soon as June 16, though the date is not firm yet.
The Southern-style restaurant's decor will carry over, as will the menu, although Sutherland says he is going to "lighten it up a little bit," to better match tastes in the new neighborhood. Still, a new smoker will allow him to smoke seven times the amount of brisket he could do in Lowertown. There will also be a few of those Fitz pizzas — the pizza oven is still there, after all — incorporating some of Handsome Hog's signature items, such as a low-country boil and that brisket.
Sutherland says the Fitz could return in another time and place, but "I had to make the decision of preserving a brand, and Handsome Hog is a no-brainer."
