In & out at Porter & Frye Chef Steven Brown's yearlong tenure at Porter & Frye (1115 2nd Av. S., Minneapolis, porterandfrye.com), the luxury restaurant inside the Hotel Ivy, has come to an end. "That's life, right?" he said. "I worked very hard and I'm sorry that it didn't work out. I'm very proud of the people I worked with and I wish them all well. Now I'm looking forward to doing something else."
Brown's replacement: Joan Ida. Her résumé includes a long stint as pastry chef at the former Goodfellow's before running the kitchen at Tria Restaurant Bar & Market (5959 Centerville Rd., North Oaks, triarestaurant.com) and, most recently, the Lake House (8241 North Shore Trail, Forest Lake, thelakehousemn.com).
"The path that Steven put us on is terrific, and we're not going to change the course of the restaurant," said Ivy general manager Chuck Paton. "You won't see Porter & Frye barbecue. That said, there is an opportunity to speak to a broader audience, without moving away from Steven's spirit or intent, and Joan is the person to do that." Ida starts in mid-February.
Grand getting Brasa The speculation is over. Chef/owner Alex Roberts confirms that he's opening a second Brasa Rotisserie (600 E. Hennepin Av., Minneapolis, brasa.us) at 777 Grand Av. in St. Paul. The space, a former pizzeria, is twice the size of the original Brasa, and the extra room means that Roberts is planning additions to the menu: a daily soup ("something big and generous, a meal in itself," he said), a daily special beyond the kitchen's rotisserie pork-chicken-beef format ("maybe a smoked lamb sausage, or fried chicken," he said) and house-made sodas. Brasa fans who have patiently waited for a table will be relieved to hear that Roberts is also planning a reservations-only communal dining table for large groups, "for ordering a whole pork shoulder or a leg of lamb or a small goat," he said.
After the restaurant opens in May, will Roberts start eyeing a third location? "Ah, no," he said with a laugh. "I need to figure this one out first. I don't have anything in the works, but who knows?"
Pairing off Takeout is poised to take off -- at least in the western 'burbs -- when Pairings Food and Wine Market (6001 Shady Oak Rd., Minnetonka) opens in May. Co-owners Holly Damiani and Mark Peregory are combining a dine-in/takeout concept with a retail wine and beer shop. "We'll have 45 feet of deli case space and entrees made daily on the premises," said Damiani. "It will be one-stop shopping for breakfast, lunch, dinner, whether you eat it there or take it home."
The restaurant's fare will be designed to match the shop's beer and wine, which will be available to diners without a corkage fee and sold at retail price. Michael Boughten, formerly of the Minneapolis Grand Hotel, will be running the kitchen. If Pairings sounds like a multi-unit chain in the making, well, that's the plan. Damiani and Peregory are already developing a second location, at France and Excelsior in St. Louis Park, set to break ground in the fall.
Brunch comes back After a too-long absence, brunch is returning to the 128 Cafe (128 N. Cleveland Av., St. Paul, www.128cafe.net) starting on Sunday, with roasted chicken and wild rice-stuffed crêpes, a daily omelet and a polenta porridge.
