![STEVE RICE • srice@startribune.com Duluth, MN 06/01/2009] The sign in front of the Northern Waters Smokehaus.](https://arc.stimg.co/startribunemedia/XLVSINWFS45GCH4UVWA3565SHQ.jpg?&w=1080)
DULUTH – It's been more than a month since Minnesotans last waited for a table at their favorite restaurants.
Gov. Tim Walz banned in-person dining starting March 17, one of his earliest efforts aimed at curbing the spread of COVID-19. The state's stay-at-home order currently extends through May 18, but the governor has already warned that eateries and stores may very well have to adapt operations for more than a year due to public concerns about the coronavirus.
Walz recently signed a bill allowing beer and wine sales with takeout orders, spurring some joints to get creative with their delivery specials. Craft brewers that rely heavily on their taprooms for revenue are pivoting to push growler and crowler sales. Across the country, restaurants and bars scrambled to figure out how to survive amid a health crisis that's hit their industry in some of the hardest ways.
In Duluth, the Black Woods Group furloughed more than 400 employees from its various restaurants last month while simultaneously launching its own delivery service.
"We kind of taught ourselves overnight how to do it independently," said Ben Thoen, director of operations for group, which also owns Duluth's Tavern on the Hill.
While some restaurants have closed to mitigate losses or because they can't afford to stay open, those still up and running are desperate for the patronage of Duluth customers, who likewise may be searching for new options. Phones, apps and websites are being deployed to take orders, and a few places might even take Venmo tips.
Here's a list of 50 Duluth-area restaurants and breweries offering some form of takeout or delivery, adjusting to the new norms of an industry that was flipped on its head by this public health crisis. Find more options at duluthloveslocal.com/curbside-delivery.
Anchor Bar & Grill
Once featured on the Food Network's "Diners, Drive-Ins and Dives," this Superior fixture is still serving its full no-nonsense menu of burgers and fries. The Wisconsin joint is also serving beer to go. Curbside from 11 a.m.-9 p.m. daily.
![Jason Vincent, owner of Vanilla Bean Restaurant in Duluth, MN delivered a curbside order to a customer outside the restaurant on Thursday afternoon. ]
ALEX KORMANN • alex.kormann@startribune.com Vanilla Bean Restaurant is one of the eateries in Duluth that have remained open for take out in the midst of the COVID-19 pandemic. But it is barely scraping by with enough profit to pay for labor and food.](https://arc.stimg.co/startribunemedia/ZFPDFYYL53HJ2X3IXHK2GAOHKA.jpg?&w=1080)
