Restaurant news: Bradstreet Craftshouse headed to Lowry Hill

The former Rye Deli & Bar (1930 Hennepin Av. S., Mpls.) hasn't stayed fallow for long. It's soon to become the new home of Bradstreet Craftshouse (601 1st Av. N., Mpls., www.bradstreetcraftshouse.com).

The influential 5-year-old craft cocktail establishment will be relocating from the Graves 601 Hotel in downtown Minneapolis later this summer, when the hotel changes hands and becomes part of the Loews chain.

"With the sale of the Graves, we wanted to keep the Bradstreet brand," said Graves Hospitality president Benjamin Graves. The hotel's Cosmos restaurant will remain, although chef John Occhiato will continue to work for Graves, creating menus across the company's portfolio.

The new Bradstreet should reopen by September, and Graves plans to take full advantage of the Rye site's far roomier kitchen. "We'll be able to expand the menu and make it a neighborhood restaurant," he said, with a plan to serve food from happy hour through late-night daily, along with weekend brunch. To reflect the change in format, the name will change, too: Bradstreet Neighborhood Craftshouse.

The change of address will also trigger a change in tone.

"We want to move away from the snotty elitism of the cocktail world," said Graves, noting that he's not unaware that Bradstreet is one of the charter members of the libation world's one percent.

"What people are drinking now is a result of that scene, but the pendulum has swung too far," he said. "People also want to go out and get a good experience and have fun. We want to be cultivators of having a good time."

When it comes to the chef, Graves isn't naming names, but he confirms that it's someone currently on the payroll.

Portions of the distinctive Bradstreet look — inspired by famed Minneapolis tastemaker John Scott Bradstreet (1845-1914) — will make the move, including the room's memorable chandeliers.

"It's not going to be identical," said Graves. "It will have the Bradstreet vibe, but you'll feel comfortable in jeans. It won't be a dive bar."

Not coincidentally, Graves lives nearby. "I'm super-excited, because what better place to do this than in my own neighborhood?" he said.

Meanwhile, the company's first foray into downtown St. Paul dining is scheduled to open July 1. Set on the street level of the Doubletree by Hilton in Town Square, casual Rival House (411 Minnesota St.) will specialize in small plates, craft beers and pizzas crafted with locally milled flours and baked in a wood-burning oven. Pizza-on-wheels whiz Peter Campbell, owner of Red Wagon Pizza Co. (www.rdwagon.com), is consulting with chef Andy Vyskocil (a Bradstreet vet) on the lunch-and-dinner project. Also in the works: A sidewalk cafe.

Now Terzo (2221 W. 50th St., Mpls., www.broders.com) is getting into the act, with a daytime walk-up counter at a kitchen window that's all about porchetta sandwiches, hence the name: Porchetteria at Terzo Wine Bar.

"We have this secret little window on the side of the building," said co-owner Molly Broder. "It's our version of a food truck."

It's a simple menu. Executive chef Thomas Broder brines belly-wrapped pork shoulder in citrus, apple and beer — along with traditional fennel, rosemary, sage and garlic notes — for 18 hours, then slow-roasts it for 10 before stuffing the tender, juicy goodness into house-baked ciabatta buns.

The sandwiches were introduced on the dinner menu about a month ago. One involves grilled rapini and a zesty parsley aioli, another adds a decadent mushroom bite and a third approaches American pulled-pork territory, with a crunchy radicchio-fennel-currant slaw and a not-timid Calabrian pepper aïoli. Vegetarians can skip the pork and enjoy a well-calibrated mix of roasted red peppers with that rapini and slaw. All fall in the $9 to $10 range ($13 to $14 at dinner, when they're served with chips and slaw), and all are wildly delicious.

Thomas Broder, the family's in-house general contractor, built the new setup, which is open from 11 a.m. to 5 p.m. daily. "We like to get over-involved," he said with a laugh.

Leave it to the indies to keep the tradition alive. For the third-consecutive year, YoYo Donuts (5757 Sanibel Dr., Minnetonka, www.yoyodonuts.com) is handing out one free doughnut per customer, while supplies last. Doors open at 6 a.m.

"It's barely controlled chaos," said owner Chris Moquist with a laugh. "Last year we lasted until almost 2 o'clock until we ran out."

Doling out freebies — there's no purchase necessary — sounds like madness. "For us, it's a really fun day, and a fun recognition for the whole industry," said Moquist. "And the cool thing is that it isn't some national doughnut council going to Congress and saying, 'Hey, let's make the first Friday in June National Doughnut Day.'"

The story goes that the Salvation Army kicked off the festivities in the late 1930s, as a way to honor the female volunteers who fed battlefront troops during World War I. "They were on the front lines, cooking up doughnuts," he said. "That just blows my mind."

Take note: YoYo's giveaway is limited to doughnuts with holes. "We would love to give away 500 dozen maple-bacon Long Johns," Moquist said with a laugh. "But the price of bacon has gone up."

For more National Doughnut Day suggestions, go to Startribune.com/tabletalk.

Now open

Mattie's on Main (43 Main St. SE., Mpls., www.mattiesonmain.com), sibling establishment to Wilde Roast Cafe, opened last weekend in the adjacent Riverplace space that was most recently home to Kikugawa. The bar is serving craft cocktails and ice cream drinks, the kitchen is specializing in pizzas, burgers and house-made pizza rolls. Lunch and dinner daily, with weekend brunch coming soon.

The former Heidi's is now host to Lago Tacos (2901 Lyndale Av. S., Mpls., www.lagotacos.com), a branch of the Excelsior tacos-and-beer-and-margaritas joint serving lunch and dinner daily, along with weekend breakfast.

Gray House (610 W. Lake St., Mpls., www.thegrayhouseeats.com) chef/owner Ian Gray is pulling the plug on his 2-year-old Lyn-Lake gastropub, but there's still time to get in and enjoy his remarkable, hyper-seasonal cooking. "The last day of the lease is July 31st, so we have about two months," he said.

"We could have stayed," said Gray. "But the lease came up, and it made me feel like I'm not running away from something, but running toward something new and fresh."

Moving forward, Gray is forming a partnership with colleagues Kiri Anderson and Jessica Knettel, and they're scouting locations, including sites in northeast Minneapolis. "But nothing is set in stone," he said.