Best Neighborhood Gem Restaurants in Grand Ave

Staff superior to any other restaurant. Very busy but didn’t feel rushed. Very attentive and food and drinks perfect.

We really enjoyed Bennett’s Chop & Rail. The food and service were outstanding! My wife fell in love with their Walleye Sliders😋 I highly recommend them!!!

Lovely experience here tonight for my birthday dinner. The food was delicious, our server was attentive and very personable, and the manager was very welcoming. It was also nice to be in a restaurant where it wasn’t overly loud. We enjoyed the ambiance!

What can you say about a restaurant that really has nothing to be compared to? When you are rocking original, creative, Venezuelan cuisine, in Saint Paul, the comps are hard to come by… That said, this very-chef-based small cocina is pushing out creativity and quality that belongs in downtown Minneapolis next to the best of the best. This was a place I’d been promising myself a visit for about six months and finally got there. The menu is eclectic, inspired and wholly-original. Crasqui delivers and Ms. Ramirez is a true chef. Her vision of bringing the cuisine of Venezuela to has been realized and we are lucky that she decided to grace us with her art. The pulpo (octopus) appetizer is a great treatment and fun. If the idea of it throws you; just try it. The entrees, the Conejo (rabbit) and Lomito (tenderloin) were excellent to the point of licking the plates and demanding more. To add to drama, Soleil (Ms. Ramirez) has created a cocktail program that also delivers creativity, novelty and with a serious nod to the powers far-south of the border with citrus, liqueurs and exotics that are unique and well-crafted. Her wine list is also unique and exciting, featuring wines that are uniquely sourced and well-suited to the menu. Ms. Ramirez has relationships with the importers that provide unique bottles that are worth the trip. If you go: enjoy a few of the tapas and the secondi (shareables) knowing that the mains are just what they are. Mains are clean and unadorned with sides, and as such you either fill in with the before or add-on with sides for the entree. In other words; like the rest of the culinary world, you construct your evening and eats, you don’t get an entree with meat/veg/starch. So don’t expect that. In terms of postres (after dinner/dessert) the menu offers unique pieces as well. Lots of fruit-centric yums and as decadent as you like. A companion menu of bevvies for that is also presented including very nice Cherry Wine (think heavy tawny port)

Our server was so good even though the place was packed! It was 2 days before Christmas and right before a nearby hockey game so every table was full of large groups. Our server kept her cool and was attentive and kind. And the kitchen stayed on their game too, delivering very hot delicious meals.