Restaurants

A favorite Northeast Minneapolis restaurant that closed during the pandemic has returned inside a food hall in the Whittier Neighborhood. Chef John Sugimura has reopened PinKU with Chef Louross Edralin of Staff Meeting. The spot will serve sushi daily, but on Friday and Saturday nights they’ll offer Omakase by Chef Sugimura. This is a special five-course meal at the ten bar seats. Omakase means chef’s choice. Reservations for August sold out in six minutes. Reservations for September will open on Aug. 25 at 6:30 a.m. Eat Street Crossing is located at 2819 Nicollet Ave. S. It’s open seven days a week.

One of the most anticipated restaurant openings of the year is finally here. Vinai is open now in the Sheridan Neighborhood of Northeast Minneapolis. The restaurant will be open Tuesday through Saturday evenings. It’s named after the refugee camp in Thailand where Vang’s parents met and where he was born. The restaurant honors both of his parents by utilizing their recipes and methods of woodfire cooking. It’s located at 1300 2nd St. NE, the former location of Dangerous Man Brewing. Vang is a James Beard Finalist. He also runs Union Hmong Kitchen which has two locations, one in the North Loop and one on West Lake Street. He will also serve Hmong food once again at the Minnesota State Fair.

FOX 9's Shayne Wells sits down with Chef Yia Vang to chat about his new restaurant Vinai, which opens July 30 serving traditional Hmong food. The restaurant is located at 1300 NE 2nd St. in Minneapolis.

Summer is here and backyard grills are taking center stage, but a smokehouse in Wisconsin is raising the bar in barbecue, and catching Stephanie Hansen’s eye. Big Guy’s BBQ Roadhouse in Hudson, Wisconsin, is serving up smoked prime rib, candied bacon, and other specialty items that have customers hooked.

The lure of sizzling smash burgers and hungry fish brings Stephanie Hansen and the Taste Buds crew to the shores of the Mississippi River in Minneapolis for an epic adventure with Nate P., host of “Shore Lunch with Nate P." on YouTube.

Taste Buds Face-Off continues this week with coffee roasted in Minnesota. Stephanie Hansen and her daughter, Ellie, taste test medium roasts from UP Coffee Roasters and Peace Coffee. Enter the winning business at fox9.com/contests for a chance to win $500.

A Northeast Minneapolis restaurant is a finalist for Best New Restaurant in the Country from the James Beard Awards. Oro by Nixta is from the chef team of Gustavo and Kate Romero. The pair will head to Chicago on Saturday. Ann Ahmed of Khâluna and Christina Nguyen of Hai Hai are also finalists for Best Chef: Midwest. The ceremony is on Monday, June 10.

Taste Buds Face-Off continues this week with seasoning blends. With so many options in this category, Stephanie Hansen and her daughter, Ellie, zero in on Minnesota-made meat rubs. They taste test 14 Spice and Plump Chef on bread and butter. Enter the winning business at fox9.com/contests for a chance to win $500.

Taste Buds Face-Off continues this week with a hot sauce battle. Stephanie Hansen and her daughter, Ellie, taste test three Minnesota brands: Paulman Acre's "Don't Pear the Reaper," Sembo's Sauce "Lemon Mango Habanero," and Lost Capital Food's "Pyramid Scheme." Enter the winning business at fox9.com/contests for a chance to win $500.

Midwest forests are filled with spring blooms and fresh greens this time of year, and for Chef Alan Bergo, it's time to feast. Alan has a wealth of knowledge and skill in all facets of foraging, and that made him the perfect companion on Stephanie Hansen's quest to harvest nutrients from the great outdoors in the latest episode of Taste Buds.

Hey Taste Buds! Want to win $500? Taste Buds is teaming up with Gordon Ramsay’s Food Stars to celebrate Minnesota Makers. We’re trying a whole bunch of local products and putting them head-to-head in a taste test to find our favorites. This week's Face-Off was between Alemar Cheese Company and Redhead Creamery. Stephanie Hansen and her daughter, Ellie, tasted brie cheese from each company and picked a winner. Spoiler alert — It was Redhead Creamery.

About 10 years ago the country went crazy for cronuts, a cross between a donut and a croissant. There’s a new creation to get excited about in St. Paul. So Yen Desserts is making super fluffy brioche donuts. The donuts are hand-rolled, fried and filled with a light cream. The flavors rotate monthly. For May they’re featuring banana cream caramel pie, strawberry cream, raspberry lychee and an ‘everything but the bagel’ donut. The shop also has fresh beignets, burnt Basque cheesecake and savory congee bowls. They’re open Friday through Sunday 10 a.m. to 2 p.m. and are planning to add Thursdays this summer. They can sell out of the brioche donuts, but they will announce sell-outs on their social media pages. So Yen Desserts is located in Lowertown St. Paul at 275 4th St. E.

Stephanie Hansen celebrates Mother’s Day with two of her favorite moms: Laurie Crowell from Golden Fig Fine Foods, and Zoë François of Zoë Bakes in the latest episode of Taste Buds.