Over the past decade, Minneapolis has shed its outdated stereotype as a flyover city and revealed itself to be a bona fide Midwestern melting pot. My hometown of 20-plus years is also home to the country’s largest Hmong and Somali diasporas as well as considerable Mexican, Indian, Ethiopian, Chinese, Vietnamese, and Korean populations. More recent immigration waves from Southeast Asia and East Africa layered onto early Scandinavian influences, which were built on the foundational foods and flavors of Minnesota’s first peoples, the Dakota and Anishinaabe.
In short, we’re a community woven from many multicultural fibers, and we’re proud of our immigrant neighbors—as we proved amid the unprecedented ICE raids. That diversity shines through in the wide-ranging flavors found in Minneapolis’ tight-knight food scene, which is still very much in recovery mode; many restaurants had to temporarily close in early 2026 to ensure the safety of both workers and customers.
As a longtime resident and a local magazine editor, I’ve had the great fortune of connecting with many Twin Cities restaurateurs—we’re all friends here—and savoring their culinary creations time and again. In my extremely subjective opinion, one of the easiest ways to interact with our immigrant communities is to taste your way through our vibrant city, where Nordic gravlax comingles with Hmong sausage and Mexican maize. Including everything from an Indigenous institution to an Argentinian steakhouse, here are 12 must-try Minneapolis restaurants.
Vinai
1300 Northeast 2nd Street
(612) 749-6051
Named for the Thailand refugee camp where he was born, chef Yia Vang’s acclaimed Northeast Minneapolis restaurant acts as a love letter to his parents and his Hmong heritage. They immigrated to the United States when Vang was four years old and eventually settled in central Wisconsin, where they still maintain a 10-acre garden that yields some of the eatery’s produce. Vang has unintentionally become a national ambassador for Hmong cuisine, and his fare—braised beef rib and crab-laden fried rice paired with Mama Vang’s hot sauce—offers a delicious gateway into his culture. A menu must-try? The “Sardines” starter, an elevated take on his childhood after-school snack, comprised of mackerel, tomato, and chile confit, along with purple sticky rice.
Owamni (soon to be Indígena by Owamni)
420 South 1st Street
(612) 444-1846
At his Native American restaurant, so called for the Dakota name of the falls it overlooks on the Mississippi River, three-time James Beard Award winner and Oglala Lakota chef Sean Sherman dishes up cuisine devoid of Eurocentric ingredients like beef, pork, chicken, wheat flour, cane sugar, and dairy. What’s left are the “ironically foreign” endemic ingredients of North America, as Sherman puts it—bison, elk, wild rice, tepary beans, even crickets—prepared in deceptively simple ways. The signature sweet potatoes with maple-chile crisp are a mainstay on the seasonally rotating menu. In June, the restaurant is moving down the street to a larger space at the Guthrie Theater and getting a new name to reflect its new chapter and expanded menu, all with the same decolonized philosophy.
Gai Noi
Acclaimed Laotian American chef Ann Ahmed moved to the United States at age four, having spent her earliest years living in a Thai refugee camp after her family had to flee their war-torn homeland. Her trio of Twin Cities eateries—Khâluna, Lat14 Asian Eatery, and Gai Noi—are all homages to her birth country and explorations of identity through her distinctive lens. Situated along bustling Loring Park, Gai Noi is the outgoing, extroverted sibling among the bunch, offering shareable street food like fan-favorite basil wings, laab seen, jeows (dipping sauces), and mok paa: whitefish, dill, and rice gravy steamed in banana leaves. The rooftop patio at this walk-in-only spot is a warm-weather hub.
Oro by Nixta
1222 Northeast 2nd Street
(612) 200-8087
What began as a neighborhood tortillería evolved into a full-fledged restaurant thanks to popular demand. Husband-and-wife proprietors and chefs Gustavo and Kate Romero are on a mission to safeguard the 60-plus heirloom corn varieties of his native Mexico while showcasing their beautiful versatility. Those efforts to spotlight this “golden” ingredient—which was a finalist for the 2024 James Beard Best New Restaurant—come to life in delightful dishes like yuca and masa dumplings, braised octopus tostadas, and a huitlacoche quesadilla. The accompanying masa-themed jokes, which are as punny as they are corny, are on the house.
Rainbow Chinese Restaurant
2739 Nicollet Avenue
(612) 870-7084
For nearly 40 years, this institution has anchored Eat Street, a 17-block stretch just south of downtown Minneapolis that hosts dozens of diverse eateries. Chef-owner Tammy Wong came to the United States in 1979 with her parents and eight siblings. By the ’90s, they were running a popular family restaurant in Minnesota. More recently, Wong reworked Rainbow’s recipes to feature fresh ingredients that she either sources locally or grows herself. Her thick, produce-packed egg rolls (which are also available at her stand at the Minneapolis Farmers Market) are famous with the residents, as are the Szechuan wontons with black bean sauce, turnip cakes, and honey walnut shrimp.
Spoon and Stable
211 North 1st Street
(612) 224-9850
Chef Gavin Kaysen, who has two James Beard Awards and a Michelin star to his name, is considered a hometown hero, having returned to his Twin Cities roots after helming the kitchen at New York City’s lauded Café Boulud. Those French influences are apparent in his family of restaurants, including flagship Spoon and Stable, tasting-menu destination Demi, Mediterranean marvel Mara Restaurant and Bar at the Four Seasons Hotel Minneapolis, and daytime café and bakery-cum-cozy dinner restaurant Bellecour, all located in the trending North Loop neighborhood. The space and the fare at Spoon and Stable are sophisticated without feeling snobbish, with signature items like bison tartare and spaghetti nero served up in an airy one-time horse stable.
Diane’s Place
117 14th Avenue NE
(612) 489-8012
Chef Diane Moua spent two decades working as a pastry chef—including stints at Gavin Kaysen’s restaurants—and her talent is showcased at her eponymous restaurant. The menu displays her Hmong American heritage with staples like slow-cooked pulled pork and sausage with sticky rice, and inventive takes like eggroll-stuffed chicken and a Spam and nori croissant. Reservations are recommended as finding an empty seat in the intimate dining room is tough these days. (Pro tip: Pastries can be preordered for pickup.)
Pizzeria Lola
5557 Xerxes Avenue S
(612) 424-8338
Ann Kim almost bought a Jimmy John’s franchise, but thank goodness she didn’t. Tired of being told by casting directors she was either too Asian or not Asian enough, the Korean immigrant traded her acting aspirations for culinary dreams. Opened in 2010, Pizzeria Lola marked Kim’s foray into the restaurant world, where the James Beard Award winner first experimented with crafting pies with unexpected toppings like kimchi, pickles, and Korean barbecue. In doing so, she pushed Minnesotan palates while embracing her heritage; ingredients that once brought her shame due to childhood bullying were transformed into points of pride.
Porzana
200 North 1st Street
(612) 489-6174
Originally from Buenos Aires, chef Daniel del Prado has built an ever-growing empire of restaurants across the Twin Cities—and he had a hand in developing menus at a handful of others. North Loop fine-dining outpost Porzana is his take on a Midwestern steakhouse, infused with South American flair. The prime beef program offers both classic and Argentinian cuts, which pair beautifully with housemade pasta and grilled vegetables. The parillada—including short ribs, morcilla, linguica chorizo, sweetbreads, and bone marrow—is a meat lover’s fantasy. Those in the know head to Flora Room, the sister subterranean speakeasy that’s just around the corner for a night cap.
Bûcheron
4257 Nicollet Avenue
(612) 255-5632
It comes as no surprise that two alums from chef Gavin Kaysen’s restaurant group have created a beloved South Minneapolis neighborhood spot—so beloved, in fact, that it took home the 2025 James Beard Award for Best New Restaurant. Husband-and-wife owners Adam and Jeanie Janas Ritter ensure that their 38-seater delivers on both cuisine and hospitality. Its name means “lumberjack” in French, which sets the tone for a restaurant that’s equal parts Minnesotan and French. That translates to dishes like duck and pheasant pâté en croût, celery root tortelloni, and a foie gras terrine so rich it can double as dessert, served alongside maple gel, blueberry jam, and a warm scone.
Hai Hai
2121 University Avenue NE
(612) 223-8640
The playful, punchy cuisine at chef Christina Nguyen’s Hai Hai earned her the 2024 James Beard Award for Best Chef: Midwest. Dishes like Hanoi sticky rice, Balinese cauliflower, and a build-your-own savory crêpe reflect her Vietnamese heritage and her travels throughout Southeast Asia with her life and business partner Birk Grudem. Hai Hai is a reminder that good food doesn’t have to take itself too seriously. The setting is as bright, fresh, and transportive as the fare itself, and the eatery’s name—meaning “two two” in Vietnamese—is a cheeky homage to the building’s past life as a dive bar and strip club that was colloquially known as the Deuce Deuce. The patio is made for summertime lounging with a tropical craft cocktail in hand.
Kado no Mise
33 North 1st Avenue
(612) 338-1515
Meaning “corner restaurant” in Japanese, Kado no Mise lives up to its name literally and figuratively, holding court on a coveted North Loop intersection. Japan-born and Tokyo-trained chef Shigeyuki Furukawa’s omakase prix fixe tasting menu invites diners to surrender control and to trust in the restaurant’s capable sushi chefs to curate a meal from the eatery’s finest offerings. Bringing together fresh fish, seasonal vegetables, and delicate, deliberate garnishes, the experience is a beautiful dining adventure that feels increasingly rare these days. The second-floor eatery sits above sister restaurant Sanjusan, which serves up Japanese-Italian fare.
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