Finally, it’s here. We know we’ve put in our due diligence during this long, snowy winter, but now it’s patio season and the number of new outdoor dining options is something to celebrate. While there’s nothing like dinner under the stars, when you don’t have to watch the clock, you’ll even love taking a few minutes to savor your lunch break or your morning espresso in these outdoor spaces. Here, eight beautiful patios and eight summer-ready drinks and dishes to match.
Chicken Bombay Salad
Good Earth
The beautiful, spacious patio outside Good Earth is the place you’ll want to be lunching this summer, or rejuvenating with a five-berry smoothie, or sipping on one of the five $5 patio wines which will be rotated throughout the summer. The chicken Bombay salad is truly a standout, made with chicken, curry, chutney, endive, watercress, fresh blackberries, plums and toasted coconut ($12.95). If it’s warm enough, the patio opens at 8 a.m. for breakfast. Galleria, 3510 W. 70th St.; 952.925.1001
Hours: 7 a.m.–10 p.m. Mon.–Sat., 7 a.m.–9 p.m. Sun.
Vegetale
Mozza Mia
The freshest news at Mozza Mia is that it’s now serving lunch, starting daily at 11 a.m. With two patios—a noisier city scene on France Avenue and quieter terrace in the back—you’ll be nothing but enamored with the new sandwiches, salads and pastas being offered at midday. The vegetale ($10) is an Italian sandwich on ciabatta sourdough bread, topped with pesto, grilled eggplant and zucchini, fresh heirloom tomatoes and fresh mozzarella, with your choice of Italian-seasoned fries or a side salad. The pasta primavera ($10), another new menu item, is tossed with the freshest vegetables available, like asparagus, carrots or yellow squash, garlic and olive oil. And darned if one of the new summery drinks won’t cast a spell on you, like the Sangri-la, made with red wine, brandy, parfait amour liqueur and cranberry juice. 3910 W. 50th St.; 952.288.2882
Hours: 11 a.m.–10 p.m. Sun.–Thurs., 11 a.m.–11 p.m. Fri.–Sat.
Tacos
Peoples Organic
Time for menu changes at Peoples Organic, and they couldn’t have come at a better moment now that the sunny patio is open on the north side of Galleria. First up, try the tacos, served with your choice of tilapia, beef or cashew veggie in a corn tortilla, qualifying this as a gluten-free dish ($14). The kitchen is also offering a daily gnocchi, like roasted garlic and blue cheese ($16). Breakfast begins at 6 a.m. daily here, and the remarkably popular organic Zone omelet ($10), made with three egg whites and one yolk, goat cheese, roasted tomatoes and spinach, might taste even lighter and fluffier under a sunny morning sky. Gluten-free choices are ever expanding at the café, including the recent addition of the Great Lakefront New Grist gluten-free ale. Galleria, 3510 W. 70th St.; 952.426.1856
Hours: 6 a.m.–10 p.m. Mon.–Thurs., 6 a.m.–11 p.m. Fri.–Sat., 6 a.m.–9 p.m. Sun.
Vietnamese Noodle Salad
Rice Paper
Even though Rice Paper made the move to 50th and France all the way back in September, this summer marks the debut of its sidewalk patio, an intimate space surrounded by plants. It doesn’t get more refreshing than the Vietnamese salad: rice noodles, lettuce, English cucumber, bean sprouts, mint and cilantro tossed with a choice of chicken, fish or tofu, and topped with fresh roasted peanuts and scallion oil ($11.95). The Asian eatery is also famous for its grapefruit festivity, a starter dish made with shrimp, bits of grapefruit and pac peo (a mintlike herb) in a sweet Thai sauce with fresh roasted peanuts and crispy shallots ($9.50). But a word to the wise to diners expecting a glass of sake under the sun: you’ll have to opt for tea, as the restaurant is not licensed to serve alcohol on the sidewalk café. 3948 W. 50th St.; 952.288.2888
Hours: 11 a.m.–2 p.m., 5 p.m.–9 p.m. Mon–Sat., 4 p.m.–8 p.m. Sun.
Caipirinha
Cocina del Barrio
Apparently, there are a few of you that aren’t fans of tequila. That’s why the new cocktail menu at Cocina del Barrio is offering some drinks based on other liquors, like the Yo La Tengo (known as the national cocktail of Brazil) made with lime wedges, simple syrup and cachaça, a Brazilian liquor made from fresh-pressed sugar cane ($9). Be sure to hit up the patio out front during lunchtime, when you can get two specialty tacos, like softshell crab with watermelon and pico de gallo, or grilled halibut with heirloom tomato, served with guacamole, for just $10. 5036 France Ave. S.; 952.920.1860
Hours: 11 a.m.–1 a.m. Mon.–Thurs., 11 a.m.–2 a.m. Fri.–Sat., 12 p.m.–1 a.m. Sun.
Margarita Italiano
Pinstripes
So sought-after and summery is the margarita that they’ve even rendered an Italian-inspired version at Pinstripes—made with Patron silver, house-made limoncello, sour mix and a splash of cherry ($10)—dubbed the margarita Italiano. You couldn’t enjoy sipping one any more than if you snagged one of the Adirondack chairs or a tall top table on the two-level patio overlooking Centennial Lakes, unveiling a view of the Minneapolis skyline. Flatbreads like the shrimp, spinach and tomato deliver the best that the garden has to offer ($13), and salads like the pear salad with bibb lettuce, arugula, gorgonzola, balsamic and sugared pine nuts ($11) are expected to fly off the shelves this summer. 3849 Gallagher Dr.; 952.835.6440
Hours: 10 a.m.–10 p.m. Sun., 11:30 a.m.–11 p.m. Mon.–Thurs., 11:30 a.m.–midnight Fri., 10 a.m.–midnight Sat.
Oven-toasted Bruschetta
Tavern on France
Nothing hits the spot like the tang of fresh tomatoes on a warm, summer day. The oven-toasted bruschetta at Tavern on France is a nice departure from their signature burger menu, made with marinated tomatoes, olive tapenade, blue cheese crumbles and toasted parmesan ciabatta ($9.75). Blue Moon and Stella Artois, both on tap, sell like crazy on the roomy outdoor patio, complete with its own bar, fire pits and water feature. 6740 France Ave. S.; 952.358.6100
Hours: 11 a.m.–12 a.m. Mon.–Thurs., 11 a.m.–1 a.m. Fri.–Sat., 10 a.m.–10 p.m. Sun.
Half-pound Cheeseburger
McCormick and Schmick’s
It’s hard to pass up a half-pound cheeseburger with fries when it’s priced at a mere $2.95, like the one at McCormick and Schmick’s during happy hour, served along with a range of menu items priced for happy hour (between $1.95 and $4.95) in the bar and on the bar patio. If you want to sip on something summery on one of the two patios at this seafood mainstay, try the Moscow mule, made with fresh lime juice, ginger and Stoli vodka ($8.95). Due to its location in the Edina Westin, the kitchen also puts out breakfast from 6 a.m. daily. Galleria, 3510 W. 70th St.; 952.920.1142
Hours: 6 a.m.–11 p.m. Mon.–Fri., 6 a.m.–midnight Sat., 6 a.m.–10 p.m. Sun.
