Duluth MN Restaurants: News and Information from Perfect Duluth Day

Lincoln Park trades print shop for restaurant, tea and spices

Sep 02, 2022 1 Comment

JS Print Group moved into the Lincoln Park neighborhood about five years ago. The business then outgrew the location at 1927 W. Superior St. and moved this summer to a larger facility in the Central Hillside.
(Photos by Mark Nicklawske)

A fast-growing print shop has moved out of Lincoln Park for a bigger building and plans are in the works for two new businesses — including an Indonesian restaurant — to take over the prime Superior Street location.

Northland Larder serving up cured meats on Duluth’s waterfront

Aug 17, 2022 No Comments

New among Duluth’s food trucks and trailers this summer is Northland Larder. The “immobile mobile food trailer” is parked near the Duluth Entertainment Convention Center between the Vista Fleet and the pedestrian bridge that crosses the Minnesota Slip into Canal Park. It features a shaded dining area, synthetic turf and Loll furniture.

Canal Park restaurant expands into Island Lake landmark

Jul 28, 2022 No Comments

An investment group has purchased the former Boondocks saloon & grill and drive in on the south side of Island Lake. Investment group spokesperson Andrew Knutson, right, said the group plans to revitalize the roadside business district. Lake Ave Restaurant and Bar owner Derek Snyder, center, will take over food operations and Luke Anderson, left, has been named head chef at the new location. (Photo by Mark Nicklawske)

A popular Canal Park eatery started serving smash burgers and ice cream at a historic drive-in this summer while work is underway to expand operations at the site and create a new destination restaurant just south of Island Lake.

Corktown Deli and Brews moving to 27th Avenue West

Jun 22, 2022 No Comments

Fox 21 reports that Corktown Deli and Brews will change its location in early 2023. The business opened in 2018 at 1906 W. Superior St. Co-owner Jeff Petcoff told Fox 21 more space is needed, so Corktown will move about three quarters of a mile southwest to 102 S. 27th Ave. W.

Parent company Arrowstar Hospitality Partners purchased the former Duluth Stove and Fireplace building in May. It is adjacent to the Duluth Grill, another restaurant under Arrowstar’s umbrella.

News and Current Affairs, Restaurants Corktown Deli and Brews, Lincoln Park Craft District, Lincoln Park Neighborhood / The Friendly West End

Tacos aplenty as new Duluth-area restaurants open

Jun 16, 2022 1 Comment

Hungry Hippie Tacos opened at the end of May in the former Westside Pet Clinic location at 1810 W. Superior St. in Duluth’s Lincoln Park neighborhood. Photo by Jayden Erie

An array of new restaurants are taking root around Duluth, and tacos continue to be the trend. April and May saw two new taquerias open in Duluth, along with a full-service Mexican restaurant in Superior. At least three more enterprises offering Mexican cuisine are coming later this year.

From authentic Mexican dishes to experimental frybread creations, from taqueria to taco truck, here’s a summer guide of new spots to try.

News and Current Affairs, Restaurants

Radisson restaurant and bar rebranding

Jan 28, 2022 No Comments

The Duluth News Tribune reports the Radisson Hotel Duluth-Harborview is rebranding its top-floor rotating restaurant and its ground-floor drinking establishment. The restaurant will become the Apostle supper club and piano lounge; the bar will become the False Eyedoll retro Tiki bar.

News and Current Affairs, Restaurants Bars / Drinking Establishments, Radisson Hotel

Matchbooks from Superior-area Restaurants and Bars

Jan 19, 2022 1 Comment

One year ago Perfect Duluth Day published a collection of “Matchbooks from Duluth Restaurants and Bars.” Now we honor the neighboring city of Superior, and the rest of northwestern Wisconsin, with a collection of matchbooks from Superior-area restaurants and bars.

New restaurants abound in Duluth/Superior; trend is tacos

Dec 29, 2021 1 Comment

Aaron Maloney and Alex Giuliani prepare tacos in July during a popup preview of their future Canal Park restaurant, Chachos Taqueria. Image via Facebook

Though 2021 was another year punctuated by pandemic problems, new Duluth-area restaurants proliferated. The Twin Ports gained more than a dozen restaurants, as seasoned and fresh-faced entrepreneurs alike took the leap to open eateries.

Among 2021 restaurant closures were two of Guy Fieri’s favorites

Dec 29, 2021 No Comments

Television personality Guy Fieri poses outside Shorty’s Pizza and Smoked Meats with members of the restaurant’s staff. Fieri visited four restaurants in the Twin Ports area in 2014 — Shorty’s, Gannucci’s Italian Market, Pak’s Green Corner and the Kounty Quarthouse. All four have since closed.

The effect of COVID-19 on the restaurant industry is tricky to quantify, but in the Duluth area there is one noticeably positive trend. More new eateries are opening than existing ones are closing.

While the ongoing pandemic played a role in pushing some eateries that were in trouble over the edge, in most cases other factors were at play. At the top of the list of closings in 2021 were three family-owned ethnic restaurants.

Postcard from the Wilbert in Cotton, 1961

Dec 21, 2021 No Comments

The Wilbert Café was founded in 1922. This postcard bears the year 1961. The modern day version of the Wilbert is located at 9105 Highway 53 in Cotton — about 30 miles northwest of Duluth.

The Duluth News Tribune profiled the Wilbert in 2018, noting it “gets its name from its original owners, combining the first names of William Lyman and Bert Robinson. In 1941, John (Tobie) Lackner took over management after William Lyman’s death, and Tobie and his wife, Ann, went on to establish the famed Tobies Restaurant and Bakery in Hinckley, Minn. … The current Wilbert was rebuilt in 1991, and it was purchased in 2004 by longtime employee Sandy Simek and her husband, Steve.”

History, Restaurants Cotton, Postcards

Postcard from the Lakeview Castle

Dec 09, 2021 No Comments

Lakeview Castle, 5135 North Shore Drive in Duluth Township, got its start circa 1914 as a fish stand and coffee shop, eventually growing into a restaurant, lounge and motel. It ceased operation at the end of 2009 and the Clearwater Grille opened there in the fall of 2010.

German restaurant in Miller Hill area circa the 1960s

Nov 27, 2021 1 Comment

What was the name of the German restaurant located on Miller Trunk Highway in the 1960s?

History, Restaurants Queries

R.I.P. Gannucci’s Italian Market

Aug 17, 2021 No Comments

The Duluth News Tribune reports Gannucci’s Italian Market in West Duluth is closed and a liquidation auction will be held Aug. 25.

News and Current Affairs, R.I.P., Restaurants Gannucci's Italian Market

Duluth-area food truck scene expands

Aug 02, 2021 1 Comment

The U.S. food truck industry is now a $1.2 billion market. Duluth-area food truck options have grown steadily since the city’s first mobile restaurants hit the streets in 2012. That summer there were four mobile eateries. Now there are at least 15.

Superior Waffles opens July 27 on Tower Avenue

Jul 21, 2021 No Comments

A sweet and savory waffle bar opens in Superior next week. Superior Waffles, located in the New York Building at 1412 Tower Ave., is holding a soft opening on Sunday and a grand opening on Tuesday.