With help from readers, we compiled a list of 18 nominees for the best Duluth-area restaurant poll. The final three on the ballot: Duluth Grill, Lake Avenue Restaurant & Bar and Va Bene Caffe.
This poll is now closed. The results will be announced soon.
It’s been five years since we polled PDD readers to determine the perfect Duluth restaurant. Since then, the New Scenic Cafe has been the reigning champ.
Duluth Grill is highlighted in the October 2018 issue of People magazine as part of a feature on Top Breakfast Restaurants in each state. The grill’s recipe for Smoked Salmon Hash Skillet, featuring salmon smoked at OMC, the Duluth Grill’s sister restaurant, is spotlighted.
The main floor of Duluth’s Old City Hall will soon be transformed into a sushi restaurant. The owners of Superior’s Wasabi Japanese Cuisine signed a lease on Monday for the space. They anticipate opening this second eatery by the same name in November or December.
The building at 132 E. Superior St. is owned by Rod Raymond of the Just Take Action restaurant group. Since 2011, the main level space has housed three restaurants: Tycoons Alehouse, the Blind Pig, and more recently Sound.
Dennis Kempton, who handles media relations for Just Take Action, says the new Wasabi Japanese Cuisine location will be modeled after its sister restaurant in Superior, which opened in March in the former O’Neill’s Pub & Liquor building at 3333 Tower Ave.
This hibachi-style Thai rolled ice cream treat is called “Monkey Family.” It is flavored with Nutella-brand hazelnut spread and banana. The choice of toppings featured here are strawberry slices, cinnamon sticks and mango-flavored boba pearls. (Photo by Suenary Philavanh)
T-Icy Roll Ice Cream is preparing to open a second Duluth location this winter. An awning with the store name is already up at 202 E. Superior St., the former location of Lake Superior Art Glass.
Duluth Folk School Director & Co-Founder Bryan French outside Dovetail Cafe – Photo by Lissa Maki
If all goes as planned, Dovetail Cafe and Marketplace will open in the second week of October. The unique eatery, housed within the Duluth Folk School at 1917 W. Superior St., will serve up meals made from scratch, products from local vendors and a side of education for those inclined to learn.
Ben Hugus, Mark Hugus and Andrew Scrignoli – Photo by Lissa Maki
Duluth’s Lincoln Park Craft District will gain a third brewery by the month’s end. Ursa Minor Brewing, a five-barrel brewery that will also serve wood-fired pizzas, has announced it’s opening Sept. 26.
Competition was stiff in the Perfect Iron Range Restaurant poll. After a 36-hour, tie-breaking vote we can officially declare Vi’s Pizza in Biwabik the champion.
In the final poll, Vi’s Pizza had 70 percent of the vote, while BoomTown Woodfire Bar & Grill in Eveleth had 30 percent.
Clearly, no ordinary pizza joint could beat the likes of top contenders like BoomTown and Gilbert’s famous Jamaican restaurant, the Whistling Bird. But Vi’s Pizza is a veritable Iron Range institution.
The original pizza recipe was handed down from owner Kim Mattson’s Italian grandmother. Viola “Vi” and her husband Frank Urick started selling takeout pizzas out of the back of their Biwabik home in 1959.
The initial competition for Perfect Iron Range Restaurant was hot! The poll started with 25 nominees. With the help of your votes, we whittled it down to three contenders: BoomTown Woodfire Bar & Grill (Eveleth), Vi’s Pizza and the Whistling Bird.
BoomTown and Vi’s tied with 36 percent of the popular vote, while Whistling Bird was close behind at 28 percent.
Which brings us to the final poll to decide the winner.
This poll is now closed. The results were:
Vi’s Pizza, Biwabik – 70 percent
BoomTown Woodfire Bar & Grill, Eveleth – 30 percent
We developed a list of contenders for the Perfect Iron Range-area Restaurant poll by using a carefully crafted methodology — we asked people to nominate their favorites.
We started with 25 nominees and whittled it down to the top three.
The poll is now closed. The results were:
BoomTown Woodfire Bar & Grill, Eveleth | 36 percent
Vi’s Pizza, Biwabik | 36 percent
The Whistling Bird, Gilbert | 28 percent
By virtue of the tie, there will be a new poll between BoomTown and Vi’s to determine a winner.
Left: Photo by Sheldon Schwartz. Right: Google map manipulated by PDD.
It’s time the Iron Range got some credit. Summertime up north is spectacular. The abundant forests, lakes and trails offer the quintessential “up north” Minnesota experience. In past polls we’ve named the Perfect Duluth Restaurant, Perfect North Shore Restaurant and Perfect South Shore-area Restaurant. Now it’s time to look to the northwest and give some props to eateries in and around Minnesota’s Iron Range.
Sound, the not-quite six-month-old restaurant occupying the ground floor of the former Duluth City Hall building at 132 E. Superior St., closed on Friday. Dennis Kempton, a public relations professional connected to the restaurant, announced on Facebook today that owner Alison Underthun has backed out of the project. A new group of partners will relaunch the business soon, according to Kempton.
Kathleen Culhane – Photo by Lissa Maki
Thirsty Pagan Brewing in Superior welcomes a new brewer this week. Kathleen Culhane is relocating from the Twin Cities to the Twin Ports for the gig. Her official start date is June 25.
Crabby Ol’ Bill’s is no longer crabby … or Bill’s. The landlocked food boat in Canal Park will officially reopen Friday, June 22, under new ownership and with a new name. Justin Steinbach of Vista Fleet is the new owner and Derek Snyder of Lake Ave Restaurant is running it. They have renamed the establishment Lakewalk Galley by Lake Ave Restaurant.
Casey Webb, host of the Travel Channel program Man v. Food, was in Duluth and neighboring communities in April. He visited Northern Waters Smokehaus in Canal Park, Breeze Inn in Lakewood Township and Betty’s Pies in Silver Creek Township. The travel channel has announced the episode will air on July 9 at 8 p.m. and repeat on July 10 at 11 a.m. and July 14 at 12:30 p.m.
The show summary:
Casey Webb heads to Duluth, Minnesota, where he tastes the city’s best fish fry, visits a specialty sandwich shop and attempts to finish a three-pound platter of pie and ice cream in 20 minutes or less.
