Sure, you’ve likely heard about the Jucy Lucys and wild rice, as well as our James Beard Award winners. However, while the culinary scene has been gradually gaining notice from the foodies of the traveling world, what may most surprise visitors is the sheer diversity of foods you’ll find on Minneapolis menus.
Emigrants and restauranteurs sharing cultural dishes they grew up enjoying are creating a truly unique food scene in this northern city.
If you still crave an unforgettable dish from your travels across the globe or have always wanted to try a specialty from another nation but are mostly traveling stateside, make room in your itinerary and your stomach – Minneapolis will delight your tastebuds with unique foods from across the world.
Vegan Ethiopian
Lulu Ethiovegan is a family-owned vegan restaurant serving a variety of Ethiopian dishes. Injera, a spongy fermented flatbread, is paired with vegan stews, which can be purchased separately or as part of a platter for communal eating.
Popular stews include the spicy miser wot, which is lentils cooked with garlic, ginger and onion in berbere sauce, and mushroom tibs, a vegan take on the usual beef or lambs-based tibs.
Kumpir
This Turkish treat is baked potatoes filled with a variety of corn, peas, carrots, salami, sausage and mushrooms.
According to the owner, the new Mrs. Dessert and Kumpir is the first place in Minnesota where you can get Kumpir, and one of only a few spots in Noth America.
Mok Paa
This Laotian steamed fish dish from Gao Noi consists of whitefish, dill and spicy rice slurry. The fish is wrapped in banana leaves and tied with thin strips of bamboo before being steamed to perfection.
This dish pairs well with a bowl of Jasmine or sticky rice.
Zoo Siab Meal
Union Hmong Kitchen’s Lake Street location offers Zoo Siab, pronounced “zhong shee-ah,” means “happy” in Hmong.
The meal consists of a protein and side of your choosing, such as Hmong sausages and Kaho Sen Rice Noodles. Each meal comes with a side of purple sticky rice and pickles.
Malawax and Nafaqo
Karmel Mall is filled with a multitude of Somali shops and restaurants selling tea and foods such as Malawax and Nafaqo.
Malawax is a Somali crepe lightly seasoned with cardamom and enjoyed as a breakfast or snack. Malawax is delicious eaten warm with melted butter and honey. Nafaqo is a hardboiled egg enveloped in potato, deep fried and topped with spice.
Choginyapi
Choginyapi is an open-faced corn sandwich from Owamni and the Indigenous Food Lab Market’s Spirit Kitchen.
This Native American dish can be made with proteins such as elk, bison and turkey, and topped with dandelion pesto, pickled onions and more.
Menudo and Pan de Dulce
Mercado Central is a thriving marketplace of Latino businesses. La Perla is known for its tortillas sold across the Twin Cities, and their restaurant in Mercado offers Menudo, a Mexican soup made with tripe in a red chili pepper broth base and seasoned with ingredients such as hominy, lime and oregano.
Panaderia El Mexicano’s Pan de Dulce are Mexican sweet breads, such as Polvorones, which is a shortbread made with a variety of flavorings and toppings, and Cuernitos, a brioche-like croissant sometimes topped with sugar.
Lefse and Lutefisk
These popular Scandinavian foods are often eaten at holiday or family meals. Lefse is a Norwegian flatbread made with potatoes, flour and sometimes butter and milk.
It can be topped with a variety of different ingredients, such as butter, sugar and salt. Lutefisk is dried whitefish soaked in lye and rinsed off with water; it is commonly rolled up in the lefse. Both can be bought year-round at Ingebretsen’s Nordic Marketplace on Lake Street.
