All Saints patio
For me, it will always be the Bobino space, as it was when I first stepped into it to eat and learn how to say agnolotti for the first time. But the building on 222 E. Hennepin has been many things: lastly Bardo, and firstly a funeral home. Later this month it resurrects once more, with the aptly named All Saints.
"It pays homage to all those who came before," Kim Tong told me when she walked me through the space, "And this is such a great neighborhood, we knew we wanted to be here where there's a mix of old and new and it seems to keep re-inventing itself." That feels like the right vibe for a first-time restaurant that is being created by two industry veterans. Tong, who runs the front of house, met chef Dennis Leaf-Smith as they were both working at Esker Grove, but both have worked in some of our local bests, from 112 Eatery to Piccolo, to Borough and Lurçat.
"We realized that we had a lot of the same ideas about what we wanted to do, how we saw what could be built," Tong said, "and so we started working on the idea of what would become this restaurant." Esker Grove shut down at the beginning of the pandemic, and never re-opened, so the duo has had a lot of time to brainstorm.
All Saints intends to put forth a menu that is veggie-forward. "It's not eliminating proteins, meat is still important. But we just want to flip the ratios on the plate so that the vegetables get a chance to shine and not just act as a side to meat," Leaf-Smith mentioned. "There's more creativity there." Obviously things are more seasonal when you focus on veg, and the menu will flow, but with a core roster of dishes, so that you can count on finding your favorite too. Think about a menu with roasted scallops and carrot hummus with walnut tabbouli, or tempura fried snap peas with Green Goddess dressing, halibut with braised white beans, a roasted beet carpaccio with mint, molasses, and toasted hazelnuts and you get the drift.
front dining room
The space has been given a light overhaul, with help from Wittkamper Studio. The front room, which used to be the bar, has been painted a moody tone and given different furniture than the rest of the dining room, more banquets. "The bar split the original space in half and we wanted it to have more flow, so we moved it. But this front room still should feel more energetic. Kind of like a space where you can imagine dropping in. We want to be there for the neighborhood whether they pop in for a quick bite or plan a bigger dinner with friends."
bar seats along bar
The bar has been moved to live along the right-hand wall, where a hallway used to be. The arched ceiling gives it a bit of elegance and liveliness. There are great textures throughout that don't overwhelm the space, which remains cozy.
dining room
Facing from the kitchen to the front of the now more flowing space.
While the bar anchors one side of the room, the dining area anchors the other. More seats have been added with the renovation, coming up to about 80. The kitchen has been pushed back a bit too, and walled off so that it's not banked by half-walls as it was before. Leaf-Smith is excited that there's also a new wood-fired grill in the house, "It was the first thing we ordered, before we even signed a lease on the space. We knew that shipping and supply lines were already getting messed up, so we figured we'd better get that order in as soon as possible. We had the grill coming, so we had to put it somewhere!"
patio tables
But let's talk about that patio. The team knows what they have in that space, how good it can be out there. They've added some new structures and more tables, some that can easily flip up to accommodate larger groups, and plan to keep it open as long as possible.
four people
From L to R: Ben Morris, Dennis Leaf-Smith, Kim Tong, Scott Weller
The full team includes sous chef Ben Morris and Scott Weller, who is running the drinks program. Coming out of a tough year for finer dining, the crew is excited to bring back the idea that dining out can be something special (read: not delivery, not always sided with fries) without being overly fancy or unapproachable. This is one of the new breed of restaurants, and not just just because of veggies. Tong and Leaf-Smith agree that they want to continue to have lives. "Dennis has a four year old kid and he has to be able to be a dad too," Tong remarked, "and I don't think any of us want to go back to killing ourselves in the name of serving food. I think we can all create a great experience, while not feeling like we have to stay open to 1am to catch all the options." Tong and Leaf-Smith are funding the project on their own, as the owners, which gives them the freedom and autonomy to make decisions like they've wanted to for years. But there's also the pressure, "It's just us, it's down to us to make payroll and keep it all going. It's both terrifying and awesome."
Look for All Saints to open next week, September 21 for dinner only to start, with brunch following.
