Birch’s on the Lake
Birch’s on the Lake sits on the north edge of Lake Minnetonka in Long Lake, running two distinct dining concepts under one roof. The Brewhouse is the casual walk-in side — first-come, first-served seating, full menu, live music every Friday night 7:30–10:30pm, tableside magic by “Suzanne” on Thursday and Friday evenings 6–8pm, and the Woods Patio open when weather cooperates. The Supperclub is the reservations-only counterpart, all classic-cabin ambiance and full-dress dinner service. Both draw from the same kitchen and bar, with weekend brunch running Saturday and Sunday from 10am.
Brewmaster Brennan Greene runs an actual working brewery here, and Birch’s produces its own line of THC seltzers under the house label. Each contains 10mg THC and 15mg CBD, brewed with whole natural ingredients — real cherry juice, freshly grated ginger root, chocolate and blueberry when the small batches come around. The core lineup is Cherry, Chocolate Cherry, Lemon Lime, and Ginger Ale, served in 12oz cans on-premise and available in 750ml crowlers for takeaway. Each week the brewmaster releases a rotating small-batch 25oz seltzer available only at Birch’s (recent runs have included Blueberry and Chocolate Banana). Birch’s also distributes their seltzers to local liquor stores across the metro.
The food program leans into supperclub tradition: King and Queen cut prime rib, 1.5lb whole Maine lobster, and Monday’s half-off Buckhorn Fried Chicken special. The Brussels sprout appetizer, artichoke crab dip, short ribs, and Long Lake Brunch have all earned reviewer devotion. Wine Down Thursdays feature half-price bottles; happy hour runs seven days a week across the Supperclub Bar, Brewhouse Bar & Lounge, and Woods Patio. Kids menu, private dining, and lakeside views — which are as much of the draw as the food.
Wildwood Tavern
A wood-fired supper room in the North Loop, Wildwood keeps a rotating list of house-made THC seltzers and spritzes alongside a serious zero-proof program. The kitchen leans seasonal and Midwestern — smoked lake fish, root vegetables, cast-iron breads — served in dark, warm rooms built for a long evening.
All THC beverages are lab-tested, and clearly dosed on the menu. Staff are trained to pace service and card every guest — the bar tops out at 5 mg per drink, well inside Minnesota’s legal ceiling.
Lake & Irving
Lake & Irving sits at the intersection of Lake Street and Irving Avenue South in Uptown Minneapolis, a few blocks east of Lake Bde Maka Ska. Chris and Andrew Ikeda — brothers, both Culinary Institute of America grads — opened it in 2013 with a menu that pulls from Chris’s years in high-end Hawaiian resort kitchens, Andrew’s California training, and the Italian grandmother who taught them the value of a good basil-macadamia pesto.
The result is a genuinely idiosyncratic gastropub. The dining room is dim, wood-paneled, and plush; the patio in back opens for summer and hosts brunch when weather allows. The menu spans an American core with Asian and Mediterranean detours — the Buttermilk Chicken Sandwich has a citywide following, the Cheeseburger arrives on a Patisserie 46 brioche bun with foie gras butter (as the Luxe Burger), the Pau Hana Burger nods to Chris’s Hawaii years (pineapple glaze, kabayaki, pickled jalapeños, smoked gouda), and the Kalua Pork Sandwich threads pineapple slaw through pulled pork. Small plates are where the kitchen really flexes: Korean Fried Cauliflower, tempura fried lion’s mane mushrooms, cold smashed fingerling potato salad with cured salmon. Brunch runs Saturday and Sunday morning — the Challah French Toast with beer syrup and the Chicken and Waffles are the crowd-pullers.
On the THC side, the drink list carries a rotating selection of cans — the specific brands change with what’s available, so ask the bar what’s cold. Thursday nights host Trivia Mafia at 8:30pm. Reservations are strongly recommended, especially for weekend brunch and Thursday trivia.
Hell’s Kitchen
Hell’s Kitchen has been feeding downtown Minneapolis since 2002 from an underground space at 80 South 9th Street. Founded by two renegade chefs, Steve Meyer and Mitch Omer, the restaurant went 100% employee-owned on January 1, 2020, and stays fiercely independent. The dining rooms are theater: The Underground has a raised stage, a sparkly red bar, and a rotating live music calendar; The Far Side Pub is old-world cozy with hell-themed Gary Larson comic strips lining the walls; and The Minnesota Room is a shrine to the state’s wonders and colloquialisms. Ralph Steadman gonzo artwork throughout — politicians and priests eat elbow-to-elbow with tattooed musicians. Winner of over sixty-seven “best” awards and accolades in Gourmet Magazine, Conde Nast Traveler, and Midwest Living.
Almost everything is made from scratch. The house-made peanut butter has a fiercely loyal following. The Mohnomin Wild Rice Porridge honors native Minnesota wild rice; the Lemon Ricotta Pancakes are the brunch cult favorite; the Bison Quesabirria Tacos and Bison Bolognese carry dinner service; and the sixty-foot Bloody Mary & Screwmosa Bar (Saturday and Sunday 9am–1pm) is a downtown weekend ritual. NPR called the food “unique but not fancy, interesting but not fussy.”
On the THC side, the bar menu breaks out a dedicated “THC Beverages — Alcohol Free—21+” section under the “Lucifer’s Libations” header. Seltzers include the You Betcha lineup (Day Time Blood Orange-Lime and Night Time Blackberry-Lemon, both 5mg), Falling Knife Herbal Trip Hop Water Seltzer (5mg), and Fulton Narc Strawberry Lemonade (10mg). The Falling Knife soda pours are Drippin’ Dream Orange Cream and Grape Vape (both 10mg), and Trail Magic’s Half & Half Arnold Palmer sits in the juicy column at 5mg. To-go six-packs and gummies also available at the register.
Live music free to patrons seven days a week — folk, americana, jazz, and blues, plus occasional late-night “rock-the-house” shows Fridays and Saturdays. No outside food or beverage. Skyway-adjacent by Target Center and Target Field.
Earl Giles Restaurant & Distillery
Earl Giles is a distillery, a bar, a flavor lab, and a full-service restaurant, all under one 18,000-square-foot roof in Northeast Minneapolis. The 60-foot copper-fronted cocktail bar sits amid over 600 plants and anchors a scratch kitchen turning out wood-stone-fired pizzas, shareable plates, and a weekend brunch. Every syrup, elixir, and spirit on the menu is made in the building — the Drinks Apothecary onsite houses 600+ globally sourced extracts — and the same obsessive flavor work goes into their craft THC beverage line.
The THC list runs deep. Housemade sodas and tonics infused at 5mg and 10mg (Electric Lemonade, Ectochill, Chronic Tonic) sit alongside a “Piff Ton” family of 10mg cans (Sourtangie, Pineapple Kush, Snowman, Layer Cake) and the Green Standard, a rare 5mg THC / 10mg CBG / 25mg CBD full-cannabinoid mocktail. The house policy asks guests to stay in one lane — alcohol or THC — for the duration of a visit, a thoughtful call in a state where the two now share a menu.
Named for a real-life 1888-born Minnesota pharmacist, pilot, and Prohibition-era bootlegger who ran booze across the border disguised as apothecary medicine, Earl Giles opened the Logan Park facility in 2022. Founder Jesse (Earl) Held brings 25+ years behind bars into the space’s Cocktail Study Hall classes, immersive dinners, and weekly happy hours. Walk in or book ahead.