Air Force Vet Brings Daily Brunch to South Minneapolis

We really have a scarcity of breakfast/brunch restaurants in Minnesota. Yes, lots of places do weekend brunch, and Diane’s Place brings brunch to new heights, along with dinner now. But Benedict’s Morning Heroes is one of the few around here that only does brunch—at odds with what I see whenever I travel around the U.S. where these types of restaurants are everywhere.

Photo by Jason DeRusha

Husband and wife duo Andrew and Bailey Novak are trying to bring that vibe to a bit of a south Minneapolis restaurant no-man’s land. Andrew’s a chef who spent four years in the U.S. Air Force. East of 35W, south of the Minnehaha Parkway, north of the Crosstown, Stonegarden promises breakfast, brunch, and broth. We started hearing about restaurants with bone broth on the menu or as the focus just before COVID, but the trend never really arrived here.

So, I had to start with a small bowl of $5 broth—beef, chicken, or vegetable. We ordered the veg, and it is nourishing—that heat bringing me back to life on a chilly Monday morning. I could see popping in for a bowl of broth and an espresso if I lived in the Pearl apartment building upstairs. The ambitions here are bigger than that, though, as evidenced by the expansive size of the place. This is designed to be a destination. Full bar and a beautiful light and airy room.

The Maryland crab cake is legit—way more crab than breading, simple and delicious, vouched for by our server who said he was from Maryland and skeptical at first. You can have it alone ($22) or as a we did, in benedict form ($24), topped with a dijon-dill hollandaise and egg.

Lots of open-faced sandwiches, too, all on Patisserie 46 sourdough. We really enjoyed the gravlax ($18) brightened with a lemon-mascarpone spread and tomato, red onion, capers, and dill. House-cured salmon, traditionally and expertly done.

Stonegarden is doing occasional chef dinners, if breakfast doesn’t fit your lifestyle. There’s one on Tuesday, Jan. 14, for a six-course dinner—yes, it starts with broth, along with a risotto and a short rib course. There are just 60 tickets ($125 + 20% gratuity)—available via OpenTable.

Truth is, there’s nothing on the menu that would make you go, Holy crap, I have to drive to 54th and Chicago to try that! What you do get is a feeling: excellent service, all of the food was nicely executed and full of flavor, ideal for a work meeting, friends’ hang, or daytime date. And it’s hard not to cheer for the Novaks—genuinely nice people, with years of experience, trying to bring hospitality and a special vibe to their neighborhood (they live in the building). Andrew went to the Culinary Institute of America in Hyde Park, New York, and told me he’s excited to cook what he and his wife like to eat.