The New York Time’s annual search for America’s best restaurants has concluded, revealing the 2024 list featuring 50 incredible spots—and Vinai made the list for Minnesota. Here’s our review of Yia Vang’s latest venture.
Photo by Kevin Kramer
What’s Up
After four years of developing and ironing out every last detail, Minneapolis chef Yia Vang finally opened the doors of Vinai (pronounced VEE-nye) in late July—and people are excited to get an even bigger bite of Vang’s traditional Hmong flavors and dishes. Vang is also the face behind Union Hmong Kitchen—which has locations on Lake Street and in the North Loop, plus an ever-growing presence at the Minnesota State Fair—where the food tells a unique story of history and culture. Vinai is similarly poised to promote food as a storytelling vessel, with an emphasis on gathering people together and a menu that feels like home.
Side Dish
The menu at Vinai seamlessly blends bold, Hmong flavors and spices with modern presentation and culinary innovation. The Dried Beef appetizer is a play on a snack Vang grew up eating: seasoned, crumbled beef jerky served alongside purple sticky rice. “Use your hands and just dip a bit of the rice right into the jerky,” Vang suggests. The grass-fed, medium-rare New York strip steak easily serves 2-3 and is seared to perfection and drizzled with a vibrant chili oil. Traditional jasmine rice provides a fluffy foundation, while the Crabby Fried Rice tantalizes the taste buds with unctuous blue crab, garlic, and crab fat. Vang says “the crab fat makes all the difference”—he’s not wrong. Homemade sauces like the smoky-sweet Happy Tiger and the citrusy, herbaceous Kia Txob add depth and complexity to every bite (and complement everything on the plate, especially the steak). Other menu highlights include a garlic cream cheese and crab Curry Rice Ball, Charred Cabbage, Grilled Fish, and Braised Beef Rib served in a hot pot.
Photo by Kevin Kramer
Where It’s At
Bringing Hmong cooking to the forefront begs the question, “How do we keep moving forward to preserve this legacy?” Vang asks. “And when I say legacy, I’m really talking about mom and dad.” Vang says Vinai is a love letter to his parents—in fact, he says he wrote a literal letter and gave it to his architect and designer to extract ideas for the space (which occupies the now-closed Dangerous Man Brewing). Pointing to the V-shape ceiling trestles, he says, “It’s in the shape of the roof of the old refugee homes that we lived in, a Thai refugee camp called Ban Vinai.” This is where his parents met and where Vang was born. Vang’s father taught him to grill on a cinderblock, so, naturally, cinderblock benches line the restaurant, covered with beautiful cedar countertops—another homage to his dad’s job as a carpenter when the family first came to the United States. And the greenery throughout the space represents his mom’s green thumb. “We wanted to create a place where we can gather people in,” Vang says. “We want Vinai to be a place of restoration and a community builder.”
Vinai, 1300 NE Second St., Minneapolis
