Mostly I write about music but the connection to Wrestaurant at The Palace and music is close enough. The new (upcoming!) restaurant is next door to The Palace on West Seventh Place in downtown St Paul, in the space previously held by Wild Tymes. The Palace, which is co-operated by First Avenue and Jam Productions, has partnered with Wrecktangle Pizza. The restaurant is set to open August 30 with a grand opening party on September 9.
I got a sneak peek at the Wrestaurant experience earlier this week as the grateful guest on a soft opening industry night. The menu is a collection of shareables and personal meals. (I say personable, but also easily shareable.) It’s “going out” food for sure, but there are options for when you want to soak up the beer or – leave room for beer.
Pizza is a staple. It looks like deep dish, from a rectangle pan, several inches high and sliced into 6 good-sized pieces. Whether it is deep dish really depends on your definition. It’s more crust than cheese, which I like. The edges are best but that’s true with all pizza. There is a highlighted vegan option. (After two weeks traveling with a kid, I look more at these things.) And it looks like there are vegan and gluten-free substitutions for all pizzas.
They have solid sandwiches too. Firsthand, I saw the Dino Chicken Nugget Sandwich. Chicken nuggets in the shape of dinosaurs stuffed into a sandwich. Something for everyone’s kid heart. The curly fries were awesome.
My favorites were the appetizers/sharing plates especially the Shrimp Tostada and Trout. These were a little lighter than the bigger options and super tasty. I knew I’d like the trout and I was with someone who really liked the greens; so, like Jack Sprat and his wife, we were perfect diners. The shrimp tostada surprised me. I wasn’t sure about shrimp mousse, but it’s pretty set with enough texture feel as tasty as it is.
The drinks look fancy; people said they were good, and this was a crowd that knows. The beer options are well rounded; I think I saw Busch Light on tap. But they had IPAs too, so I was happy.
The service was above and beyond, especially for a night that could have been hectic, not only because it’s a first night, but because everyone in the place had a friend at another table and there were a lot of moving pieces. The servers knew the food. They were very friendly. They were attentive without being creepy. We lingered a bit and instead of the stink eye we got a free ice cream sandwich to share. (Not that I’m encouraging folks to linger.)
Prices were $15-25 per item. If you’re very hungry that will get you a pizza. It’s you’re fussy like me, that’ll get you a shrimp tostada and maybe a beer. If you’re looking for a hang before or after the show, that will get you pizza for 6 while you sip your cocktails. Something for everyone.
Mostly Minnesota 