Foodservice News presents the upper Midwest foodservice industry the tapas (small bites) of its community.

In every issue you'll find the expected—new openings, human resources and training articles, profiles on movers and shakers and advice on how to run your business better, but you'll also discover a pinch of lagniappe—a Cajun culinary term for an unexpected something extra.

The Anniversary Issue

Any business can burst on the scene and make a successful run for a while, but it takes loyalty and innovation to last when the buzz dies down. In foodservice, from the fine-dining restaurant to the corner bar and grill, consistent quality—from the ambiance to the menu—is critical. And a bit of luck, of course.

But there is something to be said for creating your own luck, which the restaurants FSN is featuring in this issue have done. Years—or decades—in business isn’t just luck.

Take the 5-8 Club, for example, which is currently celebrating 80 years. Then there’s Yarusso-Bros. in St. Paul celebrating 75 years. And who can forget Jax Café in Minneapolis at 75 (featured in the April 2008 issue of FSN), Mancini’s in St. Paul celebrating 60 years, and Val’s Rapid Serv in St. Cloud at 50. And those latter four are still in the original family’s hands. On the youthful end of the spectrum is Rice Paper, celebrating five years of success in the Linden Hills neighborhood of Minneapolis (see the Chef’s Dish story below), and Pittsburgh Blue, capping a great first year in Maple Grove.

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Our readership includes 20,000 foodservice professionals in Minnesota, Northern Iowa, Western Wisconsin and the Eastern Dakotas. We are the definitive source for information in the Upper Midwest for restaurant owners and chefs.

We focus our lens on the issues, the politics and the people who make up the foodservice community, from restaurant owners and managers to chefs and waitstaff to institutional food program managers to suppliers and vendors.

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