Goodfellow's Closes
Seems the theme of the summer is going to be "end of an era." Here comes another one.
I hadn't been to Goodfellow's since last year, shortly before longtime chef Kevin Cullen left. At the time it was still at the top of its game, and remained my favorite local restaurant (Stillwater's La Belle Vie may have edged it out subsequently, but I still placed Goodfellows in the very top tier of local restaurants).
But restaurants at this level are so much a reflection of their head chef. Kevin Cullen was creative and inspired. He was the heart and sould of Goodfellow's for over eleven years, and had been Sous Chef there for the previous four. It was Cullen's kitchen that made Goodfellow's special.
When I heard the news that Cullen had moved on I wondered how the restaurant could possibly replace him. And while it seems they found a suitable replacement head chef, they never did replace that heart and soul.
I'll certainly miss the place. But cheer up Minneapolis diners. La Belle Vie is moving from Stillwater into the former Minneapolis digs of the 510 Groveland Restaurant (located at... um... 510 Groveland Ave). Word on the street is that they're trying to open sometime in September.
All good things must come to an end. Even at Goodfellow's. The downtown Minneapolis haute cuisine palace closed for good on Saturday night.
I hadn't been to Goodfellow's since last year, shortly before longtime chef Kevin Cullen left. At the time it was still at the top of its game, and remained my favorite local restaurant (Stillwater's La Belle Vie may have edged it out subsequently, but I still placed Goodfellows in the very top tier of local restaurants).
But restaurants at this level are so much a reflection of their head chef. Kevin Cullen was creative and inspired. He was the heart and sould of Goodfellow's for over eleven years, and had been Sous Chef there for the previous four. It was Cullen's kitchen that made Goodfellow's special.
When I heard the news that Cullen had moved on I wondered how the restaurant could possibly replace him. And while it seems they found a suitable replacement head chef, they never did replace that heart and soul.
I'll certainly miss the place. But cheer up Minneapolis diners. La Belle Vie is moving from Stillwater into the former Minneapolis digs of the 510 Groveland Restaurant (located at... um... 510 Groveland Ave). Word on the street is that they're trying to open sometime in September.
Posted by Doug on
Tuesday August 9, 2005 at 11:12am
I was never a big Goodfellows fan, mostly because I thought that the service was, as a general rule, awful.