Hopkins Food Scene: Part Two

The Heavy Table Churn newsletter for November 29, 2024

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This edition of the Churn was written by Amy Rea.

Our second round in Hopkins focused on two types of food and drink businesses: Coffee shops and bar-and-grill spots. Spoiler alert: Hopkins is doing well on both fronts.

But first: Wondering about Daisy the dog, the impetus for this whole series? Don't worry. She's involved later in this story.

Brenda Johnson / Heavy Table

HOPKINS FOOD SCENE, PART TWO
We kick off our visits to Hopkins with stops at Munkabeans, Mainstreet Bar & Grill, Pub 819, Wild Boar Bar & Grill, Thirty Bales, Cream and Amber
By Amy Rea, Brenda Johnson, and Clara Emma

Munkabeans | 1206 Mainstreet, Hopkins, Minn. | 952.938.9056 | MON-FRI 6:30am- 5pm, SAT-SUN 7am-5pm

Clara Emma / Heavy Table

Munkabeans is the quintessential local coffee shop, staffed with local young adults who seem happy at their jobs and enthusiastic about making coffee drinks and walls filled with art and jewelry for sale from local artists. It’s the kind of place that has steady traffic in and out with some people chatting amiably while others hunker down over their computers. 

Brenda Johnson / Heavy Table

As for beverages: The shop offers the standard espresso offerings along with some non-coffee options and seasonal specials. The special on our visit was the Nightmare on Mainstreet ($4), a concoction of cold press coffee with creme de cacao, pumpkin, and dark chocolate. One of our group thought it was too watery, but the other two liked it quite a lot, with one noting that it tasted like coffee with Bailey's Irish Creme. The pumpkin wasn't pronounced, and we were fine with that.

Brenda Johnson / Heavy Table

The Mexican Mocha ($5) with espresso, chocolate, cayenne, cinnamon, and nutmeg pleased everyone. It was rich with a not overwhelming amount of chocolate or cayenne, just enough of the latter to give a little afterburn. It was well-balanced and tasty.

The Bar-and-Grill Heart of Hopkins

Then it was time to explore the bar-and-grill portion of our Hopkins adventure. There are four in close proximity. Of those, there are two distinct approaches to the bar-and-grill world. Which you would prefer depends on if you like your bar-and-grill to be a dive or more upscale. To try and compare apples to apples, we decided that a bar-and-grill should be able to serve good bar food: Namely, appetizers and burgers. At each spot, we asked our servers to recommend each. Interestingly, we expected at least one or two to point to their chicken wings as the go-to appetizer, but none of them did.

Mainstreet Bar & Grill | 814 Mainstreet, Hopkins, Minn. | 952.938.2400 | SUN-THU 11am-10pm, FRI-SAT 11am-11pm (Bar open two hours later)

Clara Emma / Heavy Table

Mainstreet Bar & Grill opened in 1988 and appears to thrive via its burger-and-beer casual approach. On our visit, one room was closed for a raucous college football-watching group. The other rooms quickly filled with all ages from parents with toddlers to a group of seniors celebrating a birthday with a jolly number of F bombs dropped during the conversation.

Brenda Johnson / Heavy Table

Our server recommended the Reuben Eggrolls ($14) and the Blackjack Burger ($15). The menu noted that the Reuben Eggrolls were made with slow-cooked corned beef, and the filling was hearty, salty, and very tender with a good amount of gooey Swiss. One of our group wished for more sauerkraut.

Brenda Johnson / Heavy Table

But we all agreed that we liked the concept more than we expected to. The eggroll wrapper made this easy to eat (as in, someone should do this at the State Fair, as it would be very walkable), and the wrapper was crispy but solid enough to handle the packed filling.

Clara Emma / Heavy Table

The Blackjack Burger came nice and pink, just as we ordered it. It was generously spiced with Cajun seasoning, which combined with the pepper jack cheese to deliver a hearty kick. The bacon slices were generously sized and nicely fried. The brioche bun was up to the task of holding the burger while still having a feeling of softness to it. The fries (lots and lots of them) were nicely done, crispy outside, pillowy inside. Altogether a good meal that set a high bar for the rest to come.

Pub 819 | 819 Mainstreet, Hopkins, Minn. | 952.933.1230 | MON-THU 11am-10:30pm, FRI 11am-Midnight, SAT 10am-Midnight, SUN 10am-10:30pm

Clara Emma / Heavy Table

We covered the more upscale Pub 819 when it first opened nearly 10 years ago and noted that the food hadn't reached its potential. Yet here it still was, ten years later, and a survivor of a pandemic to boot. Did that mean the food execution had improved?

Yes. Significantly so. Which was even more impressive because our visit coincided with the annual Hopkins Halloween extravaganza, in which several blocks of Mainstreet were closed to traffic while hundreds of people strolled up and down in costume, trick-or-treating with the kids. At lunchtime, they fairly mobbed Pub 819. Yet our food was good, delivered hot, and our server seemed calm and under control, not to mention friendly.