Stay in the Loop

But there among your Grenadas and Montenegros, nestled between a coastal Scottish town and an until-recently near-unreachable South American mountain region, there’s one humble American city slotted at No. 4 in the world.

That’s right: thanks to our 2017 James Beard Award finalists — all 13 of them, thank you very much — Minneapolis makes the list.

The WSJ specifically name-drops Spoon & Stable chef-owner Gavin Kaysen, along with Rabbit Hole’s Thomas Kim. Erik Anderson, who reopened Grand Cafe with Jamie Malone earlier this year, gets a nod as well. (The story appears to have called it “Grande Cafe.” Still, it was while complimenting us!)

Another reason the paper says to visit Minneapolis in 2018? Well, you, uh, you may have heard, but the Super Bowl is coming to town. Plus… Prince?

Here’s the full WSJ item about the City of Lakes:

“The twin city that gave the world Prince and Bob Dylan –and will host the Super Bowl on Sunday, Feb. 4–is now luring curious foodies. In 2017, Minneapolis claimed 13 James Beard Award semifinalists. When Gavin Kaysen, chef/owner of the wildly popular Spoon &Stable (in a converted 1906 barn) opened his modern bistro Bellecour last spring, he booked 1,000 reservations in the first 24 hours. Other notable names to drop: Thomas Kim, who left Los Angeles to establish the Rabbit Hole (eatdrinkrabbit.com ), and Erik Anderson, who sharpened his knives at the Catbird Seat in Nashville and took over Minneapolis’s Grande Cafe earlier this year (grandcafemn.com ).”

And here’s the full list of destination-worthy cities, just in case you are, yourself, an adventurous sophisticate or deep-pocketed beach bum:

1. Faeroe Islands
2. Puebla, Mexico
3. Kuelap, Peru
4. Minneapolis, Minnesota
5. Dundee, Scotland
6. Grenada
7. Madagascar
8. Montenegro
9. Shanghai
10. La Rioja, Spain