Briar Cafe March 13, 2026 1231 Washington St NE Minneapolis, MN 55413 Phone: (612) 778-4316 www.briarbar.com

The Briar Café & Cocktail Café

One of the highlights of owning and writing for ToDoTC is the need to discover new & interesting places for our readers. The Briar Café & Cocktail Café is everything and more of that task. It is a GEM in the Nordeast. Nice people making a success to their passion cooking and drinking.

If we were asked to describe The Briar Café in one word it would have to be eclectic. They have an interesting combination of food and drinks. For wine we had, one each of the two reds: a Vinho Verde from Portugal (where we are going to next year) and Rioja Alavesa from Spain also on next years cruise. The Rioja was great. We are not fans of Vinho Verdes but it was OK.

When E looked at the menu before we left for the evening said it could be interesting tonight but you’ll be OK.

We ended up ordering The Panzanella, smoked trout with croutons, vinaigrette & home made relish. The great Cucumber salad with English Cucumbers, rice wine vinegar and garlic and Zio Vecchio. We sat across from the chefs preparation area and had to ask about the Zio Vecchio club type sandwich, was because we had never seen it on a buffet but it was very good.

The Briar Café reminded me of the bar/café in the movie St Elmos Fire. Thirty people getting together in the Nordeast to discuss their weeks: work, their art and their classes.

If you are looking online for reservations, you won’t find any. Just walk in, they are serving breakfast now too. Then sit or wait for a conversation to end and you can claim a table. For parking I parked across the street in the Nordeast. Briar Cafe is located on the corner of 13th Ave NE and Washington St NE, about a mile from the huge Mcdonalds at University and Broadway. An area you can throw a stone from any street corner and find a great, SAFE place to eat or drink & park. 

Stored on the walls are old videos, books and games. If you are looking for a place for midweek game night don’t forget about Briars Café.

Our bill with two wines, a club type sandwich, a great cucumber sandwich and a with trout entrée’ was $69.04 for two of us. We saw the 20% gratuity message and both us and the chef were confused, but tip was not included, though $4 taxes were. We had a great interesting meal and wine for under $90 total. Exactly what we hope for for our readers.

Contact us Dennis@ToDoTC.com