City: St. Paul, MN

Category: Restaurants

Telephone: (651) 698-6889

Address: 2060 Randolph Ave.

Description: Luci Ancora has been influenced by the trend toward minimalist preparation and organic ingredients. The menu is brief, but all dishes are well executed. Each evening a four-course prezzo fiso (fixed price) meal is offered, which includes antipasto, soup or salad, pasta, and fish. In addition, wine and delicious desserts are offered. Call ahead for reservations. Luci Ancora is open for lunch and dinner Tuesday through Friday and for dinner only on Saturday, Sunday, and Monday.

City: St. Paul, MN

Category: Restaurants

Telephone: (651) 224-3350

Address: 619 Selby Ave.

Description: Paisano’s deep-dish pizza is sold by the slice as well as in large, medium, and “solo” sizes. There are several specialty pizzas to choose from, and diners can also choose any of the 24 offered ingredients to build a pizza to their liking. In addition, there are eight varieties of cold and hot hoagies. For the health conscious, house, classic Caesar, and Mediterranean salads are available. Paisano’s is open seven days a week for lunch and dinner.

City: St. Paul, MN

Category: Restaurants

Telephone: (651) 223-7000

Address: 360 St. Peter St.

Description: Pazzaluna serves upscale regional Italian cuisine in downtown St. Paul. Specialties of the house include risotto alla Milanese, gnocchi (the house specialty), and filleto di manzo al pepe. A full bar features many Italian wines and several varieties of grappa, as well as single-malt scotches and numerous cordials. Reservations are recommended, and valet parking is available for bar and restaurant patrons. Pazzaluna is open for dinner nightly.

City: St. Paul, MN

Category: Restaurants

Address: 704 Cleveland Ave. South

City: St. Paul, MN

Category: Restaurants

Telephone: (651) 227-1437

Address: 421 East Seventh St.

Description: The original Red’s Savoy Pizza, just east of downtown St. Paul, became a subject of snickering in 2006 when then-U.S.-Senator Norm Coleman’s 81-year-old father was caught in flagrante with a female “friend” in a car in its parking lot. But long before then, Red’s was well known in St. Paul for its delicious pizzas heaped with what feels like about a pound of ingredients per square inch. There are now several other locations—including a new Minneapolis shop in Uptown, replacing the dilapidated yet beloved Golooney’s—but the nature of the pie varies much more among locations than is the case with other pizza chains, so the new spots are truly no substitute for the original. Red’s is open daily for lunch and dinner.

City: St. Paul, MN

Category: Restaurants

Telephone: (651) 699-8258

Address: 470 Cleveland Ave. South

Description: Ristorante Luci serves spectacular classical Italian cuisine in a modestly decorated location. The restaurant is owned by the Smith family, Al and Lucille, who also own Luci Ancora, kitty-corner across Cleveland and Randolph from Ristorante Luci. Ristorante Luci specializes in pastas and seafood, which are prepared to perfection. This is one of the reasons the neighborhood restaurant is a perennial favorite. Another is the wine list and the excellent desserts. Reservations are recommended for dinner, especially on weekends. Ristorante Luci is open for dinner Tuesday through Saturday.

City: St. Paul, MN

Category: Restaurants

Telephone: (651) 224-0185

Address: 350 St. Peter St.

Description: Sakura’s menu is divided into tempura, teriyaki, donburi, noodles, salads, and of course, sushi. Sushi is the most important menu item—although there are many other standouts. The sushi bar is prominently placed at the center of a large open room. With more than 30 types of fresh sushi, connoisseurs have plenty of choices. The sushi bar offers California rolls, salmon egg, shrimp, crab, albacore tuna, scallop, sea eel, and many additional options; all are beautifully presented. The restaurant has a relaxed atmosphere and a friendly waitstaff. Reservations are recommended for dinner. Sakura is open daily for both lunch and dinner.

City: St. Paul, MN

Category: Restaurants

Telephone: (651) 209-6527

Address: 308 Prince St.

Description: There are numerous Vietnamese noodle shops in the Twin Cities but few Japanese restaurants specializing in the fine delicacy. The act of making noodles is elevated to an art at Tanpopo. The menu changes seasonally, and the restaurant concentrates on a concise, inexpensive, well-executed menu for lunch and dinner composed of various udon (wheat flour noodles) and soba (buckwheat flour noodles) as well as teishoku (set meals). The Nabeyaki Udon is one superb selection, which includes shrimp tempura, chicken, mushrooms, vegetables, and fish cake. The noodle shop is a beautiful renovated warehouse space in St. Paul’s lower arts district. Tanpopo is open for lunch Tuesday through Saturday and dinner Monday through Saturday.

City: St. Paul, MN

Category: Restaurants

Telephone: (651) 647-9004

Address: 761 Snelling Ave. North

Description: Mirror of Korea’s large menu belies the humbly decorated restaurant. Soups, stir-fries, and stews fill out the menu. One excellent dish is the chop chae, a traditional Korean dish of beef, vegetables, and rice noodles. There are also more exotic dishes, like the yook hwae (raw beef). The restaurant also offers Korean lunch specials. Mirror of Korea is open for lunch and dinner daily, except on Tuesday when the restaurant is closed.

City: St. Paul, MN

Category: Restaurants

Telephone: (651) 645-0006

Address: 694 Snelling Ave. North

Description: Shilla Korean Restaurant is much larger than its neighbor, Mirror of Korea, just up the street, but both share many of the same menu items. The restaurant is a combination of ’70s decor accented with Korean motifs and serves as the meeting place for many activities in the local Korean community. The menu is extensive. A few standout dishes are bi bim bop (vegetable salad with a boiled egg) and man do (pork and vegetable dumplings). Takeout is also available. Shilla is open Tuesday through Sunday for lunch and dinner and does not accept reservations.

City: St. Paul, MN

Category: Restaurants

Telephone: (651) 644-2068

Address: 684 Snelling Ave. North

Description: In an area with two additional Korean restaurants within walking distance, this restaurant is certainly the most authentic and arguably the best. The Sole Cafe is a friendly mom-and-pop operation. Unlike those of its neighboring Korean restaurants, the menu is not extensive. It is, however, remarkably well executed. The menu includes traditional Korean favorites, such as bulgogi (the spicy Korean version of barbecue), kim chi soup, and chop chae (beef, vegetables, and noodles), as well as less familiar items for American diners. Soups and seafood are also prominent menu items. Sole Cafe is closed Wednesday but open Thursday through Tuesday for lunch and dinner.

City: St. Paul, MN

Category: Restaurants

Telephone: (651) 602-9964

Address: 544 St. Peter St.

Description: Babani’s Kurdish is the first restaurant of its kind in the United States. The beautiful building on the outskirts of downtown St. Paul is decorated with Kurdish designs on rugs, pictures, and green curtains. The restaurant provides an excellent opportunity to learn about Kurdish culture and cuisine. The servers are attentive and eager to answer questions regarding Kurdish food, which includes heavy influences of Middle Eastern, Indian, and Mediterranean cuisine. Chicken tawa, a sautéed chicken in lemon with vegetables over rice, is an excellent choice. The biryani (rice with almonds, raisins, vegetables, and spices) is also excellent and quite similar to the Indian dish of the same name. Babani’s serves lunch Monday through Friday and is open for dinner seven days a week.

City: St. Paul, MN

Category: Restaurants

Telephone: (651) 290-0218

Address: 637 Smith Ave. South

Description: The Capitol View is not a “Mexican restaurant” per se, but it’s run by Mexican-Americans and its diner fare has a novel south-of-the-border twist. Named for the view of the State Capitol that can be had by stepping out onto Smith Avenue and looking down its precipitous incline, this spacious and friendly restaurant is a neighborhood favorite. Top pick on a menu of generous length and generous portions: the Cajun Benedict, featuring andouille sausage.

City: St. Paul, MN

Category: Restaurants

Telephone: (651) 227-2192

Address: 175 Cesar Chavez St.

Description: St. Paul’s District del Sol neighborhood on the city’s West Side is a historically diverse area and one of the first Latino settlements in the Twin Cities. In this enclave there is a large Mexican grocery, a bakery, and the cafeteria-style restaurant, El Cafe in El Burrito Mercado. Tucked in the back of the complex, El Cafe does astounding business by serving excellent Mexican food at reasonable prices. Get in line and make a selection from the menu, which features tortas, quesadillas, tamales, tacos, and burritos. After a shorter wait than at many fast-food restaurants, take a seat and enjoy a fine Mexican meal. El Cafe also serves breakfast, and don’t forget to visit the bakery and grocery.

City: St. Paul, MN

Category: Restaurants

Telephone: (651) 221-9682

Address: 36 South Dale St.

Description: One of the first Mexican restaurants in St. Paul, and the only Mexican restaurant in its tony Summit Hill neighborhood, the family-run La Cucaracha is a beloved St. Paul institution—but also one that’s beloved more as an institution than for its cuisine, which does not compare favorably to that at many of its newer competitors. Still, a stop at La Cucaracha at some point is a St. Paul must.