FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
July 23, 2015

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Minneapolis-St. Paul Nominated for Best Local Food Scene by 10Best/USA Today
Twin Cities battling 19 other destinations for the top spot

SAINT PAUL, Minn. Minneapolis-St. Paul is one of 20 finalists in the Best Local Food Scene category by 10Best and USA Today.

The Twin Cities continue to cultivate its local food scene with new restaurants and James Beard nominated chefs as well as a flourishing ethnic food scene.

In St. Paul, new restaurants Ox Cart Ale House, Saint Dinette and Big River Pizza have come online in the last month. James Beard nominated chefs Lenny Russo at Heartland and Russel Klein at Meritage continue to entertain patrons with their culinary creativity. The ethnic food scene, especially along University Avenue, Robert Street, in West Saint Paul and at Hmongtown Marketplace continues to flourish.

The local food scene in Minneapolis-St. Paul is so much more than just restaurants, said Lenny Russo, Owner of Heartland. Its our coops, farmers markets, artisan cheese makers, artisan breweries as well as crop research at the U of MN and the State Fair.

In Minneapolis, new restaurants also have entered the scene, including James Beard Foundation Best New Restaurant award-nominated Spoon & Stable, Monello and Brasserie Zentral. These and many more join top restaurants like Saffron, Vincent A Restaurant and 112 Eatery as well as fun, long-time favorites like Brits Pub, Matts Bar and Psycho Suzis in a well-rounded and vibrant culinary city. James Beard winners extend on the other side of the river with chefs Gavin Kaysen, Alex Roberts, Tim McKee and Isaac Becker cooking in Minneapolis.

The tourism bureaus plan to encourage their partner restaurants to get the word out to vote. Public voting extends until Monday, Aug. 17 at noon at www.visitsaintpaul.com or http://www.10best.com/awards/travel/best-local-food-scene/. Fans of Minneapolis-St. Paul can vote once per day and are encouraged to share on social media.

St. Paul claimed 10Best/USA Todays Most Romantic Getaway in North America in 2014.

About Visit Saint Paul:

Visit Saint Paul, formerly the Saint Paul Convention & Visitors Authority, was founded in 1927 as the Saint Paul Convention and Visitors Bureau, making it one of the oldest destination marketing organizations in the United States. The mission of the organization is to generate economic growth for Saint Paul by effectively marketing the RiverCentre campus, Saint Paul and the region as a preferred convention and tourism destination. Visit Saint Paul oversees management of the Saint Paul RiverCentre Convention Center and Legendary Roy Wilkins Auditorium.

About Meet Minneapolis:

Meet Minneapolis is a private, not-for-profit, member-based association. It actively promotes and sells the Minneapolis area as a destination for conventions and meetings, works to maximize the visitor experience and markets the city as a desirable tourist destination to maximize the economic benefit of the greater Minneapolis area.

Meet Minneapolis is accredited by the Destination Marketing Accreditation Program (DMAP) of the Destination Marketing Association International.