State Capitol's Rathskeller Café to reopen for session

The Minnesota State Capitol's Rathskeller Café and the cafeteria in the neighboring Transportation Building will reopen at the start of the upcoming legislative session, the Department of Administration has confirmed to Axios.

Why it matters: The next session, which begins Jan. 3, is expected to usher in a return to more in-person activity following the pandemic.

• The droves of lawmakers, staff, lobbyists, advocates and journalists returning to the Capitol complex need somewhere to eat.

State of play: Both cafeterias shut down at the onset of the pandemic and remained closed through the 2021 session. The Rathskeller, located in the Capitol basement, reopened last March through the end of the session.

• The MnDOT cafeteria will open for a "trial period to gauge interest," Department of Administration spokesperson Curtis Yoakum tells Axios.
• He wasn't sure if the Rathskeller salad bar, which remained off the menu during last year's shortened season, will be back.