Food and Drink

Shopping for Halloween candy this weekend? Stock up or risk being judged as a stingy ghoul by your neighbors.

Driving the news: Nearly half of the 400-plus readers who responded to our Halloween survey give out three or more pieces of candy to each trick-or-treater who arrives at their door.

• That includes 9% who say they give kids as many fun-size treats as they want!
• 43% of you, meanwhile, stick with two per kid. And just over 8% said each visitor gets just one.

After 18 months as a pop-up restaurant around the Twin Cities, chef Yia Vang's Union Hmong Kitchen has found a home at North Loop food hall Graze.

• The new location will open Oct. 29.

The former Pepito's restaurant next to Parkway Theater in South Minneapolis will become a Wisconsin-style supper club.

Driving the news: Ward Johnson and Eddie Landenberger — who own both the restaurant building and the theater at 48th and Chicago — are in the process of renovating the restaurant, which briefly was home to El Burrito Mercado after Pepito’s closed.

• Their third partner on the project is Wisconsin native Eli Wollenzien, a supper club fan who's also the owner/chef of Red Sauce Rebellion and Coalition in Excelsior. (Coalition also has a spot at 50th and France.)

I recently stopped by Slice, a Black-owned pizzeria that just opened in Northeast Minneapolis.

• The small takeout and delivery spot serves New York-style pizza by the slice or pie.

My husband recently came home with a four-pack of Modist Brewing's new Forbidden Islands New England IPA and she found herself mesmerized by the can's label.

• Fog rises from islands dotting a turquoise sea, as an orca jumps from the water. A backpacked adventurer takes in the scene from atop a ridge of — wait — are those land masses made of ... fried chicken?

After I stopped giggling, I called Modist to learn the backstory of the IPA's trompe-l'œil.

The Dari-ette Drive-in has closed for good after 70 years in business in St. Paul.

• The East Side staple served burgers, shakes and other typical drive-in fare along with Italian classics such as spaghetti and meatballs.

I stopped by Sawatdee in downtown Minneapolis to meet DeeDee, Minnesota's first robot server.

How it works: A human server first took my order, and I asked for DeeDee to deliver the food to the table.

• The robot was quick and quiet. The Thai restaurant was nearly empty during lunchtime, and even then, it took me a second to notice DeeDee rounding the corner.
• Once the food was delivered, DeeDee told me to enjoy my meal!

Popular fast-casual salad chain Sweetgreen is plotting a Twin Cities expansion.

Driving the news: The Southern California-based chain registered to do business in Minnesota last month and has begun a site search in the metro, according to Axios sources.

• Sweetgreen declined to comment.

Why it matters: Sweetgreen has a cult following on the coasts and in Chicago, and it's expected to generate big excitement in town.

• But it'll also create a local salad battle, as Sweetgreen is entering the home turf of both Green + The Grain and Crisp & Green.