Where to Eat and Drink During the Craft Brewers Conference

The old new Corner Table has become the next version of Revival.

At one point, Kingfield's finer dining Corner Table was my favorite restaurant, kind of a clubhouse for my friend set. But when it closed in 2019, it was time, you could feel it. Since then it has sat vacant, while owners Nick Rancone and Thomas Boemer focused on other things.

Two of those things were the innovative live-fire cooking restaurant In Bloom and the wildly successful smoker-fueled meat and sandwich spot, Revival Smoked Meats—both at the Keg & Case Market. Sadly, those were closed in 2020 when the pandemic shut down the food hall. But there is new life in the company, a revival if you will, as the duo has reinvested in the Corner Table space to turn it into the next version of Revival Smoked Meats. You'll remember that the OG fried chicken Revival lives just a few blocks down the street, and that this Smoked Meats version is a different vibe: no fried chicken, mostly smoker treats. 

"Corner Table was kind of cavey. In a good way, but I think we're done with cavey," joked Rancone yesterday. "We went for light and bright." 

When you walk in, that's the first thing you notice. The booths have been given fresh upholstery, the dark brown walls have changed to a light grey, and the white chairs read more like deck furniture than fine dining. As Boemer added, "this might be the fanciest barbecue joint in town. But it's not stuffy, it's more like the guy you just saw in a three piece suit, but now he's wearing jeans and a t-shirt. Same guy, different day."

As a former fan of the old space, I have to say I like that you can still feel the bones of CT. They haven't gone and tarted it up, it's a respectful and cool update. The wallpaper game, as is their penchant, is strong. Some will remember that the old wallpaper was a custom print, with nods to a few of their favorite foragers. There are framed chunks of the old wallpaper in the bar area and bathrooms, "it tells a part of the greater story of Nick and I, it's part of the transformation and the reinvestment in this neighborhood."

One of the most obvious changes, the kitchen is now closed off. Gone are the seats around the kitchen bar where you could perch and watch the action. "Maybe for fine dining that was fun," Rancone said, "but do you really want to watch someone making a quesadilla? And closing it off keeps the dining room from being overwhelmed by smoke."

Speaking of smoke. When the original Revival Smoked Meats closed, the team pulled their massive smoker out right away. While the spot had been successful with lines forming out of the market on many days, it wasn't the ideal spot for this kind of cooking. The air pressure of the vast food hall messed with their smoker, so that when they opened the door the smoke would come rushing out into the space. To keep from smoking out the other vendors, the kitchen team had to have a fan installed that would keep the smoke in. Though, that messed with the cooking and precise heat levels needed to make luxurious meats, so they were never really happy with the rigging. That same smoker now lives in the back of the Kingfield space, where it is allowed to function as intended. "We were never able to fully evolve Revival Smoked Meats like we wanted in the old space," Boemer said, "this is where we can finally do that. Our own space."

Because of that, the menu is different than the original. Take the chickenschweiger. Boemer's dad used to eat braunschweiger all the time, but this homage starts with brisket fat and an eight-hour smoke in a pan. It basically creates a smokey rubbed beef tallow, to which smoked chicken livers are added. "We're just serving it with shaved raw onions, pickles, toast, and mayonnaise, just like my dad would eat. Just pull it out of the fridge with some crackers, the best."

The Texas Twinkies are jalapeños wrapped in bacon and stuffed with brisket cream cheese. There's also a 'dilla on the menu and many other easy eating dishes that have been boosted with small tweaks—nods to a kitchen that knows how to cook fine dining, but wants to eat a foldie at the end of shift. And again, no fried chicken, but there is a jerk seasoned grilled half chicken, which was a popular kitchen meal from longtime cohort chef Dan Zeroth. 

There's some creative Vietnamese spicing to those ribs.

But the meats are the stars, to be sure, and brisket is back. They haven't been cooking brisket, even at the Selby location of Revival. "You have to be insane to open a restaurant right now, but a kind of special insane to open a meat restaurant," Rancone noted. "We waited as long as we could, for the meat prices to level out, for the supply issues to be ironed out, but we can't really wait anymore. It's time to get back in, this is what we do."

Oh did I mention the cheddar chive biscuits are back? 

While they've been working on this space, figuring out how it's all going to flow, the team has decided on a hybrid service model, not counter service, but full service with tech. No reservations, just open seating. When you sit down, you'll snap the QR code with your phone to get into the Toast ordering system. With this system, you can keep your tab open, so that you can order refills or additional sides whenever you want without having to enter your card a bunch of times. Plus, everyone at the table can open their own tab, so that split checks are easier. Rancone believes this model might be the future, "we'll still have servers come to the table, and they'll be able to answer questions and assist with the menu, but this just gives more power to the guest to be able to run their meal how they want it. We're trying to rethink everything, how server sections are made, how to support a smaller team and the guest at the same time. We've learned a lot over the last few years."

So is this Revival Smoked Meats the future? The St. Louis Park Revival was their first entry into a suburban market, are more coming? "Who knows! This is clearly our focus right now, but whether its smoked meats or fried chicken, we'll have to see what takes off."

Revival Smoked Meats will open to the public on Saturday, May 14. The patio situation is three times what it was as Corner Table, with some 80 seats calling your name. There is beer, wine, and full liquor for the first time in this spot. I would counsel that with no reservations, you should be ready to expect a line. They'll open at 4pm on weekdays and noon on weekends.

Food and Dining editor Stephanie March writes and edits Mpls.St.Paul Magazine’s Eat + Drink section. She can also be heard Saturdays on her myTalk107.1 radio show, Weekly Dish, where she talks about the Twin Cities food scene.

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