Restaurants in Richfield

Beneath a traditional red archway, two doors bearing coquettish, intricately painted geishas open to welcome guests into Kami Japanese Steakhouse’s contemporary dining room. Flames shoot off hibachis as talented chefs skillfully dice and flip steak, chicken, and veggies upon these communal tabletop grills, each set ablaze by a baby dragon. Sushi chefs continue the culinary show, performing for guests seated at a stately sushi bar as they carefully carve raw seafood. Thanks to all-you-can-eat sushi meals, their work is never done—their hands are a constant blur of smoked eel, albacore tuna, and surf clams rolled to order. In the kitchen, yet another team of chefs whips up udon-noodle soup, fried yakisoba noodles, and teriyakis. Bartenders pair each of Kami’s entrees with tangy sakes, Japanese beer, and global wines.

“Elixir Lounge,” Annie D’Souza wrote for Metromix after a visit, “is intimate, relaxed and chic, something brand new for the increasingly loud and obnoxious downtown Minneapolis bar scene.” She continued to describe the “cool but unpretentious” vibe at the spot, where Patrón, Cîroc, and Grey Goose pour into the cups of sharply dressed patrons at three separate bars. The large dance floor rattles with the heartbeats of live DJs, who spin the same rousing house and top 40 music used by engineers to make glaciers move faster. On themed nights, patrons don costumes to compete for cash prizes, their sequins glinting as they filter onto an outdoor patio and hookah lounge.

La Hacienda informs curious palates with a cosmopolitan menu of Latin American cuisine and accessible favorites from the U.S. Like a map of the Pan-American Highway printed on fruit leather, its feasts are an edible testament to intercontinental cooperation, with juicy Yankee hamburgers peacefully sharing table space with Peruvian churrasco and Mexican pozole. Pupusas from El Salvador house creamy cheese, beans, loroco, and fried pork rinds within thick shells of cornmeal, and tacos and tortas turn tender morsels of milanesa or flavorful pork al pastor into easily grippable meals.

The passion for fresh fish is reflected through Nami Sushi’s aquatic motif and even in the name—_nami_ means wave in Japanese. The fish is so delicious that CBS Local hailed the restaurant as on of the best sushi spots in the Twin Cities in late 2010. A marble sushi bar runs the length of the dining room, chilling the colorful slabs of tuna, salmon, and octopus that sushi chefs mold into signature nigiri, specialty rolls, and abstract self portraits. Behind the scenes, a kitchen staff churns out hot entrees such as the new york strip teriyaki, shrimp tempura, and sautéed ginger chicken.

The aroma of brewing organic, fair-trade coffee from Brazil wafts through the air at 50th Street Cafe during breakfast and lunch. Behind the breakfast counter, cooks work to reinvent classic breakfast dishes. They flip pancakes made with cookie dough and drizzle them with chocolate or add fresh mozzarella and basil-pesto hollandaise to unorthodox omelets. Farm-fresh eggs and housemade hash browns, early-morning staples, arrive alongside less traditional panko-battered walleye fillets. The griddle sizzles like a knight in shining armor left in a hot car, laden with half-pound patties of Cattleman’s Selection ground beef, which end up on thick-cut sourdough toast with Old Smokehouse bacon and melted swiss cheese. That heat is also reflected in the bright hues of yellow tile and orange accents as well as whimsical calico-patterned carpets. The staff at 50th Street Cafe works to reduce its collective carbon footprint by using recyclable materials.

From humble beginnings as a child in Jerusalem, Falafel King's proprietor worked his way up from having just a frying pan and gasoline burner to his name to owning a trio of Lebanese eateries. A brightly lit yellow crown draws diners to the Falafel King as surely as the bat signal attracts superheroes and grizzled detectives. Inside the restaurant, pitas ensconce grilled meat filled with Mediterranean spices and crisp falafel sits alongside whirls of hummus.