Savor the Success of a Smart Real Estate Decision

Join the Hillcrest Development team as they take you on a Northeast Minneapolis Tenant Tasting Tour

In commercial real estate, location has always mattered. Increasingly, however, so does lunch.

Today’s tenants are looking for more than square footage and parking ratios. They want neighborhoods with energy. Walkability. Personality. A place where teams can grab an exceptional coffee before a meeting, connect over lunch or unwind after work without leaving the district. Restaurants, cafés and hospitality concepts have become essential ingredients in creating vibrant commercial environments: the kinds of places where employees want to spend time and businesses want to grow.

For Hillcrest Development LLLP, a third-generation commercial real estate company that has spent more than 75 years redeveloping and managing distinctive properties throughout Minneapolis, cultivating those environments is part of the strategy. Many of Hillcrest’s Northeast Minneapolis properties are home to independent food and beverage operators that do far more than feed people. They drive foot traffic, create neighborhood identity, encourage collaboration among nearby businesses and keep streets active long after office lights dim.

To understand how food culture shapes workplace culture, the Hillcrest team set out on a tasting tour through some of their favorite tenant destinations across Northeast Minneapolis.

The morning begins at Honor Coffee & Raw Juice, where Natalie orders her go-to: a Dirty Chai Latte, chai layered with a shot of espresso. “I’m a horrible coffee addict,” she says laughing, “so the chai is a reprieve, but the espresso gives it a kick.” The drink arrives silky and aromatic with what Natalie insists is Honor’s signature move: the perfect amount of cinnamon dusted across the top.

But the real showstopper is the Toucan Bowl. Built on a fresh acai base and topped with banana, strawberries, raspberries, blueberries, kiwi, mango, granola, coconut and vivid blue spirulina honey, it lands somewhere between breakfast and edible artwork. The blue spirulina honey adds antioxidant and anti-inflammatory benefits along with an electric pop of color that feels made for social media. “The acai bowl is so fresh,” Natalie says between bites.

Inside Honor, the espresso machine hums constantly while regulars drift between quick meetings and lingering conversations. It’s exactly the kind of third space modern office districts crave: equal parts café, workspace and neighborhood connector.

Just down the street, Joe Klein, one of Hillcrest’s leasing and development managers, gravitates toward the deeply comforting flavors of Zakia Deli. Joe grew up on a southern Minnesota farm where nearly everything his family ate was grown or raised themselves, and his approach to food remains refreshingly straightforward: fresh ingredients, no shortcuts.

So when Zakia Deli considered opening near Hillcrest’s corporate office, Joe immediately understood the appeal. “Of course I’m going to pick a Lebanese deli,” he says. “I’ve always loved this type of food.”

His regular order includes large containers of Zakia’s chickpea and eggplant salads; staples he keeps on hand throughout the workweek. Today, though, he settles into a table with a gyro, hummus and his favorite salads spread across the table. Every dish tastes vibrant and intentional: bright lemon, earthy olive oil, warm spice, fresh herbs. Joe appreciates that the recipes come directly from owner Zakia’s family kitchen, giving the deli a deeply personal identity that customers connect with immediately.

That authenticity matters in commercial districts. Independent restaurants with character (and taste!) create repeat visitors, neighborhood loyalty and the kind of destination appeal national chains rarely replicate.

At Uncle Franky’s, the mood shifts from Mediterranean comfort food to classic Chicago nostalgia. Charlie Nestor, also a leasing and development manager, arrives just before the lunch rush and is immediately greeted by owner Jay like an old friend. Before discussing food, the two catch up on Jay’s oldest child preparing to leave for college, the sort of relationship that can, if you’re lucky, naturally develop between long-term local tenants and their landlord.

Hillcrest purchased the building housing Uncle Franky’s years ago, helping preserve one of Northeast Minneapolis’ favorite neighborhood institutions. Inside, the restaurant crackles with the sounds of grill tops, fry baskets and crowded lunchtime conversation.

Charlie’s order is unapologetically classic: a kosher hot dog, occasionally a burger, and if he’s leaning indulgent, one of the restaurant’s famously thick shakes. “They are to die for,” he says.

Packed counters and full tables reinforce what successful restaurateurs and developers already know: active food destinations create momentum for entire commercial corridors. They generate steady pedestrian traffic, encourage repeat visits and help surrounding businesses benefit from the spillover energy.

If visual drama is part of the dining experience, Minnesota Nice Cream may be Northeast Minneapolis’ most photogenic stop. Arthur Gardner, Hillcrest’s construction manager, describes the shop’s sundaes with the precision of someone discussing architecture.

“They’re perfectly constructed,” he says.

Today’s selection is the BCB — Bourbon Caramel Brownie — layered with vanilla soft serve, ribbons of salted caramel and chunks of warm brownie that collapse into the ice cream. The result is rich, gooey, salty-sweet perfection. Beyond dessert, Arthur also recommends the Pesto Chicken Sandwich, proof that MN Nice Cream balances playful creativity sweetness with the right amount of savory deliciousness.

The shop’s colorful branding and highly shareable presentation have made it a destination well beyond the neighborhood itself, drawing customers who often continue exploring nearby businesses afterward. For mixed-use commercial districts, that kind of crossover traffic is invaluable.

The tour wraps at Minneapolis Cider Company, where Danny Gollin settles into the airy taproom with a Blueberry Borealis Hard Cider and a Bacon and Brie Crepe. Around him, pickleball games are already underway while groups gather around long communal tables.

“The blueberry perfectly complements the crepe,” Danny says. “I’ve never actually had a crepe before. It’s really good.”

Minneapolis Cider Company has evolved into far more than a production facility or taproom. It functions as an entertainment venue, social club, event center and neighborhood anchor all at once. Since opening at Hillcrest’s 9th Street Center more than five years ago, the business has nearly doubled in size to support continued growth and expanded programming.

For commercial real estate developers, concepts like this represent the future of successful mixed-use districts: hospitality-driven destinations that keep people engaged in a neighborhood throughout the day and well into the evening.

As workplace expectations continue evolving, Hillcrest sees food, beverage and hospitality operators not simply as tenants, but as ecosystem builders. They create the moments people remember about a neighborhood: the morning coffee ritual, the lunch spot everyone recommends, the Friday cider gathering after work.

And increasingly, those experiences are becoming just as valuable as the office itself.