Local Love: The Rabbit Hole's Partnerships with Minnesota Breweries and Farms

Ever notice how, whenever someone or something remotely related to Minnesota does something cool, everyone here says something to the effect of "Did you know they're a Minnesotan?" Bob Dylan, Prince, Ric Flair, Post-It Notes — the list is practically endless. 

Minnesotans like Minnesota stuff. So we like it when the breweries and restaurants Minneapolis is home to partner with other vendors and suppliers from our beloved North Star State. Getting beer and ingredients from local breweries and farms helps solidify a communal bond between an establishment and its community.

And community is what The Rabbit Hole is all about. Beyond serving as the North Loop's best sports bar, you can stop in for trivia, bingo, DJ sets, karaoke, or just hang out and rip some pull tabs with friends. No matter what you're into, The Rabbit Hole is a place where you can be with your people.

So let's break down how a community focused approach to the menu helps make a perfect community spot for a night out.

Why Supporting Local Matters to Us

There are a lot of fellow North Loop bars that partner with local brands. For each of us, those partnerships are integral to our identity for different reasons. Here are the biggest reasons The Rabbit Hole loves our local partners:

Local Ingredients and Drinks Tell a Better Story

Ask anyone who is obsessed with foods like Maine lobster or Wagyu beef, ingredients from specific areas can stand out. That isn't just true for big-ticket items. It's true of everything from walleye to butter.

The local farms in Minnesota are full of produce and incredible food. And that quality translates best when those ingredients come straight from the farm to your table. It lets us put a specific spin on our dishes and lets you have a completely unique dining experience.

And that's also true when your food is paired with custom cocktails or beer from Minnesota breweries that only had to travel a few miles to get to you. You can't get the drink pairings available at The Rabbit Hole anywhere but Minnesota, and that matters.

Keeping More Support in the Minnesota Community

The great thing about North Loop restaurants like The Rabbit Hole using local ingredients is that it creates a circuit of success for everyone involved. The farmers get paid for their crops, local distributors and delivery companies get paid to bring everything to its destination, the restaurants create unique experiences which drive the demand that started the whole loop.

Local Flavor Fits the North Loop Experience

The North Loop has earned a reputation for having great restaurants and bars throughout the neighborhood. But a lot of those places are on the fancier end of the spectrum. The Rabbit Hole, as the best Minneapolis sports bar in the whole neighborhood, is able to use local ingredients and flavors to provide an experience that is the perfect blend of upscale and relaxed.

People can come to The Rabbit Hole for a special occasion or show up to hang out and make friends over trivia, karaoke, pull tabs, live performance or anything else. And if you want a private watch party or just to enjoy the best locally sourced game-day menu in the city, we have you covered.

Meet the Breweries and Farms Behind our Ingredients

We've talked a lot about using local ingredients and serving local beers, but which farms and breweries do we use the most? 

Minnesota Breweries on the Menu

The local beer Minneapolis is increasingly known for is all over our drinks menu. Some of the most well-known and popular beers we have for our patrons are Surly Furious, Summit EPA, and Fulton Lonely Blonde.

But no one who loves Minnesota craft beer would stop there. We are bringing new beers and beverages to the table all the time. And for the hard cider lovers, we got extra Minnesotan with Loon Juice's Honeycrisp — a cider made from an apple that was created at the U of M in St. Paul.

The Farms that are Key to our Ingredients

Farm to table Minneapolis restaurants are always good to see because you know you'll be getting the freshest flavors, no matter the season. People don't often think of sports bars as restaurants that prioritize freshness, but The Rabbit Hole is dedicated to giving every patron the best, most delicious, and most Minnesotan dining experience possible.

Some of the local ingredients Minneapolis natives recognize and flock to are cheeses from Bongards Creamery. We use Bongards cheese to top off our smash burgers to give them that perfect finish.

That's not the only local cheese we use. The cheese sauce we serve with our Jumbo Salted Pretzel is made with St. Paul's own Summit beer. Our Minneapolis bar food is local from the entrees to the condiments!

And that's because, in addition to Bongards Creamery, we source ingredients from local producers like Urban Ventures Farm, Four Sisters Urban Farm, and Waldoch Farm. Partnering with these organizations helps us serve great food while building up the local economy at every level.

Try Some Food and Drink Pairings with a Minnesota Flair

With local ingredients and locally sourced beverages, you can make some incredible craft beer and food pairings. The Rabbit Hole specializes in elevated, classic bar food. When you pair our top-tier menu with our drink list, you can give your tastebuds a treat that is at once familiar and unique. Here are just some of the great pairings we recommend:

• Surly Furious + Smoked Chicken Wings
• Fulton Lonely Blonde + House-Made Chicken Tenders
• Summit EPA + Jumbo Salted Pretzel (with Summit beer-cheese sauce)
• Loon Juice Honeycrisp + Nashville Hot Chicken Sandwich

After you have tried out our beers, try mixing and matching flavors with our wine list and our custom cocktail selection. The flavor combinations are practically endless! If you aren't sure what will pair well, just ask the friendly staff. We love helping our customers find the best combos.

Keep an Eye Out for Seasonal Specials

As you come in throughout the year, you will probably notice the seasonal specials. That's a natural result of sourcing ingredients from local farms — different foods are available fresh at different times. When you support local Minneapolis businesses that support Minnesota agriculture, you get the added bonus of seasonal variety.

Some seasonal specials to keep an eye out for include:

• Summer Patio Cocktails
• Fall Cider Pairings
• Winter Comfort Foods
• March Madness and Vikings Watch Party Specials
• Limited Time, Farm-Inspired Apps
• 
  

Show Some Local Love at The Rabbit Hole

If you want a cookie-cutter experience where everything is the same every time, there are plenty of fast food joints out there that can help you. But the great thing offered by the breweries and restaurants Minneapolis provides is an experience you can't get anywhere else.

The Rabbit Hole gives you community events like trivia nights, karaoke, live DJ sets, and watch parties for the best teams in what is arguably the most loyal sports market in the country. You can walk in and grab a table or reserve a spot for some Minneapolis private events. 

No matter how you choose to hang out with us, you can be sure that your food and beverages will have a local zing and bold flavor that you'll want to experience again and again. Come out to The Rabbit Hole today and see for yourself.