FOOD Chef Diane Moua didn’t become obsessed with food until she moved to Minnesota and kickstarted her career at such infl uential restaurants as Solera, La Belle Vie and Spoon and Stable. Recently, she brought her entire background full circle with the aptly named Diane’s Place, located in Northeast Minneapolis. Between its grandiose baked goods (croissants wrapped around coconut pandan and danishes that meld sweet pork with salted egg yolk and calamansi with raspberries) and Southeast Asian spins on brunch (snappy Hmong sausage with sticky rice, Thai tea French toast), there’s nothing like it in Minneapolis. To help put her palate-expanding debut into perspective, we asked Moua — the daughter of Hmong refugees — to take us on a tour of her top spots for international food in Minneapolis and St. Paul. Gardens of Garibaldi cocktail, Diane’s Place ARGENTINIAN I love Porzana . It’s my favorite restaurant from chef Daniel del Prado. It’s just got a vibe to it. You know that you’ll always have good drinks and good food there. It specializes in Argentinian steak, but even the veggies — like the broccoli — are so good. And they have these Argentinian [cheese rolls] that are gluten free. I can eat those all day. CARIBBEAN I love Harry Singh’s . He has the best hot sauce. It’s got scorpion peppers in it. He sells food at the Minnesota State Fair, too. I usually get the roti there. It’s like a wrap with jerk chicken, and some kind of chickpea spread or rice in there. CHINESE Shuang Cheng is a staple in Dinkytown, right by the University [of Minnesota]. They have this walleye with meat sauce dish. My boyfriend recommended it. I was like, “Meat on meat?” And he was like, “Yeah.” It’s ground pork. It’s really good. And they have these crab claws that are my daughter’s favorite. I love the pea tips and rice, too. [ Rainbow Chinese chef] Tammy [Wong] is on another level. She’s so sweet — so kind — and her stuff is amazing too. I get the egg rolls everybody orders. They’re big and hearty and you’re full after just one of them. And she has these turnip cakes. They come in fi ve pieces, and are seared on both sides. They’re really good. Porzana CONTINUED ON NEXT PAGE #ONLYIN MN | 19
Explore Minnesota Travel Guide 2025 Explore Minnesota Travel Guide: Page 19
