Just how hungry are the ’burbs for a few happening night spots? “You don’t get your answer unless you throw it out there and say, ‘Hey, we’re here, let’s give it a try,’” says James Nelson. “We threw it out there, and people are coming.”
What Nelson and business partner Ross Lumley have thrown “out there” in Champlin is Maverick’s Wood Grill, the same kind of late-night restaurant/hipster hangout they created a couple years ago with The Independent in Uptown Minneapolis (where Lumley was Nelson’s contractor). “Late-night” means the kitchen is open and making a full menu of steaks, chops, and other entrées until 1 a.m. every day. And the “urban” part? Nelson points to Maverick’s retro supper-club atmosphere and—in contrast to the toned-down look at suburban chains—staff that proudly show their piercings and tattoos.
The locals are intrigued, Nelson says, and waitstaff with a personal touch have been Maverick’s best marketing since it opened in October: “It’s your staff saying ‘Hey, come see me,’ and it’s developing those relationships.”
