It was the familiar under-construction desert: chewed pavement, a sleeping Caterpillar, dusty orange signs. “Whoa, how are you not a mannequin?” a lone skateboarder blurted, rolling past and breaking the silence as I texted at the corner of Robert Street and Ninth in downtown St. Paul.

It was a little past 1 p.m. on Wednesday, June 4. Some predicted this day would mark the first major turnout for Gov. Tim Walz’ back-to-the-office requirement, which kicked off Monday. Most state employees must now work in person at least half the week—effectively, three days. Walz announced the mandate in March. In part, it’s to revive foot traffic in St. Paul’s beleaguered downtown, where many state employees work.

We wondered: Will the lunch rush rush again? The weather was great Wednesday, especially after Tuesday’s rain: sunny, breezy, in the 70s. Businesses had expected little from Monday; along with Friday, it tends to be a dud, as hybrid workers apparently stay home.

But on this bright hump day, was there at least a vague whiff of the pre-pandemic?

Indoors, the news was actually pretty good.

Keys Cafe, beset by construction on Robert Street, experienced something like a surge. Owner Carol Hunn-Gregory described a return to form—or, about half of one. “The restaurant was almost full,” she said, after not noticing a bump Monday or Tuesday. “Usually, we just have tables stagger in here and there.”

Pre-Covid, Keys might’ve seen two and a half turnovers a day. Hunn-Gregory said the pandemic cost the restaurant 40% of its customers, who haven’t returned. On Wednesday, staff were chatting with state employees. “Just to fill up once? I’m happy,” she said. “I think it’s going to fill as time goes on.”

Based on Wednesday’s showing, she may be right. Eateries between St. Peter Street and Jackson Street noted varying levels of revival. Some staffers said they spotted regulars who hadn’t shown their face since pre-Covid. One manager, emerging from a stuffy kitchen, made prayer hands and bowed her head.

They credited Walz’ mandate, which added to St. Paul mayor Melvin Carter’s springtime decision requiring three in-office days per week for city employees.

Especially busy was the brick-paved plaza near Park Square Theatre. Here, downtown’s twice-a-month summer farmers’ market had popped up beside patio seating. Around 2 p.m. at the Loon Cafe—in the Hamm Building, next to the market—management discussed whether to bring in extra hands.

“We’ve already spoken about, ‘What are we going to do tomorrow? Should we add another person?’” said Tim Mahoney, owner of the Loon Cafe. “And that’s a beautiful thing.”

The Loon Cafe didn’t see a line of customers, Mahoney said, but it filled its patio. He pointed out the importance of area restaurants’ convenient proximity to workers at companies like Ecolab, Travelers, and Securian. “The best thing was asking these groups that were in today, ‘Do you work for the government?’” he said. “And a significant amount—at least 20–30% of our guests [on Wednesday]—were workers that had just come back to the office.”

But on Thursday, a Loon Cafe staffer said business was “quite a bit slower.” The cafe did add that extra server, Mahoney said—but it probably was overkill. “We were expecting a little bit more business. But, again, this is the first week. We’re having a nice little happy hour right now,” he said, shortly after 5 p.m. “You can see the government-issued badges.” He’s optimistic and hoping for a Tuesday–Thursday trend.

At the opposite end of the block from the Loon Cafe, Afro Deli buzzed with lunchtime traffic Wednesday. Around 12:50 p.m., a line of 10 curled around the stanchions inside. “There were more new faces. It was pretty packed,” manager Isis Sisco said after the rush. “On top of that, we had the farmers’ market.”

The weather, plus Afro Deli’s patio, plus the farmers’ market—could these variables simply have created a happy outlier for Afro? Would the restaurant have been atypically busy on Wednesday even without Gov. Walz’ order?

“We’ve been at this location about 11 years now, and we’re used to seeing it [busy in good weather],” Sisco said, a little after 2 p.m., “but it hasn’t been that way since Covid. We haven’t seen it as it was today. Like, it was a good day today.”

Two or three years ago, Afro Deli cut staff hours, she said, because business would empty out after 12:30 p.m. On Wednesday, the rush lasted until about 1:30 p.m.

“One of my regulars [returned] that has been coming here for years—I hadn’t seen him in a very long time,” Sisco said. “‘It’s good to see your face,’” she told him. “And he’s like, ‘I’ve been summoned to come back into the office, so you’ll see me a lot.’”

She anticipated the restaurant extending its hours. On Thursday, though, she said the rush quieted faster—dead by 12:50 p.m.

Matt Bakke, who owns the nearby Pillbox Tavern, on Wabasha Street, said on Wednesday it’s too early to gauge the impact of the governor’s order. Even so, he noted “a little bit of a bump.” Prior to this week, “it’s been kind of steady but not that busy at all,” he said. “There’s definitely a little bit of a difference right now, but not huge.” On Tuesday, with rain, it was still a decent lunch.

“We’re going to give it a couple of weeks,” he added. “We hopefully have to start staffing up.”

A block north of Pillbox, around 1 p.m., customers steadily poured through Candyland, Wabasha’s alcove-size sweets shop. “Oh, not today,” a slightly exasperated employee said, handing a bag of sweets over to a customer—too busy for chitchat with a reporter.

Others were not so occupied. Around 12:20 p.m., Pimento Jamaican Kitchen had only three customers seated in its big, dark space a few blocks south on Wabasha Street, closer to the river. Sunny patios were busy two blocks north. A glass-half-full employee instead guessed Pimento has seen an uptick during happy hours this week.

Nearby, the Deb’s Hot Dog stand slings chili dogs at the corner of Wabasha and Fifth, outside the Osborn370 building. Sean Maynor said he’s been holding down the stand for 12 years, and business is mostly weather dependent. He wasn’t seeing much of a difference this first week of state employees returning to the office.

Other restaurants weren’t registering much of a boost, either. Martin Garcia, who runs Mi Mexico Querido—a fast-casual spot in the Town Square Complex skyway, near Caribou Coffee, Potbelly, Ho Fan Restaurant, and Paul Hartquist Jeweler—said he’s hopeful, but this week brought in, if anything, less business than usual.

One block over, Skyway Grill saw a slight uptick Wednesday. It’s minimal, owner Scott Johnson said, but he heard a nearby office building hasn’t brought in furniture yet. When it does, that should rouse activity. “Today, we’re up probably $100 from an average Wednesday, so that’s a noticeable day,” he said, adding he’s “cautiously optimistic.”

A few restaurants described business, generally, as “hit or miss.” What’s the equation for a busy day? It can be hard to work out. The sun likely drew people outdoors. Tuesday’s rain may have kept many at home. Nothing, it seems, can secure a true pre-pandemic vibe. And then there’s road construction.

Sawatdee serves Thai food on Ninth, at the corner where construction has pulverized Robert Street.

“Our to-go has been busier since construction started, but in-house, it’s give or take,” said shift lead Juan P. a little past 1 p.m. Wednesday, estimating moderately above-average traffic. He mentioned a customer who told him Tuesday they were back to the office. “We might know better by Friday.”

Next door, the staff at Keys Cafe had heard from customers working for the state. “A lot of them will be coming back,” Hunn-Gregory said. “There are no cafeterias yet that are open in the buildings. Lunds is closed. There’s really not a lot down here.”

On the ground, there was some murmuring about politics, too. A couple staffers at separate restaurants said they’d heard of state employees determined not to spend money downtown, to send Gov. Walz a disapproving message. But two staffers elsewhere reported an opposite attitude: state employees not only sitting down for a bite but openly savoring their economic impact.

Mahoney, who also manages the Loon Cafe’s Minneapolis location, said he wants to see a similar process across the river: The City of Minneapolis, taking the lead on ordering employees back to the office, could ask private employers to follow suit.

“We can make it vibrant, we can make it clean, we can make it beautiful. We can make it feel like it’s a city again,” Mahoney said. “And I think it all starts with the city, the county, and the state.”