Chef Shack Ranch

Having eaten at their food truck a few times, I decided to pop in for dinner when in the area. Their particular location has been home to a number of mediocre restaurants, but I tried not to let the apparent curse of that location bias me. And after eating there, I hope they make it.
Their tempeh Reuben may be the best one in the city. Or at least top three. The salad that came with it was flavorful, albeit a little heavy on the dressing, but it made for a very satisfying meal. My dining partner had the veggie burger and he really liked it. The fries were a little soggy, but he didn’t notice. We wrapped up our meal with a pound cake with this ginger caramel sauce. I found myself getting a little territorial over my half of the dessert. It was so good!
I would definitely recommend them as a low key place to grab a quick bite of above average fast casual food. Props for including a variety of veggie options. It was truly a deciding factor in us going there.

I recently had the Bison burger at the Kingfield Farmers Market. Really juicy and really flavorful. The egg was a delicious addition — although eating it is a messy adventure. Be prepared with lots of napkins. Really good!

Went on a Sunday for lunch. Portions were small, especially for the price, service was slow, and we felt overall disappointed with the experience. We will not be returning. Hangover hash was tasty (but small), Greek salad also small with cheap-​tasting cubed feta and ingredients different than description (green olives with the kalamata, no cucumbers or peppers).

I still really like this place, but I have one request. Please don’t but pepper jack cheese in the kid’s quesadilla. My 2 year old thought that it was too spicy and she doesn’t like to eat salads (which was served on the side). I didn’t see it on the menu. If I would have known that it was with pepper jack I wouldn’t have spent $ 7 on something that went in the trash.
I don’t expect every place to cater to my kid, but it seems like it should be a kid friendly place. I’d love it if there were a couple of kid friendly items on the menu.

The Cowboy coffee is excellent. Not a huge mini donut fan but couldn’t pass these up. My main meal of a brisket burrito was great. The basmati rice in the burrito was a nice change. Definitely a go to place for consistently delicious (and organic) food.

The food is mediocre but the wait was pretty long. Choices are limited for a place with such price range. Be reminded that Chef Shack Ranch charges for the take out package and some additional credit card fee.
I personally will not come back again.

What took me so long to eat here?
Lisa and Carrie know their food. I’ve always been so impressed with their passion and success, but it was great to finally put a «meal» to their «reputation» tonight. I went there with my wife and two-​year-​old son today. We wanted some comfort fare tonight, and Chef Shack Ranch definitely hit the spot.
Greeted by meat cooking in a smoker outside, our stomachs were growling. I ordered the an amazing grass-​fed cheeseburger with caramelized onions on a toasted bun and fixings. It was a very lean piece of meat, but had enough flavor to more than make up for it. We also ordered the Dino Kale Caesar that had a sophisticated, yet satisfying dressing all on top of a great blend of greens. The kale was roasted to give the salad more body and a nice crunch. It was so delicious, even my two-​year-​old ate a big portion of it.
Of course, the main attraction (at least for us) were their critically-​acclaimed mini-​donuts. They did not disappoint. Overall, Chef Shack deserves every point of their praise. Keep it going, chefs!

High quality food, fantastic service, great atmosphere! Chef Shack is only a few blocks from where I live and I’ve never been inside. I was so surprised to find theirs a gem in Seward. Best smoked chicken I’ve been ever had. Made my boyfriend wish he wasn’t a vegetarian. (Even though they had great veg options.) would recommend to anyone. Only wish is that they were open all the time!

I have now visited Chef Shack Ranch twice. The first time around I ordered the Big Boy Ranch Plate. There was plenty of food and the brisket was awesome! For desert I had the most amazing lavender crème brûlée-​ish desert that was served in a cute mason jar. Wow, that was good. Second time I ordered the Trucker Fries which are french fries with Pulled Pork placed on the top with a mild salsa. I thought there were plenty of fries but did wish for more pork. I also tried the Brisket Taco which I loved! I could have eaten two. I will for sure order that on my next visit. One last tip; be on the look out for the foie gras to show up on their menu. OMG! I had never tried it before and my friend shared a bite with me and I fell in love. It was amazing.
The restaurant is a come as you are laid back friendly spot and I recommend you give it a try.

My daughter had suggested that give the Chef Shack a try. Glad we did. We got the Big Boy Ranch Plate, the large size. We thought we would have left overs to bring home. lol joke was on us! It was so tasty we couldn’t stop eating. The biscuits were so yummy I only let my hubby have 1 half of one. I ate the other 1 ½ pieces. The beef brisket was amazing! The pickled veggies were awesome. My hubby is a vinegar freak… he loved them! The potato salad was different, but it was a good different! Pulled pork was yummy! We were to full to eat our doughnuts, we had to take them home! Check it out… It is a very cute, warm feeling place. And the staff is wonderful.

Yummy! Wonderful, exciting food. Casual, fun spot. Everything is sourced locally, what an amazing addition to the community.

It blows my mind that people have complained that the portions here aren’t big enough. The Big Boy Ranch plate, half-​size, is about the perfect amount of good for my boyfriend and I. Leaves just enough room for the half-​order of mini-​donuts. I also think the meat is really good, and not overseasoned or drown in sauce. It’s just good smoked meat, it doesn’t need to be glamourized.
My own complaint is that it isn’t open for most of the week!

Friendly staff. Good food. Small menu – about the same size as the truck itself. All in an odd little Western-​style nook. (You know, cuz they’re a ranch.)
The main reason for the 3 stars? Value. I spent $ 14 on the large red curry (takeout) and it was in a bowl container similar to what I’d get at a Thai or Indian restaurant elsewhere. The difference is that the rice along with the meat I paid extra for ($ 3) were in there too. I actually thought they gave me the $ 8 version instead until I read some of the other reviews here. Unfortunately I already told the boy I had dinner for him so ate half and now I’m hungry. Which is unfortunate because I’m a loser with nothing good in the fridge except these leftovers. Damn.

It’s getting too easy to find everything in my own backyard. This time a true barbeque. But I happened to have my first time at brunch. Two items, I got the hash. It was different because it was loaded with cauliflower and broccoli. Broccoli was the greenest I’ve ever seen on a plate, actually a large bowl. Home fries perfectly cooked, I would have liked a few more sauteed onions. The softest scrambled eggs on top made the meal perfect. I don’t usually get coffee out, but I never heard of it, so I tried it and liked it fine. I love the rustic log cabin feel, cause I love cabins. Service was great and I had a chat with the owner, Lisa. It was around Easter for the elite event that I sadly missed. Maybe I can round up the Eaton Hoggs for this one.

Cozy place, cool décor that looks like a slightly hipster and small version of what the nicest restaurant in town looks like — in a town with more than 2, but less than 20 stoplights. Reminded me of the Deep South, but there are some touches to remind you it is Minnesota (a giant map of Minnesota).
The food is very curry-​flavor oriented, Indian/​Mexican fusion. I am newly a pescetarian so I could unfortunately not eat the barbecue platter which looked very good. I did have a corn bread, which I suspect was cooked in lard or other porky drippings, because it was very good and porky tasting. I was not warned of this, and I am glad.
I had sweet potato tacos and they were decent, but I love sweet potatoes, and they had a very cliché curry flavor, pretty one-​note, and mushy texture obviously — might be better as hard tacos? I don’t know, I won’t be hankering for these especially.
But, my wife had the veggie burger and I thought it was the best one I have ever had. Please note that I have only had about 3 in my life so far though! Still, it was not the usual grain, mystery soy, or black bean, it was made of beets. I do love beets, and this was a very good veggie burger. It comes with goat cheese but she substituted pepper jack (the only option) and I think that was an improvement as well.
Those were the only two veggie entrée options because the menu is small, 5 – 6 things.
No table service, you order at a counter and pay on an ipad. It was full when I was there, but no wait, and there is a parking lot in the back as well as on street.
I don’t really think the prices were all that crazy, seemed pretty standard to me, and portions are generous.
They do have a number of microbrews but Fulton was the only local one when I was there, others were from Great Lakes and other midwest places.
You drink out of little mason jars.

I was vacillating on the fourth star, and decided against it. Décor was fine not a romantic evening, but a fun night out with friends kinda place. It was packed when we got there @ 6 p.m. Waited in line to place our order and read the menu which was a collage of papers hanging on the wall. Bottled and boxed wines, canned and bottled beer. They had Hamm’s for all the hipsters, and some micros and a Belgian.
I had the half portion of the Big Boy Ranch plate, the wife had the Trucker Fries and my in-​law the burger.
The meat was very good on the B.B.R.P
The brisket was nice and tender with just a lil bit of sauce so you could taste the meat. The pulled pork was fine and so was the brat. The issue I had was the potato salad that tasted like refrigerator and the beans that lacked salt and dry like they forgot them in the stove. The pickles were nice with a touch of cumin and red kraut with with ginger was a nice palate tingler. The ½ size portion was just right. I ate everything but the salad and beans and felt satisfied. My wife’s trucker fries were really good. The fries were perfectly cooked, nice and crispy. I didn’t taste the in-​laws burger, the wife said it was fine. Not what you’d expect for $ 15. Especially when you have places like Republic doing fantastic burgers for cheaper.
I would try them again in the future to see if they improve. Maybe they’ll get another star.

I love this place.
They’re still getting up and running but a few things are clear. The food is great. The service is super friendly. The atmosphere is completely unpretentious.
High quality food in a friendly, low key setting? What a novel concept for Minneapolis!
My only concern is about the size of the place. Not sure how they’re going to handle the volume.

SERVICE/​ATMOSPHERE
You order food at register. Pre-​pay for food. They give you a number. Choose a table. And you wait for them to bring your food. You self-​serve water at their station in the corner, and they have small jars for cups. There are spoons and forks in a jar at your table.
The ladies were very nice at the register and quick to bring out our order. Our meals were served on rectangular tin pans, like a small cookie sheet, lined with paper. It did feel a bit crowded, it is a small restaurant and they have tried to fit as many tables and chairs as they could inside. It was packed when we got there. You can do take-​out if you rather eat elsewhere.
The first time we came here was very disappointing because they did not have any more pork! What? Before we came in, their A-​sign out front said pull’D pork, how could they advertise it and not have it on the menu?! I guess they don’t believe in stocking up. They offered to substitute the meal with chicken. Umm no thanks, I came for pulled pork.
FOOD:
We really wanted to try their pulled pork so came back a second time. I wasn’t very hungry so I got the trucker fries. A LOT of greasy fries, but only a few small scoops of pulled pork. I liked the taste and crunch of the fries but the grease was overwhelming. The pulled pork was very soft and full of flavor BUT the proportion was very disappointing… Not enough meat. I probably got four forkfuls of pulled pork!
The half order of big boy ranch plate was small for the price, so def no leftovers when done. It was like a sample of their food in one small order. Everything tasted good but nothing to come back for. A place for meat lovers since it lacked veggies (some slaw and pickles).
Overall the food was pretty good but nothing spectacular or different. The people were friendly. And the place was laid back. But… It was overpriced. The portions were small. Their menu seems to change. And they don’t have regular hours, so make sure you check that too! We’ve made that mistake before.

I left Chef Shack Ranch feeling underwhelmed. The appearance both inside and out left much to be desired, but appearances generally don’t matter if the food is excellent. Unfortunately, the food was just average, especially for the prices they were charging!
The service was good — both the woman who took our order and the man who brought out the food were very courteous/​friendly.
I was impressed by how quickly our food came out, but then let down by the quality of my dish. I ordered the curry, and while the flavor was excellent, all of the vegetables had pretty much melted into the sauce, which tends to happen if it’s been cooking too long (or if you’re reheating it). My friend ordered the burger, which she enjoyed, but we both agreed that for what we paid, we expected a lot more.
Overall? Not impressed and I don’t know that I’ll be returning for a second chance.

This place is absolutely delicious. We’re really excited to get more and more restaurants in the area and so we checked it out and had the ranch plate and the wings. The ranch plate lives up to the price and gives a ton of meat, accoutrements and sides.
The woman helping us (who I assume owns it) was very sweet and gave us some mini donuts which were some of the best donuts ever. Loved them.
The restaurant runs counter/​half full service style so there is someone filling waters and clearing tables but you do order at the counter. Definitely a good place to go if you want to grab a bite and don’t want or need full on service. It was a great place for us to have a quick but great dinner.