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Meritage
Ed Neaton 

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410 Saint Peter St. St. Paul, MN 55102

651-222-5670 

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  • French
    Sun,Sat 10am-2pm, Sun 5pm-9pm, Tue-Fri 11am-2pm, Tue-Thu 5pm-10pm, Fri-Sat 5pm-11pm
    $$, $$$
  • All Major Credit Cards
    Patio/Sidewalk Dining
    Brunch, Dinner, Lunch
  • Full bar
    Accepted, Recommended
    Garage, Meters, Valet
Description

St. Paul chef Russell Klein (formerly of W.A. Frost) and his wife, Desta (who worked as a banquet captain at Frost), operate the classiest restaurant in downtown St. Paul. Their brasserie, in the charming Hamm Building in what was once the home of A Rebours, is named after an American wine made in the Bordeaux tradition, which seems an accurate reflection of the restaurant's cooking. Klein offers French classics--cassoulet, roast chicken, and steak frites--and a changing list of seasonally inspired American fare (past favorites have included chestnut-stuffed quail to venison loin served with a mulled-wine poached pear). The menu features a nice mix of gourmet fare (a two-bite mushroom ganache amusement, for example) and comfort food (chicken soup with matzo balls). Oh, and there's a cheese cart. If that's not a sign of class, what is? In warm weather, the restaurant operates a sidewalk crepe stand on Tuesday and Thursday afternoons.







Back to TopAwards | Visit the Best Of Website

  • 2012 | Best French Restaurant

    Though a perennial favorite for best French restaurant, Meritage features dishes (such as moules frites, slow-cooked monkfish, escargot braised with oxtail, an amusement of tuna tartare "taco, " and the stunning selection of oysters on the half shell) that could make this restaurant a worthy contender in the Best Seafood category too. Chef Russell Klein honors the techniques and rich flavors of classic French cooking but still manages to keep things light. Similarly, the atmosphere created... More »

  • 2012 | Best Restaurant for Romance

    Do you think the French call a chaste kiss "le Americain smoochez" Probably not. We'll continue to give them credit for the best kisses, fried potatoes, and takes on toast. French cuisine is also the sexiest. Begin with dishes generously basted in butter and a tray of briny, fresh oysters. Combine that with elegant surroundings, outstanding service, and a killer bar program, and you have the perfect recipe for a romantic date night. While the restaurant has expanded, Meritage continues to... More »

  • 2012 | Best Wine List

    Reading Meritage's wine list is like taking a wine mini-course. It's got colored maps and history and appellations and definitions. Plus, it has really, really good wines. Wine director Nicolas Giraud is charged with finding wines designed in the Old World style that work with James Beard Award-nominated chef Russell Klein's food. Within that range, Giraud has crafted a world of wine, with bottles from Europe and the United States, and, in a charming grace note, has included a small shelf... More »

  • 2011 | Best French Restaurant

    Salty, sweet, buttery, briny, chewy, gooey, soft--there are many ways to describe a good oyster, but few places in town to get one. That was until Meritage, downtown St. Paul's French brasserie, expanded to include a Parisian-style zinc bar complete with absinthe fountain. With seating for nearly 40, the new bar serves chic cocktails and oysters on the half shell to Ordway patrons and Wild fans alike. Follow in the footsteps of famous French devotee Ernest Hemingway and order the "Jack... More »

  • 2010 | BEST FRENCH RESTAURANT

    Suggest a French restaurant for dinner and you run the risk of being labeled as le snob. Unless that restaurant is the accessible Meritage, the perfect French brasserie for St. Paul: The waitstaff doesn't mind if, instead of mangling words like cassoulet or bouillabaisse, you simply point to the amusements or entrées you desire--no judgment, no sneer. And don't even think about being intimidated by the hefty wine list. It may be 17 pages long and have its own table of contents,... More »

  • 2009 | Best French Restaurant

    What's the best way to start your meal at Meritage, the cute brasserie in downtown St. Paul that looks as if it belongs in the ninth arrondissement The spicy tomato tingle of a bloody Mary shooter with a plump little oyster chaser A doll-size blini topped with smoked salmon, crème fraîche, and capers It's really hard to go wrong, so relax and make yourself comfortable. In fact, go right ahead and sop up the fragrant sauce from the bottom of that bowl of mussels, and... More »

  • 2008 | BEST FRENCH RESTAURANT

    This St. Paul newcomer hasn't yet received the accolades of some of our favorite French restaurants, such as Vincent and Cave Vin, though it's certainly deserving. Meritage offers all the Gallic standards, from steak frites to omelet du jour, and while the cassoulet and French onion soup might not have the looks of Carla Bruni, one bite proves they have all the intrigue. The restaurant's point of distinction is that chef Russell Klein (a French-trained New Yorker who learned from Jacques... More »

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Back to TopUser Reviews & Comments | Write a Review
  • citypagesbestof
       (0)    (0)

    citypagesbestof | Minneapolis, MN | 145 Reviews

    | Wed, May 6, 2009

    This St. Paul newcomer hasn't yet received the accolades of some of our favorite French restaurants, such as Vincent and Cave Vin, though it's certainly deserving. Meritage offers all the Gallic standards, from steak frites to omelet du jour, and while the cassoulet and French onion soup might not have the looks of Carla Bruni, one bite proves they have all the intrigue. The restaurant's point of distinction is that chef Russell Klein (a French-trained New Yorker who learned from Jacques Pepin and cut his teeth at Manhattan's grande dame of French cooking, La Caravelle) brings an American sensibility to classic Escoffier style. That means he honors tradition by rolling out the cheese cart, but also gets creative with striped bass and chestnut-stuffed quail. The dining room's design, though, is what really transports across the Atlantic. The historic Hamm Building feels like a Parisian brasserie, with its grand picture windows, white tile floor, and French pop music on the stereo.

Back to TopMenu
Dinner Menu
Introductions
$12.50
Grilled Baby Octopus
black garlic purée, green olive oil, chickpea-charred tomato salad
$18.00
Fresh Maine Lobster Salad
avocado, ruby red grapefruit, lobster coral sauce & tarragon
$13.00
House-Made Merguez Sausage
black olive purée, couscous, baby sweet bell pepper, lemon, micro cilantro, harissa phyllo
$14.00
Duck Fat Poached Hen Egg
spring peas à la française, toasted brioche, shaved foie gras
$19.50
Seared Minnesota Foie Gras
brioche purée, cocoa compressed pineapple, pink peppercorn-vanilla gastrique & macadamia
$9.50
Escargots Bourguignon
traditional preparation with garlic-parsley butter
Soups & Salads
$7.00
Chicken Soup with Matzo Balls
$9.00
White Asparagus Velouté
pancetta crisp, green asparagus salad, hazelnuts & agrumato
$9.50
Green Vegetable Salad
lambs lettuce, curry vinaigrette, rye & pecorino romano
$8.00
Selection of Organic Lettuces
radish, carrot & grape tomato with dijon vinaigrette
$7.50
Pomme Frites
house cut, served with béarnaise sauce
Fruit De Mer
 
Oysters on the half shell
ask server for today’s selection
Each $7.50
3 $21.00
Fresh Florida Stone Crabs Claw
Each $4.00
4 $16.00
Wild Caught Shrimp Cocktail
Each $1.75
Littleneck Clams on the half shell
Each $1.25
Whelks
$16.00
Chilled 1/2 Maine Lobster
Le Grand Plateau
$50.00
Le Grand
6 oysters, 4 shrimp, 6 littleneck clams, & market fresh assortment
$95.00
Le Meritage
12 oysters, 6 shrimp, 12 clams, & market fresh assortment
Main Characters
$19.50
Composition of Vegetables
squash pancakes, celery root custard, beet tartare & wild mushroom millefeuille
$21.50
Moules Frites
mussels steamed with smoked pancetta, garlic, tomato & white wine. served with house-cut pomme frites
$27.00
Roulade of Rainbow Trout Wrapped in Prociutto di Parma
flavors & textures of artichokes, black olive, barigoule vinaigrette, confit fingerling potatoes
$30.00
Roasted Alaskan Dayboat Halibut
sautéed quenelle de brochet, lobster emulsion, saffron braised fennel, green asparagus & saffron purée
$22.50
Crispy All Natural Half Chicken
spinach, roasted potatoes, garlic & chicken jus
$25.00
Slow Cooked Minnesota Pork Shoulder
spring ramp soubise, raab, potato gratin & onion marmalade
$27.50
Stuffed Minnesota Rabbit Saddle
rabbit rillettes, carrot purée, white asparagus, pomme dauphine & tarragon riesling sauce
$28.00
Lemon-Pepper Glazed Wild Acres Duck Breast
fava bean cassoulet, grilled romaine, charred lemon-green garlic vinaigrette
$38.50
Duet of Beef
bone marrow crust all-natural tenderloin & oxtail parmentier shallots confit, spinach, red wine sauce
$25.50
Add Béarnaise Sauce $1.50
Creekstone All Natural Steak Frites
hanger steak
$13.50
Meritage House Hamburger
roasted garlic aioli, shallot confit & emmanthaler served with pomme frites
Amusements
$3.00
Pickled Beet & Walnut Salad
$3.00
Duck Liver Schmear
$3.00
Oyster Bloody Mary Shooter
$3.00
Escargot Popover
$4.00
Billi Bi Saffron-Mussel Soup
$4.00
Tiny Tuna Tartare Taco
$4.00
Beef Tongue Pastrami
$4.00
Smoked Salmon Rillettes

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