Bye Bye Big Buck

To know thyself. . . .no less a mind than Socrates said it’s important. And I agree.

For example, I’m a food writer but I am not Ruth Reichl or Calvin Trillin. Culinary trends don’t rise and fall with my whims. And I’ve come to terms with this. OK, I’m working on coming to terms with it. But in any case, at least 90 percent of the time, I’m pretty clear about who I am.

Many restaurateurs struggle, however. Little Midwestern bistro chefs suddenly start thinking they’re on par with Lupa and take to offering scrambled eggs with foie gras toast at $24 a plate. Successful coffeeshop owners decide to open three-tier dance clubs, or franchise their “original” concept in 37 little towns. In other words, they forget who they are. And the results are rarely good.

Take Big Buck. It was opened in Minnetonka a couple years ago by Jennifer Jackson and Eliot King — the couple who brought you Prima, on 53rd and Lyndale in Minneapolis, and Three Fish on the perimeter of Lake Calhoun. Big Buck was supposed to be their “destination” spot: they were serving wild game — elk and boar — along with steamed mussels and something they called “roasted duck cigars.” But within months, the critics shouted en masse: great hamburgers and grilled salmon; forget about the rest. It never caught on.

So recently, Jackson and Eliot did a very smart thing. They closed Big Buck — quietly — and replaced it with Prima-Minnetonka, a larger, full-bar rendition of the little Italian eatery, serving panninis, pastas, and a tasty little Caesar salad, along with wines in the $5-8 a glass range.

I want to be clear: these people are very, very good at putting together a nice, neighborhood meeting place. A restaurant where you can feel comfortable and well taken care of and get out for under $25 a head. Prima is a lovely little 55-seat bistro; and Three Fish is one of the most reasonably-priced nice seafood places around. But Jackson and King simply don’t have the drawing power of a Tim McKee or a Stewart Woodman or an Alex Roberts — all chef-owners whose reputations will cause people in St. Cloud or Red Wing to get into their cars and drive into town.

Score one for self-awareness. And as it turns out, the move probably was good for the Jackson/King duo financially, as well as in a personal growth sort of way. Their press release [curiously] reports that since the change to Prima, female diners are flocking to the Minnetonka location. And wine sales are way, way up.

I grew up in Minnetonka, actually. I’ve been acquainted with the housewifely lunching crowd in that area for more than 30 years. And no one understands better than I the way the wine flows over servings of butternut squash pasta with pine nuts and caramelized pears.

So I may not be Calvin Trillin — yet — but I know myself well enough that I’m aware running to Cub and Tonkadale Nursery, then ducking in for Happy Hour at Prima every afternoon, is not for me.