After closing for a month under the guise of remodeling, Lucky Cricket inside the Shops at West End complex has re-opened looking largely the same. The restaurant opened with limited hours last week, but is back to serving lunch and dinner this week with a new menu and staff. An employee explained that the closure wasn’t remodeling of the room, but “more of a reconcepting.” The same person also described the new menu as more pan-Asian than Chinese.

A perusal of the new menu, which isn’t yet available online, includes a handful of dishes that were on the original mixed with new dishes like crispy fried pig ears and a selection of noodles that were highly recommended. Behind the bar, the tiki blended drinks are still available, but the options listed also include more traditional cocktails.

Lucky Cricket first opened last fall under a cloud of skepticism and controversy after comments from its famous chef co-owner, Andrew Zimmern. Critics and national food media were quick to descend on the Minneapolis suburb and weigh in on his remarks and the restaurant.

Just after the July 4th weekend of 2019, the restaurant abruptly closed for what was supposed to be a two-week remodel. Zimmern and restaurant contacts have not returned requests for comment.