The California Burger at Ox Cart Arcade and Rooftop in St. Paul, on Friday, May 31, 2019. (John Autey / Pioneer Press)

Nachos at Ox Cart Arcade and Rooftop in St. Paul, on Friday, May 31, 2019. (John Autey / Pioneer Press)

The Grilled Oysters at Ox Cart Arcade and Rooftop in St. Paul, on Friday, May 31, 2019. (John Autey / Pioneer Press)

The Carnitas Tacos at Ox Cart Arcade and Rooftop in St. Paul, on Friday, May 31, 2019. (John Autey / Pioneer Press)

The bar has its own Sno-Cone machine at Ox Cart Arcade and Rooftop in St. Paul, on Friday, May 31, 2019. The restaurant has Sno-Cone specialty drinks for adults. (John Autey / Pioneer Press)



A few of the beers on tap at Ox Cart Arcade and Rooftop in St. Paul, on Friday, May 31, 2019. (John Autey / Pioneer Press)

A mix of contemporary and classic arcade games at Ox Cart Arcade and Rooftop in St. Paul, on Friday, May 31, 2019. (John Autey / Pioneer Press)

Scout gets some attention from Anna Barnelle, as he and her owner, Megan Pellettiere, right, meet with work friends, including Sydney Carlson, rear, at Ox Cart Arcade and Rooftop in St. Paul, on Friday, May 31, 2019. Ox Cart Arcade and Rooftop welcomes dogs with responsible owners. (John Autey / Pioneer Press)

Customers enjoy food and drinks on the rooftop patio at Ox Cart Arcade and Rooftop in St. Paul, on Friday, May 31, 2019. (John Autey / Pioneer Press)

Customers enjoy food and drinks on the rooftop patio at Ox Cart Arcade and Rooftop in St. Paul, on Friday, May 31, 2019. (John Autey / Pioneer Press) May 31, 2019. (John Autey / Pioneer Press)



Customers enjoy food and drinks on the rooftop patio at Ox Cart Arcade and Rooftop in St. Paul, on Friday, May 31, 2019. (John Autey / Pioneer Press)

Chef Justin Sutherland at Ox Cart Arcade and Rooftop in St. Paul, on Friday, May 31, 2019. (John Autey / Pioneer Press)

The menu at Ox Cart Arcade and Rooftop in St. Paul, on Friday, May 31, 2019. (John Autey / Pioneer Press)

As a longtime Lowertown resident, chef Justin Sutherland saw a need.

“The neighborhood developed fast, but outside of eating and drinking, there wasn’t much to do,” he said.

So when he took over the culinary operations at Madison Restaurant Group, he decided that Ox Cart, which had been closed during recent winters due to a lack of business, would be the perfect spot for a retro arcade, the kind of place you go with friends to hang out.

“I wanted to give people an option for a place to play together and connect,” Sutherland said.

So far, the gamble — adding pinball machines, old-school cabinet games, a “living room” with retro console games and a few more modern arcade games — seems to have paid off. A younger crowd is hanging out, meeting friends and playing games, just like Sutherland hoped.

The idea behind the food menu on the first floor was to make hand-held food, stuff you could eat with one hand while joysticking with the other.

Sutherland also wanted the food to have a nostalgic feel.

Pizza poppers, re-imagined as pizza-ingredient-stuffed pull-apart bread; dressed up Vienna beef hot dogs, including a killer Chicago dog; cheese on a stick; and a fluffy pretzel with house-made cheese sauce, among other menu items, all accomplish that goal.

“We wanted to take State Fair food, nostalgic food, stuff you’d get frozen and heat up and make it better, make it from scratch,” he said.

My arcade-menu favorites are the Minnesota sushi, a pickle all rolled up in cream cheese and corned beef, just like you get at Grandma’s holiday picnic; the perfectly executed and crave-able house-made corn dog; and the house-made Pop Tart — a light, crisp version stuffed with wild berry jam and coated with a bright icing that I actually want to eat.

The drink list, which reads like a sure-fire hangover to this middle-age mom, is full of ’90s-era ingredients such as curacao, Malibu rum and Tang. We did appreciate the boozy sno cones, if only as a refreshing dessert alternative on a hot day (the blueberry basil is delicious). Clearly this list was not made for mature people who enjoy the taste of whiskey.

Upstairs, on the ever-popular, sprawling rooftop bar, more games — a giant Connect Four and giant Jenga — have been added, but the aesthetic is mostly the same.

The menu, however, has undergone a complete refresh, with a continuation of the playful theme that begins downstairs. Burgers, hot dogs, salads, tacos, a few entrees and plenty of shareable appetizers are mostly just the thing to enjoy in the sun.

Unfortunately, the drink menu also has some continuity, bringing the overly sweet stuff upstairs, with the addition of shareable drinks served in fishbowls. While hanging out up on the rooftop, I’ve seen few people order — and even fewer finish — the drinks, but they’re festive, I guess? Again, I’m clearly not the audience for these kinds of beverages.

In the good-news department, Sutherland has entered the Minnesota burger scene with his own cheesy, double-pattied-for-extra-crisp-and-flavor version that squarely lands in my top 10. The simple California (lettuce, tomato, special sauce) is my preference, but friends and I also enjoyed the “French” version, topped with oven-dried tomatoes for extra sweetness and some brie cheese for creamy lusciousness.

One of the most fun menu items on the rooftop is the re-creation of another favorite found at Lutheran potlucks all over the state — the Asian salad with toasted ramen noodles. Although Sutherland calls it an Asian Cobb and adds a fancy Korean dressing, make no mistake. This is that potluck salad, just made a little better, and with bacon.

Another lovely rooftop surprise were tasty grilled oysters, topped with a rotating selection of compound butter. Also on the lighter side, a scampi with juicy pink shrimp, plenty of garlic and capers tasted just right on a warm afternoon.

For his part, Sutherland is pleased with how things turned out.

“I think it’s been well received,” he said. “The way I judge the space is from smiles, and every time I walk in there, everyone is smiling, and that’s a win in my book.”

OX CART ARCADE AND ROOFTOP

Details: 255 E. Sixth St., St. Paul; 651-528-6171; oxcartarcadeandrooftop.com

Prices: Shareable appetizers, $4-$12; hot dogs, sandwiches and burgers, $5-$19; desserts, $6-$8

Good to know: Chef Justin Sutherland has added DJs on Saturday nights on the rooftop, which is fun but can be loud. He’s also starting something he’s calling “Kegs, Pegs and Eggs” on Sunday mornings, which includes a classic breakfast, all-you-can-drink beer and cribbage for $30.