The former Golden Fig space on Grand Avenue will become an Italian-Mediterranean restaurant by summer. Golden Fig Fine Foods moved a into a larger, adjacent space a few months ago.

Rikki Giambruno, a Minnesota native who cut his culinary teeth in New York City, most notably as the closing executive chef at acclaimed Brooklyn restaurant Franny’s, has moved home, and is in the midst of transforming the tiny storefront into a cozy eatery with a very personal name, Hyacinth. It’s the name of the street in Victoria, Minn., where he grew up.

“This is a family place,” Giambruno said. “It’s self-financed, and everyone in my family had a part in it in some way, so this is my nod to that without using our last name.”

Fellow Franny’s chef Paul Baker, also a Minnesota native, will be chef de cuisine at the restaurant, which will focus on Southern Italian and Sicilian food.

Giambruno, whose brother Joe Giambruno is a co-owner at Bad Weather Brewing in St. Paul, said he grew up in an Italian-American family, but hadn’t cooked the food of his Sicilian ancestors until working at Franny’s.

“What was so exciting to me about it was the techniques and flavor profiles were so different from what I had known all my life,” Giambruno said. “The fresh, bright flavor profile reminded me, in terms of the way it felt eating it, of Southeast Asian and Mexican foods, which are two of my favorite cuisines. And it’s the food of my family, of my heritage. It totally changed the trajectory of my cooking career.”

Giambruno said the menu will take a familiar Italian shape, with antipasti, pasta, fish and meat courses and sides, and the dishes will range from classic dishes “that are classical and in my opinion shouldn’t be touched,” and dishes “that reflect that I am a chef and I do have a point of view and we’re not in Italy, we’re in Minnesota.”

A dish he’s dreaming up, with panelle, or Italian chickpea fritters, as the base, is a good example. He’ll pair the nutty Italian street food with a fresh, bright salad and herring from Lake Superior, cured in olive oil, vinegar and an overload of fresh herbs.

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New eateries set up shop at malls around the metro The space, which hasn’t previously housed a restaurant, is being completely built out by Hagen, Christensen and McIlwain Architects, and will contain around 37 seats.

“We’re just a couple of Minnesota guys who went out East, didn’t know if we would ever make it back here, but we’re so excited to be here and be members of the community and hopefully create a place that people will enjoy going to,” Giambruno said.

The restaurant will be next door to another soon-to-open Italian eatery, Red Rabbit, which is going into the space that currently holds Wild Onion.