Outdoor Dining Back Again In St. Cloud, Surrounding Cities

(KNSI) – Soon 5th Avenue in downtown St. Cloud will be transformed into an outdoor dining bonanza.

Visit Greater St. Cloud Executive Director Rachel Thompson tells KNSI News that city staff are currently reaching out to restaurants and bars along the stretch to gauge interest. If the weather holds, crews will be putting down barricades near the end of the month with tables to be set up by early May.

Thompson says there’s more too it than just food. “The restaurants in our area really have done a great job at incorporating those live music opportunities into the patios. And so for folks that want to come out and listen to live music, have dinner, maybe grab a drink or two, those patios have been a wonderful addition to our area.”

Outdoor dining can be anything from happy hour with friends to a night out with the family or the perfect ambience for a romantic date night situated away from others.

Thompson says there is a big economic incentive for a variety of restaurants to something outdoors. “I think that that’s opened up a lot of different opportunities for the restaurants to also increase their capacity and size. They’re able to serve more patrons throughout the evening because of those expanded areas.”

Thompson says the blog lists where you can grab a bite to eat outside from here to St. Joseph. Click here to see the perfect guide for “patio season” in the St. Cloud area.

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