Pracna on Main to re-open in spring with possible movie theater drinks link

The historic Minneapolis bar which closed abruptly earlier this month will return bigger and better in the spring.

Fans of Pracna on Main – considered the oldest bar on the oldest street in Minneapolis – were shocked when the bar closed its doors Jan. 6 along with shutting down its website and social media accounts.

But in the aftermath of the sudden closure, KARE 11 spoke to building owner John Rimarcik, who said the bar and restaurant was only closing temporarily because it was getting new tenants.

The Pioneer Press revealed revealed more details Tuesday about the bar's new look once it re-opens in around three months' time, with Rimarcik telling the newspaper it will have a bigger kitchen, a refreshed menu, new equipment and a general makeover.

A link between the bar and the Saint Anthony Main movie theater next door is also in the works, with Rimarcik applying for a license that will allow patrons to take their drinks into the theater with them.

KARE 11 says that the owners of Aster Café – located in the same building as Pracna – will become the new tenants, with Rimarcik pledging that the traditional look of the bar, which has been serving visitors to St. Anthony Main since opening in 1890, would remain, as would its name.

The news will come as a relief to those who feared Pracna would have the same fate as nearby Nye's Polonaise Room, after it was revealed in December the Northeast bar would close its doors in the summer, with the intention the site be used for an apartment development.