Burnsville does not need a downtown skyline to feed people well. This suburb south of the river holds a working spread of breakfast rooms, taco counters, a Vietnamese kitchen locals rank against the whole metro, and a beer hall that turns out Detroit-style pizza. None of it needs a St. Paul or Minneapolis address to matter.
№ 01
Jensen's Cafe
Burnsville $$
12750 Nicollet Ave S, Burnsville, MN 55337 · +19528080500
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Pancakes anchor the menu at Jensen's Cafe, ordered plain, loaded with strawberries and cream, or alongside eggs Benedict for a savory plate. The patio takes dogs and families both, and Sunday mornings run a wait, close to thirty minutes, with a shop next door for browsing while the room fills. Breakfast here rewards the wait rather than testing it.
What to orderPancakes, Eggs Benedict, Strawberries Cream Pancakes
№ 02
Blue Ox Sandwich Factory
Burnsville $
14270 Buck Hill Rd, Ste 115, Burnsville, MN 55306 · +19528982583
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The chicken bacon ranch is the order regulars name first, though the full sandwich list runs deeper than the counter suggests. Blue Ox Sandwich Factory keeps a line most of the day and moves it fast, a counter-service room built for a lunch run with kids or a quick family meal rather than a sit-down occasion. Burnsville's best fast sandwich case rests here.
What to orderchicken bacon ranch, gourmet sandwiches, half-smoke
№ 03
Saigon Palace Restaurant
Burnsville $$
401 W Burnsville Pkwy, Burnsville, MN 55337 · +19528088920
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Pho tai and egg rolls carry Saigon Palace's reputation, and regulars measure it against every other Vietnamese kitchen in the metro, not just the suburb. The broth draws repeat visits from people driving down from Minneapolis specifically for it. Pad Thai with tofu shows up on the same table. A casual room built for return customers, not a one-time stop.
What to orderpho tai, egg rolls, pad thai
№ 04
CHIANTI GRILL Italian Restaurant
Burnsville $$
14296 Plymouth Ave, Burnsville, MN 55337 · +19528927555
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Steak and pasta share the menu at Chianti Grill, and the steaks get compared directly to sister restaurant Porterhouse's. It works as the neighborhood's default dinner choice, a casual Italian room where the service consistently gets singled out over the food itself. A solid weeknight option, reliable rather than showy, built for regulars who come back on a Monday.
What to ordersteak, pasta, risotto
№ 05
Porter Creek Hardwood Grill
Burnsville $$
14201 Burngarten Dr, Burnsville, MN 55306 · +19526981888
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Rotisserie Buffalo Wings top the order at Porter Creek Hardwood Grill, backed by grilled steak and an actual vegetarian lineup rather than an afterthought salad. The room runs warmer and more finished than most casual grills in the suburb, with outdoor seating for the milder months. It reads as Burnsville's upscale casual option without crossing into special-occasion pricing.
What to orderRotisserie Buffalo Wings, grilled steak, vegetarian options
№ 06
Mediterranean Cruise Cafe
Burnsville $$
12500 Nicollet Ave S, Burnsville, MN 55337 · +19526416222
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The falafel sandwich holds up on takeout, and the mezze platter and Greek salad round out a menu built for groups. Mediterranean Cruise Cafe runs a large room that stays comfortable even on a busy Saturday, though service can lag when the floor is short-staffed. Long-running regulars note some slip from its earlier peak, but the plates still land.
What to orderfalafel sandwich, Greek salad, mezze platter
№ 07
Bricksworth Beer Co.
Burnsville $$
12257B Nicollet Ave, Nicollet Business Center, Burnsville, MN 55337 · +19526575236
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Detroit-style pizza, crisp at the edges and loaded with pepperoni, is the thing to get at Bricksworth Beer Co., paired with a house beer flight or a burger off the same menu. The room runs big and comfortable for a weekday afternoon meetup with coworkers, with service that gets food out fast even before the evening crowd arrives.
What to orderDetroit-style pizza, burger, house beer flight
№ 08
El Super Taco
Burnsville $$
2001 Cliff Rd E, Burnsville, MN 55337 · +19528908888
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The breakfast burrito and carne asada fries are the two dishes that keep drawing comparisons to California and Texas taco stands, and regulars return multiple times a week for exactly that. El Super Taco keeps a salsa bar worth building a plate around, green and habanero both singled out. The room itself runs a little rough at the edges, tables not always bussed fast.
What to orderbreakfast burrito, carne asada fries, salsa
№ 09
Taqueria La Hacienda
Burnsville $$
2000 Williams Dr, Ste 105, Burnsville, MN 55337 · +19528086895
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Carne asada tacos and chiles rellenos anchor a short, focused menu at Taqueria La Hacienda, priced well below what the quality suggests. It runs counter service, and the kitchen operates in open view of the order line, so portions are no mystery. Wait times can stretch past what a quick counter usually asks, but the plates justify sticking around.
What to ordercarne asada tacos, chiles rellenos, enchiladas
№ 10
Clive's Roadhouse Burnsville
Burnsville $$
13050 Aldrich Ave S, Burnsville, MN 55337 · +19524263625
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Wings, burgers, and steak fill out a big menu at Clive's Roadhouse Burnsville, a sports bar built around screens and a patio that faces the neighboring hotel's parking lot. Service moves quickly even at a busy lunch. It is the room to pick in Burnsville for watching a game with a group rather than for a quiet dinner.
What to orderburger, wings, steak
№ 11
Taqueria Hidalgo
Burnsville $
12641 Nicollet Ave, Burnsville, MN 55337 · +19527071183
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Taqueria Hidalgo runs a compact taco counter in Burnsville built around the basics done straight: no frills, no long wait, a plate priced to eat there twice a week without thinking about it. It fills the cheap-eats slot in the suburb's Mexican lineup that the sit-down rooms nearby do not cover.
№ 12
Tsunami Japanese
Burnsville $$
1601 County Rd 42 W, Burnsville, MN 55306 · +19526005594
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Nigiri and sashimi arrive with sharper plating than most casual sushi counters attempt, and the flavor holds up to the presentation on the dine-in side. Tsunami Japanese runs counter service for a fast lunch, though the delivery side has drawn complaints about temperature and consistency that the dine-in room does not share. Eat it there, not through an app.
What to ordernigiri sushi, sashimi, rolls
Frequently asked
What is the best hidden gem restaurant near me in Burnsville?
It depends on what you want. Saigon Palace Restaurant holds the strongest reputation for pho in the suburb, Jensen's Cafe covers Sunday brunch with a dog-friendly patio, and Taqueria La Hacienda runs the tightest counter-service taco menu at the lowest price. Each entry here carries an Insider Score based on the review record, not a paid placement.
Do any of these restaurants pay to be listed on Top of Minneapolis?
No. Nothing on this list, or anywhere on the site, pays for placement. Every entry is scored using the Insider Score, built from the public review record, and ranked on that basis alone.
Is Burnsville part of Minneapolis or St. Paul?
Neither. Burnsville is its own municipality in the southern suburban ring, separate from both Minneapolis and St. Paul. Every restaurant on this list sits within Burnsville's city limits, not inside either downtown.
Which Burnsville restaurants are best for a group or a casual night out?
Bricksworth Beer Co. and Clive's Roadhouse Burnsville both run big rooms built for groups, one around beer and Detroit-style pizza, the other around game-day screens and a wide menu. Chianti Grill and Porter Creek Hardwood Grill both handle a slower group dinner well, with service that holds up under a full table.
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The data first, then the verdict
We start with the review record, not a press release. Every room here is a real kitchen with a strong rating across a meaningful number of reviews, ranked on our 10-point Insider Score. We weight consistency over time and the rooms locals return to, not the ones tourists pass through once. The list updates as the data does. How we work →
Hodan Abdi
Staff Writer · Top of Minneapolis
Hodan Abdi is a Staff Writer at Top of Minneapolis. Raised in Cedar-Riverside two floors above the Somali mall her aunt worked in, she now lives in Eagan and covers the whole metro ring. She writes the guides, sweeps the suburbs, and covers the Somali and East African tables as the beat she knows best.
