Saint Paul / Minnesota / United States
The building has roots all the way back to the 1930s. It was originally built as a White Castle. Some of the octogenarians still remember getting hamburgers for 5 cents. The building was sold in 1959 and was added on to and remodeled. It then became the Radar Chef in 1960. They were also a busy and popular stopping place. The place changed hands in the mid 1970s. It had a number of different owners and name changes until Dan Hanf took over in 1984. Magnolias was founded in January 1984 under the formidable shadow of Serlins Cafe. Serlins was famous for good food at reasonable prices. Our first customers told us that we will never be able to compete with Serlins and we would soon be out of business. We are a small neighborhood restaurant and Serlins is even smaller. In short, there are plenty of people who enjoy home cooked comfort food at reasonable prices. We put an ad in the St. Paul Pioneer Press two weeks after we opened and we have been busy ever since. The outside of the building and the Dining Room were remodeled in 1985. The kitchen was remodeled and the outside was updated with a new sign and awning in 2004. After almost 26 years Magnolias still has the same owner, same great food. This does not mean that we still have the same menu as 26 years ago. Many of the items ARE still the same, but we are always looking for new items to keep up with the times.
