Grand Forks-based Toasted Frog exploring possibility of Warroad, Minnesota, location
Apr. 9—WARROAD, Minn. — Calls for a general manager and executive chef for a potential Toasted Frog location in Warroad are only exploratory, but as the northern Minnesota town of 1,800 grows, the owners of the Grand Forks-based restaurant are interested in being in on the action.
"This is exploratory only," said Jonathan Holth, a co-owner of The Toasted Frog. "There is a lot of good growth happening and exciting things happening in that area right now, and we like to be part of growth when that happens."
Holth recently put out an inquiry for candidates interested in serving as general manager or executive chef after Warroad community leaders reached out to him with the idea. The Toasted Frog first opened in Grand Forks in 2006. A location in Bismarck opened in 2010 and one in Fargo in 2014.
Brenda Baumann, executive director of Warroad's Discovery and Development Hub, says Warroad has undergone a transformation in the last five years that has brought new businesses and efforts to revitalize downtown. While the town's eatery options include bars, coffee shops and pizza places, some gaps still remain.
"What we're really lacking, and what we think people would gravitate toward, is a restaurant that is a really nice date place — somewhere you could bring your family to, certainly guests as they come into the community to have a nice, wholesome, hearty meal right here in Warroad," she said.
Though Warroad is smaller than other communities with Toasted Frog locations, Baumann says it is ready to support a restaurant like The Toasted Frog because of its employers and features that draw visitors.
Warroad is home to window and door manufacturing company Marvin, which employs around 2,000 people at its Warroad location and brings around 3,500 guests to the community annually, said Baumann. In the winter, outdoor enthusiasts come to the area for snowmobiling and ice fishing and hockey tournaments bring families to the community. In the future, a
20,000-square foot art, culture and events center
could draw people to events in Warroad year round.
Also, Warroad is a destination in the summer, due to its location along Lake of the Woods.
"There has historically been a lot of support for businesses that do open up in the community," said Holth. "They're committed to growth and doing exciting things, whether that's investment in events or the arts or housing — there are a lot of unique things going on there."
Finding qualified candidates for general manager and executive chef positions is only one step toward the possibility of opening a new restaurant, said Holth. It could be a challenge, considering the smaller population.
"Typically in other cities we're in, there's a much more significant workforce to draw from, but we know we can't run a successful business without talented leadership," said Holth. "We felt that in order to see if there were any candidates that were interested in that position we needed to make some sort of announcement."
Exploring candidates in Warroad is not a guarantee a restaurant will open there, said Holth.
"There are about 20 things that need to fall perfectly into place for something like this to happen, and I'd say we're probably on about number two. So it's a very early stage," he said.
