One eatery closes as another plans opening this winter

Talk about it

One restaurant sees opportunity in Woodbury while another gave it a shot and closed.

Smashburger, a Denver-based burger joint, will open in mid-January, said Greg Creighton, a Smashburger regional vice president. It will occupy the former Cunningham’s Sports building along Hudson Road near Woodbury Drive.

The “fast casual” restaurant will include seating for 70, with another 30 to 35 seats on an outdoor patio. Most of the business is dine-in; there will not be a drive-thru. The restaurant’s trademark are “smashed and seared” made-to-order cheeseburgers that sell for $4.99, Creighton said.

“Our goal is to be every city’s favorite burger place,” he said.

The Woodbury restaurant will be Smashburger’s fifth in Minnesota and part of a larger expansion plan in the state. The company chose Woodbury in part because other fast-casual restaurants, such as Chipotle, appear to be doing well, Creighton said. It plans to employ about 25 people at the Woodbury location.

Smashburger is preparing to open just as another Woodbury restaurant closed its doors. Paisano’s Pizza and Hot Hoagies shut down earlier this month.

Open about two years, Paisano’s was located next to the Woodbury Café in Tamarack Hills.

John McCarty, who owns the Woodbury Café and a St. Paul Paisano’s among other Twin Cities restaurants, could not be reached for comment.

Tags: cunninghams sports, smashburger, business, paisanos, woodbury