Craft Cafe, Artifact Opening Soon at Mingei International Museum

New eateries will open September 3 and mid-October respectively.
CRAFT CAFÉ at Mingei and ARTIFACT at Mingei Slated To Open Fall 2021
Photo: Official

Mingei International Museum is set to reopen on September 3 after a comprehensive three-year renovation.

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When it does, Mingei will be home to Craft Cafe at Mingei and Artifact at Mingei, two new restaurants from Urban Kitchen. Both will be located in the free and welcoming Commons level, a new “living room” for Balboa Park featuring “cutting-edge design, exhibitions, and dynamic artist installations, all rooted in Mingei’s mission to celebrate folk art, craft, and design from around the world,” according to a press release.

The two venues are the latest addition to pioneering restaurateur Tracy Borkum and Executive Chef Tim Kolanko’s Cucina family of restaurants — Cucina Urbana, Cucina Sorella, and Cucina Enoteca Del Mar, Newport Beach, and Irvine.

Urban Kitchen was also recently named a food partner at the San Diego Symphony’s new Rady Shell at Jacobs Park.

“The addition of these two dining experiences emphasizes our commitment to creating a lively public gathering space within the Museum,” Rob Sidner, Director and CEO of Mingei International Museum, said in the release. “Through this partnership with locally-based Urban Kitchen Group, visitors will be able to enjoy delicious, sustainable culinary creations aligned with our mission, all without leaving our gloriously transformed building.”

Opening September 3, Craft Cafe will serve museum guests, park visitors and neighborhood residents daily grab-and-go breakfast and lunch from 8:30 a.m. to 5 p.m. Craft will offer specialty coffee, tea and smoothies; pre-made salads and bowls; made-to-order egg dishes and paninis; house-made and locally sourced pastries; and assorted artisan snacks and beverages including gluten-free and vegan selections.

The full-service restaurant, Artifact, opening in mid-October, will feature craft cooking inspired by ancient methods, spices, and botanicals. A quarterly pre-fixe menu crafted by Tim Kolanko, Executive Chef, Urban Kitchen Group, and Jeff Armstrong, Artifact’s Chef de Cuisine, will be a nod to Mingei’s changing international exhibitions in an “environment filled with functional, innovative art and design.”

Caleb J. Spivak

Caleb J. Spivak

Caleb J. Spivak

Caleb J. Spivak

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