On Eve of Outlet Mall, Jensen's Supper Club Seeks Reinvention

With construction of a massive outlet mall about to begin just down the street, Jensen's Supper Club owner Doran Jensen is busy repositioning his restaurant—an Eagan destination—to draw in a new kind of consumer.

"We really are going to be focused on more walk-in traffic," Jensen told the Eagan City Council on Tuesday night. "We really felt we need to get a more casual feeling, especially now with people making ... a choice for shopping."

Jensen's plans to invest as much as $900,000 into a series of internal and external renovations—and the purchase of adjacent land—designed to expand parking and update the 17-year-old restaurant's ambiance. Jensen hopes the modifications will appeal to shoppers that will be drawn in to the soon-to-be-built Paragon outlet mall.

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The $100 million outlet mall, which will feature roughly 100 upscale stores in an open-air format, will likely be completed late next year. Ground-breaking is expected to occur this spring.

Click here for more information about the outlet mall plans.

Jensen plans to expand the vestibule area of his restaurant, add a large central bar with extra seating, and make a number of other aesthetic improvements. The renovations will also extend to the exterior of the restaurant. On Tuesday, Jensen met with members of the Eagan Economic Development Authority to discuss a purchase agreement for a former credit union adjacent to the restaurant. The credit union property is currently owned by the EDA.

For years, the presence of the credit union limited parking on the west side of the restaurant, according to Jensen. But the realignment of Rahn Road in preparation for the outlet mall development made it necessary to demolish the vacant building—an action the EDA approved last year.

With the building gone, Jensen's plans to purchase a portion of the property from the EDA for an expanded parking lot. The purchase price will not exceed $310,000, according to city documents.

The parking lot, interior improvements and additional landscaping should be complete next year, several months before the opening of the Paragon mall, Jensen said.