The full kitchen is the part of a furnished studio that people tend to underestimate. It is easy to picture the bed and the desk. It is harder to picture the moment three weeks into a work assignment when you would rather make eggs at six in the morning than go looking for a restaurant that is open. That is when a kitchen earns its keep — and when it helps to know exactly where the groceries are.
From our front door at 215 South 9th Street, four real grocery stores are within reach on foot, and the closest one is on our own street. Here is how we would rank them for an extended stay in downtown Minneapolis.
The everyday one: Target on Nicollet
Walk four blocks west along 9th Street and you reach the two-level flagship Target at 900 Nicollet Mall. Meet Minneapolis describes its grocery section as a comprehensive option for downtown residents doing a weekly shop, and that is about right: produce, dairy, meat, frozen, pantry staples, plus a CVS pharmacy and a Starbucks inside.
The store generally opens at 7 a.m. and closes at 8 p.m. Monday through Saturday, with shorter Sunday hours, though it is worth checking the store page before a late run. It is also a stop on the Minneapolis skyway system — which matters a great deal in February, when those same four blocks are a very different walk.
The full grocery run: Lunds & Byerlys on Hennepin
When you want a proper grocery store — a butcher counter, a real produce department, a deli, prepared food for the nights you would rather not cook — it is Lunds & Byerlys at 1201 Hennepin Avenue. It was downtown’s first full-service grocery store and it is still the one people who live here use. There is a Caribou Coffee and a Bachman’s floral counter inside, and a separate wine and spirits shop in the building next door with a walk-in cold beer vault.
It is roughly a fifteen-minute walk northwest, or a short bus ride down Hennepin. This is the one to plan your first big shop around when you arrive.
Worth the longer walk: Trader Joe’s and Whole Foods
Trader Joe’s is at 721 Washington Avenue South in the Mill District, about twenty minutes on foot toward the river and U.S. Bank Stadium. It is the right stop for frozen meals, snacks and inexpensive wine — the things that quietly make a month-long stay cheaper.
Whole Foods Market sits at 222 Hennepin Avenue in the North Loop and is open 8 a.m. to 9 p.m. every day. Along with the groceries there is a hot and salad bar, a made-to-order sandwich counter, a sushi counter and a liquor store, plus an Amazon returns desk — a small thing until the week you need it.
Both are reachable by bus or light rail as well as on foot. A few light-rail segments are running on replacement buses this summer, so it is worth checking the Metro Transit trip planner before you go. If you are weighing whether to bring a car at all, we wrote about getting around downtown without one, and about where to park overnight if you do.
In summer, skip the store one day a week
From late spring into October, the outdoor markets beat any of the above for produce, bread and eggs, and they are a better morning besides. We put together a separate guide to the farmers markets near downtown with days, hours and walking directions. And on the evenings when cooking loses its appeal entirely, our neighborhood dining guide covers what is within a few blocks.
What is already waiting in your studio
Every studio at Oaklands on 9th is fully furnished with a full kitchen, so what you are buying is food, not cookware. WiFi, heat, all utilities and laundry are included, and there is no contract — stay a night, a week or a month. Some units are pet friendly. If you are still working out what to bring, our packing guide for extended stays goes through it item by item.
If family is coming into town for part of your stay and you want something grander for a weekend, our sister properties — the mansion rooms at 300 Clifton and the Pillsbury Club — are a few minutes away, and Minneapolis Trolley Tours is a good way to show them the city.
Come stay with us
Furnished studios with full kitchens, free laundry and everything included, right in the middle of downtown Minneapolis. Check dates and book directly, or call us at (612) 314-5124 — we are happy to talk through which studio fits the length of your stay.