With the arrival of Hey Bear, the St. Anthony Park corner of University and Raymond avenues has your mornings covered.
There’s espresso at Workhorse Coffee Bar, walk-up small-batch coffee drinks during the warmer months at Roundtable Coffee Works, classic sit-down breakfasts at the original Keys Cafe and now, since Hey Bear opened last fall, quick breakfasts and lunches for when you’re on the go.
The pint-sized cafe, in the spot previously occupied by Foxy Falafel, is run by the same folks behind Roundtable. It’s primarily takeout-focused, so everything is served to-go, though there are about 20 seats if you choose to hang out.
Unlike Roundtable, Hey Bear doesn’t have an espresso machine of its own but serves drip coffee, cold press and a house jasmine-lemongrass iced tea with a really well-developed flavor, though I personally needed to sweeten it a bit to cut the floral bitterness.
The breakfast burrito at Hey Bear, a cafe in St. Anthony Park, is served Dec. 13, 2024, with eggs, rice, beans, corned beef and American cheese; the typical meat is the cafe’s housemadechorizo. Hey Bear opened in the former Foxy Falafel spot on Raymond Avenue in fall 2024. (Jared Kaufman / Pioneer Press)
The breakfast menu ranges from quick fare like a house sausage breakfast sandwich to more hefty options like a breakfast burrito and a griddled potato and rice bowl with chorizo, soft egg and chili salsa.
That burrito was particularly good: Eggs, black beans, rice, delightfully gooey American cheese and chorizo, which I, a non-pork-eater, swapped out for their housemade corned beef. A little messy but more than plenty satisfying; the kind of meal that warms you up from the inside.
And everything is made in-house, too, from the chorizo to the corned beef for the lunchtime Reuben to the mojo pork that shows up atop their Cubano and the lunch rice-and-bean bowl. (Also available is a beet Reuben, which I’m eager to try on a future visit.)
The cafe serves its entire menu the whole time they’re open, so it’s ideal for a late breakfast or perhaps early lunch.
We stopped by in the late morning; I wasn’t willing to admit the day was passing me by, hence the breakfast burrito. But my more well-adjusted dining partner found her ideal lunchtime sandwich in the Big Jim, a cold ham and turkey number with homemade pickles, red pepper relish and smoked scallion aioli. The aioli tempers the slight spice of the relish, which in turn tempers the richness of the savory aioli: It’s a productive sauce relationship.
Another factor I appreciate — and wish were more commonplace! — is that all of Hey Bear’s posted menu prices include tax. The breakfast burrito, listed at a very reasonable $9, actually costs $9 at the register. With the take-out focus, Hey Bear is quick and affordable but still homey; perfect for a creative, humble, hard-working neighborhood.
Small Bites are first glances — not intended as definitive reviews — of new or changed restaurants.
Hey Bear
Where: 791 Raymond Ave
Hours: 7:30 a.m. to 2:30 p.m. Tuesdays through Saturdays. Closed (“hibernating”) Sundays and Mondays.
Contact: heybear.cafe, or on Instagram @heybear.cafe
Atmosphere: Sunny and sparse, with a takeout focus.
Prices: Breakfast items range from $7 to $10; lunch $9 to $11. “Simple stuff” (grilled cheese, peanut butter and jelly, turkey-and-cheese or ham-and-cheese melt) is $5–$6. Drinks range from $1.50 (juice box) to $2.75 (small drip coffee) to $4.50 (cold press).
Don’t miss: The cute bear illustrations decorating the bathroom walls.
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