Cooper's Hawk Winery & Restaurants is lining up Minnetonka and Woodbury for its first crack at the Minnesota market, a move that would drop the chain's wine-club-and-tasting-room setup into two busy Twin Cities suburbs. If it comes together, the combo of full-service dining, in-house wines and a retail market would add another sit-down option to both communities' shopping corridors.
According to the Minneapolis/St. Paul Business Journal, Cooper's Hawk is actively eyeing sites in Minnetonka and Woodbury for its first Minnesota restaurants. The outlet also reports that the brand's Wine Club has topped roughly 850,000 members, a key engine for the chain's repeat business.
Cooper's Hawk was founded in 2005 by Tim McEnery and is headquartered in Chicago. In a January 2025 press release, the company said it was adding senior leaders to support "accelerated growth" as it expands its footprint, per PR Newswire. Industry and promotional materials put the Wine Club in the high hundreds of thousands of members, underscoring the chain's focus on recurring, member-driven visits, according to Actor Awards.
How the concept works
The Cooper's Hawk setup pairs a full-service dining room with a Napa-style tasting room and an on-site retail market - a hybrid the company says helps support both dining and membership revenue. The chain's Wine Club FAQ explains that members can pick up their monthly selections at any Cooper's Hawk location, a perk that turns routine wine pickups into regular restaurant visits, per Cooper's Hawk.
Where it might fit in the Twin Cities
Minnetonka's Ridgedale Center anchors a busy west-metro retail district, and Woodbury Lakes is a large outdoor lifestyle center - exactly the kind of retail hub that tends to fit Cooper's Hawk's footprint. Ridgedale's visitor page describes the mall as a regional draw, and Woodbury Lakes markets itself as a dining-and-shopping destination. The chain's recent suburban push, including permitting and hiring activity tied to a Pleasant Prairie buildout earlier this year, shows it often follows high-traffic retail corridors when entering new markets, as local coverage documented via wine nest ready to land.
Neither Cooper's Hawk nor local officials have released firm opening dates or specific addresses for the Minnetonka or Woodbury projects, according to the Business Journal. Until permits or leasing filings surface, the early clues are more likely to be job postings and municipal records than a splashy grand-opening announcement.
If the chain moves ahead, Minnetonka and Woodbury residents can expect more details in the coming weeks as construction plans and hiring start to ramp up. This coverage will be updated once permits, leases or company statements confirm the sites and opening timelines.
