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When you have a successful game plan you don’t mess with it much, but it sometimes pays to expand on it ever so slightly, and that’s just what Geoff Swenson has done with the new Swensons’ Lakehouse restaurant in Center City.  He took his successful restaurant formula from out west called “Stacks” (five locations in the Bay Area) and is now dishing up those sought-after breakfast and lunch specialities back in his old stomping grounds, along with steakhouse and seafood classics.
 
The California connection gets a nod from the state flag flying outside the Lakehouse;  but the Swensons are genuinely happy to be side-by-side again and part of the community where they grew up and were introduced to good homemade food.

Geoff and his brother/partner Cory sat down with the Press in the upper level conference room of Swensons’ Lakehouse, with Geoff’s two English bulldogs crated nearby.
 
Geoff said he’s always wanted to do a classy American dining destination that would be known for being worth driving a distance to enjoy.  He remembers when he was a kid people would take a Sunday drive and families would bond over dining experiences and new scenery.  This is what he wanted to bring back.

Swensons’ Lakehouse is being looked upon as part of a renaissance of sorts for dining in the Chisago Lakes area, and Geoff and his brother-partner Cory couldn’t be prouder.  They don’t view hotspots like The Northern Grill and Meredee’s as competition, they see them contributing to boosting the economy in the region and giving people selection.  

As for Swensons’ Lakehouse-- which was gutted and transformed from its prior life as a bank-- Geoff is just pleased that nobody came along before him and snatched-up the site. On the heavily traveled Highway 8, perched on lakeshore, the location is ideal. Plans are now coming together for outdoor dining on a patio meant to take advantage of lake vistas, the sunset and boaters.

The Swenson brothers said they weren’t even aware of the closed bank site until they went to inspect another vacated restaurant in Center City with their real estate broker.  The PorterHouse wasn’t right for what they had in mind,  but coincidentally, the broker also had keys to the bank about 200 feet away. They instantly recognized the potential it presented.  A nine-month build-out got underway and Swenson’s Lakehouse opened in late fall.

When Geoff lived in Lindstrom, as a teen he held food service jobs working for a Who’s Who of local cuisine. Restaurants where he fondly recalls his mentor relationships--that would draw visitors out of the cities for a day trip--included places like Trapper’s and The Rainbow and  Kaffe Kocket, a Swedish Bakery.  The first eatery he took over and ran was The Rainbow. He would land in California around 1992.
The name on this newest classic American supperclub -- Swenson’s-- was chosen to honor Geoff and Cory’s parents Betty and Donald.  

Geoff’s return to where he grew up was prompted by Cory, who retired from working in wireless technology and looked to start an entirely new life.  Swensons’ Lakehouse will become Cory’s world as soon as the operation hits its perfect rhythm (staffing, menu selections, inventory, vendors) and Geoff will go back to spending more time (ie: no Minnesota winters)  in California.

Cory and Geoff, and their brother Dan, played on North Center Lake as kids. They were nurtured on local family farms and love visiting the “old haunts” that remain,  and have begun getting used to ones that have been turned into housing plats.

“We have been reconnecting and everybody has been so supportive,” Geoff said.  The Minnesota Nice thing has been especially helpful in plowing through the retro-fit of the old bank. County and city officials have been amazingly cooperative and quick to respond, they stated.

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