1) Donny Dirk's Zombie Den is a Minneapolis bar designed to look like a zombie safe haven during a zombie apocalypse. It has fortified walls, security cameras, and weapons displayed to fight off zombies. 2) The bar has a variety of patrons from many different backgrounds who are drawn to the uniquely themed atmosphere and house-infused cocktail selections. 3) In addition to drinks, the owner's food truck occasionally parks outside to sell "zombie bites" and "melties" for those seeking snacks within the bar's protective walls.

1. By Joey Hamburger
I
n the case of a zombie attack,
where do you go? One might speed
off in a boat and take shelter up
north, deep inside the boundary waters.
Someone else might set up a barricade
in the sporting goods section at the
Mall of America. Ask most people these
days in a world post “World War Z,” and
“Walking Dead” and they will have their
own zombie survival plan.
Me, I’ll be at the bar.
Thanks to Donny Dirk’s Zombie Den,
a zombie safe haven standing strong for
the past five years, I know the safest place
to go.
Donny Dirk’s was created and designed
by Leslie Bock, who is the force behind
the quirky Minneapolis family of Saint
Sabrina’s, Psycho Suzis, and the upcoming
Betty Danger’s Country Club. Through
her exceptional work this zombie bar
is just as thematic as it is practical. I
expected to find the sort of bar with
a gift shop blocking the exit, ensuring
you didn’t leave without your “I Survived
the Zombie Apocalypse and All I Got
Was This Stupid Shirt” apparel. Instead
I discovered a relaxed lounge with a
beautifully creepy interior and an overall
aura of a place where I’d want to have a
couple drinks.
The building at 2027 N. Second St.
has been used as bar since the turn of
the 20th century and was inhabited by
a dive called Stand Up Frank’s before
Donny Dirk’s opened in 2009. Bock
created something new in Donny Dirk’s
while preserving the mystique of an aged
bar with her multi-directional undead
design. Just as the sign above the bar
says “Undead Frank lives,” you can find
remnants of life before Donny Dirk’s in
the embalmed etchings from previous
patrons lining the walls and original bar
top. Entering the bar is like stepping into
the night of the living disco ball. The
whole bar can be described as 1950s
Vegas lounge meets ‘80s Travolta stuck
in time collecting bits and pieces of
memorabilia along the way.
The varied aesthetic of Donny Dirk’s
leaves ample room for any style of patron
to come in for a drink. What sort of
clientele would one expect to find on a
typical night?
Undead by Design
Minneapolis bar offers infused cocktails—and a chance for zombie apocalypse survival
A sign at Donny Dirk’s Zombie Den pays homage to its dive bar predecessor,
Stand Up Frank’s.
FOREIGN FOOD
Our executive editor shares
observations from her
overseas dining experiences.
DESIGN DOS & DON'Ts
Thoughts from our columnists
on best practices when
designing a restaurant. Hint:
Experience matters.
ZOMBIES ATTACK
Find a safe haven—and house-
infused spirits—at the uniquely
designed and undead Donny Dirk's
Zombie Den.
The News and Information Source for Restaurants and the Foodservice Industry
www.foodservicenews.net
Volume 25• Issue 9 November 2014
ODSERVICENEWSFO

2. “As dull of an answer as it sounds, we get
a good mix of everyone,” says bartender
Ryan Eklund, who’s worked between
Donny Dirk’s and Psycho Suzi’s for the past
11 years. “We get an older crowd, a young
hip crowd, your folks just looking for a
good cocktail, musicians, local artists, to
even what you’d call your ‘cosplay’ people.
The kind of people you find at Comic-
Con who get dressed up in full zombie
costume at 7 p.m. on a weekday night.”
Don’t worry about any real zombies
showing up, however, because Donny
Dirk’s is fully prepared as a zombie safe
haven. The exterior of Donny Dirk’s is
the classic Northeast Minneapolis fortified
brick compound. Combine that with the
steel door and nothing is getting inside
except for the occasional resupply. Near
the entrance is a video monitor with feeds
to cameras on all sides of the exterior
and interior. If zombies somehow make
their way past the bouncer and through
the door, you’ll find the wall lined with
suitable weapons for a zombie defense:
a baseball bat, a cricket mallet, a pool
cue sharpened into a shank, a machete,
a samurai sword, and most importantly, a
chain saw inside of a case that reads, “In
case of zombie attack break glass.”
Being holed up while the zombie
apocalypse is happening outside could
become quite the experience. Donny
Dirk’s specialty and No. 1 seller, its house
infused alcohol, will keep you hanging out
and the party raging through to the new
world order. There’s strawberry-jalapeño-
infused tequila, cinnamon-hibiscus-
infused gin, and even apple-infused
whiskey. There’s also the option to create
your own cocktail, which isn’t used so
much these days but the potions keep
the back wall looking like the lab of a mad
scientist.
As a full-service bar, Donny Dirk’s
doesn’t serve food, but Bock’s Undead
Frank’s Food Truck is a frequent street
side supplier. The menu includes “zombie
bites,” a take on pizza rolls, and “melties,”
a panini-meets-burrito creation. Sure,
leaving the safe haven to grab some grub
from a food truck might not appear the
safest option in the apocalyptic world,
but hey an apocalyptic survivor has got
to eat when an apocalyptic survivor has
got to eat.
Donny Dirk’s serves up equal parts
zombie kitsch, unique atmosphere and
original drinks. And I’m now quite excited
for what the newest member of the family,
Betty Danger and her giant Ferris wheel,
will bring to the Twin Cities dining scene
when it opens later this month.
The undead are fond of Donny Dirk’s
drinks.