Historic Rochester Workshop reinvented as a bar, food hall and barber shop
One of the last buildings left standing from the former Seneca Foods operation is about to be re-energized for the summer of 2021, bringing the ‘food hall’ concept to Rochester for the first time after a two-year building and planning process.
Workshop Food Hall and Bar, the latest project from Resident Property Management co-owners Andy and Kari Friederichs, will open to the public for the first time in mid-June, following the opening of Workshop Barbers in the space at 1232 Third Avenue SE earlier this month. The couple says the hall will have five different food concepts, an indoor seating area for roughly 300 people, and extra seating for 100 people outside — plus a space called the “Minnesota Room” for larger groups and conferences.
When the Freiderichs initially bought the building — the former workshop building for Seneca Foods and Reid Murdoch & Co., dating back to the 1930s — the rest of the Seneca Foods campus sat across the street. Andy says the building had stuck out to him for years, and he and Kari made sure to save as much of the original architecture as possible.
“There’s a lot that goes into shaping an old building like this into something new,” said Andy. “You’ve gotta have the old with the new, right? It’s a nice blend. We made a point to leave what we could and use what we could.”
Now, the main portion of the Seneca canning complex is demolished, leaving a little-used cold storage building, the corn cob water tower, and the Workshop building as the only physical remnants of the operation. Thanks to that, Kari says the history of the building is an even larger part of the food hall’s allure than before.
“We love buildings with stories, so this has been a really rewarding project for us,” said Kari. “Think of all the people that had a role in bringing this building to life. We’re just the next in line, and we hope we serve it well.”
Originally, plans called for various vendors to take up space inside the hall, but Kari and Andy eventually opted to develop the entire menu in-house, with the help of two professional chefs.
There will be five vendors, serving 10-12 menu options apiece — in addition to the Workshop Bar, with dozens of beer and cocktail options.
Cob’s Kitchen: soups, salads, desserts
Reid’s Pizza: Detroit-style pizza
Murdoch’s Place: burgers, hot dogs, milkshakes & malts
Birdie’s: Nashville hot chicken, chicken & waffles, wings, tenderloins
Julio’s: tacos, authentic Mexican, plus “some Americanized options,” Andy says
(Know before you go: Kari said the Thai shrimp pizza from Reid’s was her top choice, while Andy opted for the tuna sandwich from Cob’s.)
Kari and Andy say they chose to pursue lots of “crowd-pleaser” options with their menu: things that can be made quickly, but with a higher quality than a run of the mill fast-casual option. They call their target “elevated casual,” which Andy hopes can appeal to every person in Rochester — making the Workshop a melting pot of sorts.
“We wanted to hit it right up the middle,” said Andy. “We want to be a venue that everyone can enjoy — not a super high-end, expensive place, but also not a super cheap, greasy-spoon type of place. We really want to make it so all people can come here and enjoy a quality meal.”
Kari says the last major hurdle before opening is to hire staff, adding there will be a hiring fair at the Workshop next week. A grand opening date isn’t set in stone yet, but expect it to be a Monday in mid-June.
Isaac Jahns is a Rochester native and a 2019 graduate of the Missouri School of Journalism. He reports on politics, business and music for Med City Beat.
