Rascal Flatts to enter local food scene

Boot-kickin' restaurateur Toby Keith won't be the only country star cooking up Twin Cities dining dollars. Inexplicably popular country trio Rascal Flatts recently announced plans for an 11-location theme restaurant chain, one that includes a Minneapolis spot set to open next year.

The freshly-minted Rascal Flatts Restaurant Group will debut its concept later this year in Phoenix, Ariz. with a 14,000-square-foot space featuring "attractive price points, live nationally recognized entertainment, a state-of-the-art sound stage, an elevated bar, indoor/outdoor bar and retail space." Nothing stirs the country-lovin' masses like down-homey talk of "attractive price points." Early renderings at the RFRG website confirm that the chain's aesthetics will be in-line with Rascal Flatt's douchey image/fanbase. Possible menu spoiler alert: the Tuna "I Melt."

Additional 2013 openings are slotted for Washington, D.C.; Columbus, Ohio; Pittsburgh, Raleigh, N.C.; and Long Island, N.Y. Locations in Charlotte, N.C; Tampa, Boston, and Madison, Wis., are shooting for 2014.

The delightfully hammy Toby Keith's I Love This Bar & Grill opened in 2010 at the Shops at West End in St. Louis Park.