Woodbury Lakes will be the first suburban location for Bebe Zito, the scoop shop from Gabriella Grant-Spangler and Ben Spangler, when it opens later this year. "We wanted to see how this business would look outside the city," said Grant-Spangler.

The new storefront will have expanded space for grab-and-go treats, but should guests want to linger over burgers and a scoop of Animal Frossting or the vegan Marvelous Mrs. Hazel, there will be beer and wine available, too. "It will be a place you can go and hang out after work or after shopping," said Grant-Spangler.

The new location at the suburban outdoor shopping center, located at the Interstate 494-94 interchange, also will include a lounge area and private event space.

Bebe Zito began as a pop-up, with chef Spangler tinkering with flavors using ice cream as his medium. The couple opened the first Bebe Zito in a small storefront in Minneapolis' Lowry Hill neighborhood. With its rotating array of fun flavors, the humble ice cream shop soon expanded its offerings to include an outdoor burger (and eventually fried chicken) stand that was an instant sensation, drawing lines and often selling out.

In 2021, Market at Malcolm Yards food hall opened in Prospect Park, doubling the access to Bebe Zito and offering fans the first consistent opportunity to order those burgers (and inside, to boot).

This year brought the couple's most ambitious project to date, the opening of Eat Street Crossing, where they partnered with another food-world couple, Lina Goh and John Ng of Zen Box Izakaya. In addition to their ice cream, burgers and fried chicken, the Spanglers expanded to include the first outpost of Ouro Pizzaria, a Brazilian-style pizza stand.

This new stand-alone space positions them for more expansion with the development of an ordering app, much like how people can order ahead to Starbucks.

If all goes as planned, Bebe Zito Woodbury will open this fall. "We're going to bring a little magic in between all the big corporate spots," said Spangler.