The Gargoyle Cafe was a short-lived restaurant located at 719 Nicollet Ave., in the Wilmac Building, in Downtown Minneapolis.

It opened on August 31, 1918.  An orchestra was on hand for dancing between 10 and midnight daily.

A big feature seemed to be its ventilation system, promising a complete change of air six times a minute.

Minneapolis Tribune, 1918

The orchestra figured in a would-be robbery on November 30, 1918, when the patrons never heard the fracas made by young robbers accosting manager William Hersel.  Hersel’s valiant fight back, plus the appearance of two soldiers (World War I was on) chased the scoundrels away, but the Minneapolis Tribune’s account gave much credit to the orchestra’s crescendos to make the audience unaware.  (December 2, 1918)

Ads for help for the Gargoyle disappeared on August 23, 1919.

The building was demolished in 1969 for the construction of the IDS building.