what's good?

Wade and I went here tonight and we were blown away! The food, service, and drink blew us away. Chef Kevin Kathman, formerly of the French Laundry, is settling in to his new kitchen at Jack's. He creates fantastic plates of bites and smaller plates much like French Laundry and I think Wade and I are in love! we had toyed with the idea of doing the chefs tasting course which was $49 for 5 courses but economically it made more sense for us to order individual courses.

so....What's good?

our first course we both had the Uni Bomb which was bacon, egg and tarragon on sea urchin. I thought it was great but Wade wasn't a fan of the texture which reminded him on over easy eggs, something he really isn't a fan of. but he did like the flavors.

second course I had the Chicken Galantine which was chicken stuffed with beet leaves, served on top of smoked raisins, duxelles, and caramelized cabbage. My favorite part was the cabbage, the raisins also added am unexpected sweetness that made the dish sing. Wade ordered the Steak & Eggs. It was Beef served 3 ways and eggs served 3 ways. This was by far one of the most exciting dishes of the night, the presentation was awesome and the beef was so good, I have never seen Wade eat raw egg yokes till this dish and he was just gushing over the flavors. One of the best parts was we were the first customers to order this dish. It came on the menu tonight. I suggest that everyone goes and orders it because it was AWESOME!

Course 3 we I had the baked oyster (with chorizo and manchego) and wade had the Broccoli and Cheddar soup. His was delicious but mine was phenomenal! It was served on top of pickled essence which smelled like christmas. I could eat dozens of these they were sooooooo good! Needless to say, course 4 was a round of baked oysters (I really loved these!)

Course 5 was unexpected, the chef sent us a wonderful treat! we were able to taste the Olive custard which was so creamy it was like eating a teddy bear (in a good way) and we the scallops which were served with lemon, truffle, brown butter on a taro root chip the texture was nice and the lemon made it really refreshing.

Course 6 wade and I both had the Quail. We decided on this because out server suggested it, out sommelier suggested it and the food runner suggested it so we knew it had to be wonderful! and their suggestions were right! our sommelier paired our final course with a nice sirah which paired well and really brought out the flavors of the Foie and walnut sauce and sour apple. 

1-10 scale:

service: 10

Uni: 8

Chicken Galantine: 8

Steak and eggs: 9

Baked oyster: 10+

Olive Custard: 9

Scallops: 9

Quail: 10

Wine: 10

Cost to value: 11!

will I return:10 totally! with a revolving menu, I feel like there will always be something new to taste!

So after my initial excitement Wade and I decided to go back and give the dinner menu a go. I have to confess, I wasn't all that impressed.

I stick to my guns that the place looks awesome!, they have live music and the cocktails are really great but my expectations for food and service were not met.

The server was more into telling us his story than he was telling us about the food and wine, when we asked "what's good" he would repeat what the menu read for each dish... yeah, i knew that, its on the menu, whats good?...and he kept asking us if we knew what things were like sweet bread and broccolini. I think that is so rude, he should talk to me like I know everything on the menu, if I don't I would ask. Then mid meal, he was pushing for us to buy a Kitchen Social, this is after Wade proudly told him that I bought the kitchen their first social and he said "oh yeah, so you know what a kitchen social is then." Um, yeah we established this, then he tells us that the kitchen will give him a beer if we buy the social. Which placed it even lower on my priority list and makes me want to never buy a social for the kitchen again.

He also pushed us into getting a bottle of wine which i get it, unselling, but it was an awful suggestion. We wanted to get a glass of the wild card white to taste it. On this day it was an Italian white but it was just over oaked, had a weird dirty-sour after bite and was not very enjoyable. The server had not explained that it was oaked at all, if we knew that, we would have never order it but all he could talk about was that all the wines are from mom and pop vineyards and bla bla bla. I am all for supporting the mom and pop shops but if I do not like the product, I'm not going to buy it. TELL ME ABOUT THE PRODUCT.

So we ended up ordering the:

Pan seared scallops, sauteed sweet breads with apple butter, kumquat marmelade. The scallops wsere seared perfectly but the sweat breads were fried and not sauteed. It was overall too sweet and had no real balance.

The people next to us ordered the Mussels and fries, white wine, garlic, shallots, thyme. We thought it looked awesome so we ordered it too without the fries. It was just ok. The sauce was under seasoned and the whole think lacked a wow factor.

Next I ordered the Market Fish which if i remember right was a bronzini, with cauliflower pure and broccolini. Wade ordered the Duo of Pork- grilled pork tenderloin, braised pork short rib, roasted red pepper polenta cake.

My fish was nice and crisp, the cauliflower was velvety and the textures worked well together but again the flavors fell short. The whole dish was missing seasoning, more annoyingly was my fish butchered kind of sloppy. It had bones which in my book if you are making the fish with just a seared filet, this shouldn't happen.

Wade's Pork was pretty good, I would say it was the best dish we had tasted. the tenderloin was perfectly medium rare, the braised short ribs were excellent (yes, the server asked us if we knew what braised was, so annoying) and the polenta great!

so again, my 1-10
Scallops: 3
Mussels: 4
Fish: 6
Pork: 8
Wine: 4
Service: 2
will I return: still a 10. It is close and like I said, the cocktails are amazing and the atmosphere is great! I would imagine I might have a totally different experience with a better server too, so I am not totally writing off the dinner menu.

It's finally happened! Its open! I had the honor of buying the kitchen their first social! The atmosphere is great, the bartenders look like they stepped right out of a 1920 ad for booze. The cocktails are genius, the food is stellar! I had the beef tartare and i can't wait to try more! The food is moderately priced and they have a great wine selection. They have a daily happy hour in the late afternoon and late night. And best of all brunch!

I would have taken a photo of the food but tartare is not a pretty dish but it tastes good. My bartender suggested it!

1-10
Service: 8
Cocktails: 10
Wine: 9
Food: 9 but I need to have more to really say
Value: 8
Will I return? 10!!!

I first heard that the Seafood Palace next to my house was closing and the Bangkok Deli #2 was opening 2 weeks ago. I didn't realize that they would open so quickly! they just had their grand opening 11/11/11 however I don't think they were quite prepared because all of the signage and decor still says Seafood Palace. 

I have to say that some of the most authentic thai food in the twin cities is at Bangkok Deli, and i am pretty judgmental when it comes to thai food. 

I wanted to get more pictures of the food for you but my mouth was faster than my fingers and I was only able to get a shot of our appetizer, Tod Mun Goong. 

We also had the Rad Na and Yum woonsen. Everything was STELLAR! 

On a 1-10 scale:

Service: waitress 6 (she didn't know the menu and totally didn't pick up on social cues), Manager 9 (she was sweet)

Tod Mun Goong (shrimp patties): 10

Rad Na (flat noodles with gravy): 9

Yum woonsen (glass noodle salad): 9

Value to cost: 10 - the most expensive thing on the menu was $12

Will I return: 10 absolutely! its in my back yard and I will take all my friends there!

2523 Nicollet Ave. Minneapolis, MN 55404

 

 

 

I have been slacking on this because I ate here on my Birthday and I am a bit behind on posting this. I have been wanting to go here for a long time and it was a pleasant surprise when Wade brought me here. 

This place has a cool vibe, its exciting and really relaxing. They grow vegetables on the roof of the building and use all organic and happy animals. All of the servers wear flannel which i thought was a nice nod to farmers. They have an amazing wine list, it was definitely thought through by a sommelier. The best part was you could order any bottle by the half bottle. they would then take the rest of the bottle and add it to a chalk board and anyone in the restaurant could order a glass of the left over bottle. This gives people an opportunity to have a glass of a $50 at a reasonable price. I love that. The cocktails were all classic cocktails mostly gin based, so you heard no complaints from me! Our server was great he was well informed, fast, and decisive. So, what's good?

The menu is set up in 4 sections: Apps, Toasts, Entrees, Sides.

starting with an app, our server recommended the Duck confit salad. It was amazing, it had chopped cabbage, almonds and duck fat croutons. It had everything going for it, freshness, texture, flavor!

we followed up with a toast, these are different things served on the side of toast, I imagine it like a scandinavian bruscetta. Our server (and host) said the Beef tartare was the best toast. It was great, i had to prepare it because it is served with a raw egg yoke on top and wade cant handle that part, but it is just too yummy. However if you don't do red meat or raw meat you might not like this dish.

we shared an entree, we had the Grilled venison. It was served with mashed rutabaga, fried kale and gjetost. It was the only dish i could catch a photo of before eating it and ruining it. You can't tell by the photo (no flash photography allowed inthe restaurant) but it was a mouthgasm.

Maybe the one draw back to this place for certain guests is the menu is small and if you are not exactly an adventurous eater, you might not find something that you like. But with seasonal menus, you never know what you will find!

On a 1-10 scale:

Service: 10

Duck confit Salad: 9

Beef Tartare Toast: 9

Grilled Venison: 10

Cocktails: 9 

Wine: 10

Value to cost: 9

Will I return: 10 totally

 

right on the charming Main St. on St. Anthony Main in North East Minneapolis Vic's offers great views and inexpensive wines.

My father-inlaw sent us a gift certificate for Vic's because he knew we loved wine. The do have a large wine list with wines that run as low as 7 or 8 dollars a bottle. they even have a happy hour that offers wine for 2$ a bottle! shocking!

other than wine, what's good?

Our server was great, she was quick and had an opinion! she reccomended the calamari for our appetizer and for the main dises she had several reccomendations, I had the crab stuffed halibut

with mashed potatoes and Wade had the filet mignon with mashed potatoes. Although, the wine was great, and the service was on it, the food just wasn't all that special. You could get these flavors anywhere.

On a 1-10 scale:

Service: 9

Calimari: 7

Halibut: 7

Filet Mignon: 7

Wine: 9

Value to Cost: 10

Will I return: 7. The views and wines are really great, so if im in the area yeah!

 

If you are interested in trying Vic's, todays Groupon is $25 for $50 worth to spend at Vic's check it out here.

 

So since we were on an appetizer kick we decided to check out the Lowry in Uptown. A new restaurant a part of the Blue Plate Restaurant Club. They did a super job of transforming the space from a blockbuster video to this awesome new space full of dark wood and life. 

We were going to just have the Rockefeller Oysters and Deviled Eggs but as we watched the food come out of the kitchen we couldn't help but have more.

Our server was really great and told us her favorite things on the menu which were many and Wade and I were able to decide on 2. 

The Braised Beef Sandwich and the Mac n cheese. So is the great tradition of a good server...up-sell. She suggested the sandwich and a side of mac and cheese, awesome!

This place was really great, from having cheese curd samples at the host stand to welcome guests to the expansive and thought menu we were impressed. 

On a 1-10 scale:

Service: 9

Rockefeller Oysters: 8 

Deviled Eggs: 9 (get them)

Braised Beef Sandwich: 9 (we had the sweet potato fries that came with this crazy delicious sauce and the sandwich was spicy!)

Mac n Cheese: 8 even the side was a large portion. The full size might be too rich.

Value to Cost: 9

Will I return: 10. There are so many more things I would like to try.

 

Guest Blogger: Wade 1-10 scale:

Service: 9

Rockefeller Oysters: 10 

Deviled Eggs: 9 

Braised Beef Sandwich: 8

Value to Cost: 9

Will I return: 10. Great food, great service, great atmosphere

Well this had to be one of the biggest disappointments of the night! Wade and I decided to use another instant groupon and we thought this place had a great one. For $7 you get $14 worth of food and drink. However we were not prepared to see that the only think you could afford for $14 was an appetizer. 

When you first walk in to this restaurant you still see the remnants of the previous Restaurant Miami. Who in my opinion did a much better job with the space. Viva Brazil has created an odd cafeteria feeling. Their bar was so dead on a friday night they had to keep the paper cups on top of the bottles to keep the bugs out. the place although painted orange felt dead and cold. The menu and drinks were oddly and shockingly overpriced. A lot of the menu was blacked out with a sharpie making it look cheap but since Wade and I had our groupon we decided to stay for an appetizer and cocktail. They do offer delicious caipirinhas so we had that and the coconut chicken satay. At first it was awesome, till I hit a bout of gristle. Ugh!

On a 1-10 scale:

 

Service: 3 (no one welcomed us, there was no real "server")

Chicken Satay: 5

Caipirinhas: 7

Value to cost: 1

Will I return: 1 (this place is not going to make it)

 

Guest Blogger: Wades 1-10

Service: 8 he was nice and cute

Chicken Satay: 8.5 (Small not that expensive great sauce)

Ambiance: 3 

Value to ost: 5

Will you return: NO

 

So I think Rinata has a stellar happy hour and this was not the first time I have been here. However, I have never tried their dinner menu so tonight was the night! Wade and I looked on our instant groupons and saw Rinata had 10$ for $20. They had the same deal on foursquare, so if you ever decide to go there, make sure you take your phone or plan ahead.

So What's Good?

Appetizers:

Steamed PEI mussels with garlic chili flakes and white wine:

I agree, these were in a great butter, garlic and chile sauce which we sopped up with the bread they gave us (by the way, the bread is fresh and awesome! it comes with a small plate of olive oil and olive tapenad and it is delicious right down to the texture)

Eggplant intravoli with pine nut garlic goat cheese and tomato sugo:

This one was good but I personally liked the mussels better, Wade would disagree with me and make this the first choice. I found the cheese gritty but the overall taste was great.

 

Dinner:

Gnocchi with garlic rubbed ribeye and roasted mushroom sauce.

 

The mushroom sauce was great but I found the dish to be overly salty. It was not a memorable dish, but it was good. the ribeye was overcooked and dry but the gnocchi itself was super! It just seemed that for everything good about it there was something bad about it just making it a bla dish. I wasn't impressed.

 

On a 1-10 scale:

Service: 7 (it was slow but i loved that she had an opinion and really was attentive when she was at the table. She didn't look panicked even though there was only 2 people working the WHOLE front of the restaurant. There was no bussers, bartenders, hosts, just 2 servers doing it all.)

Mussels: 7

Eggplant: 6

Gnocchi: 4

Value to cost: 8 (especially when you take advantage of the groupons)

will I return: 7 I really do like their happy hour, but I probably wont return for their dinner menu

 

(guest blogger) WADE'S 1-10 scale:

Service: 8

Mussels: N/A (i don't necessarily like mussels but maybe they were good for mussels maybe they weren't, I don't know?)

Eggplant: 8 small portion very good taste

Gnocchi: 7 too salty

Value to Cost: 9 

will you return: 8

 

Granted this is an odd post. Pretty much everyone in Minneapolis has been to a Dunn Bros, but this one is different. This is the first Dunn Bros with their own mini bakery inside. They bake thier own bread roast thier own veggies (and coffee of course) and all of their pasteries and goodness is made in house. I have been here at least 4 times and I have yet to be dissapointed! This might be one of those rare gems where everything on the menu is good. One of the best parts, the have french fries on the menu for $1.69!!! and they are BAKED so they are half the fat! I cant rave enough, so if ever you are in my hood and want a quick snack or a gourmet sandwich stop here in the old A25 space connected to the old Azia!

1-10 scale:

service 9

food 9

drinks 9

will I return 10!