Epicurian Report

So many yummy restaurants...so little time!

Minneapolis:
The News Room--delicious pear blue cheese salad, with pears drunken in red wine and candied nuts. Divine. Lobster Tarragon pasta with thinly sliced crispy cauliflower and roasted asparagus. Roger had fish tacos and German potato salad--interesting combination, but he was happy. The place went on forever. The walls were covered with news stories about Hollywood and music. And the two televisions complicated matters, one played Sabrina, the other, Casablanca; it must have been a Bogart kind of night. I left happy and satisfied.

The Local--across the street from The News Room. Fantastic Irish beer selection, with some locals and some other favorites available (and, ewe, Miller Lite!). Roger had melt-in-your mouth pot roast with mashed potatoes and veggies. I had a chicken sandwich with Guinness steak sauce and a delicious cheese. It was a fun and loud Irish joint. Roger and his friends returned many, many times.

Oceannaire--Ah, finally, real, fresh and delicious seafood. Elise and Mike joined us to celebrate Elise's 29th birthday. The menus had "Happy Birthday Elise" printed on top, and that was just the start of the fun! We started with cocktails; Elise had a wonderful pear martini; I had orange and pineapple juice with soda. We had appetizers. I finally got my Chesapeake Bay blue crabcake...it was worth the wait! Roger and Elise shared raw oysters and tuna poke. We had a relish tray and bread. It was all so yummy, even before we ordered our entrees. We all had different dishes. I had broiled scallops with blue crab meat. Roger had the walnut encrusted tuna seared rare. Elise had firecracker Mahi Mahi that had a spicy sauce. Mike had the Maine lobster...so sweet and tender! Elise's dessert was a tableside flaming Baked Alaska. What a treat for her. We also shared banana cream pie with caramelized bananas on top. What a night! I'll have a couple pictures posted soon. Delicious!!

Hell's Kitchen--Damn Good Food! In the basement on 9th between Nicollet and Marquette. Black toulle, devilish art and waiters in pajamas! The brunch was both tasty and fun. Roger had homemade corned beef hash and I had eggs benedict. So good. I can't wait to go back there...perhaps for lunch next time. Although, it would be difficult to skip the homemade jam, marmalade and peanut butter. I took a caramel pecan roll for home. I can't wait to eat it!

St. Paul:
Blue Door Cafe--good beer selection, good burgers, great spicy peanut wings! Fun place and totally worth the 45 minute wait!

There are so many other good places around the Twin Cities, but these are the most memorable. I look forward to trying other new places and returning to these new favorites!