What’s next, green stamps? With the cost of food and dining going up, and the economy going down, restaurants are scrambling to find new ways of keeping diners coming in the doors. Both Parasole, Inc. and the Twin Cities Originals have recently introduced customer loyalty programs that use member cards to track purchases and reward […]
Cocinero Karimi at the Bedlam Theatre
August 29, 2008 by
Okay, here’s a quick tip for foodies: the "The Cooking Show Con Mero Cocinero Karimi," playing this weekend and next at the Bedlam Theatre is very, very funny. I saw the show last year when Robert Karimi performed it at Pangea World Theater. I won’t spoil the fun by giving away too many details (actually, […]
Las Mojarras – Seafood Mexican Style
August 28, 2008 by
Every time I have set foot inside Las Mojarras, in the former Me Gusta space on E. Lake St., the place has been completely empty, which is a shame, because it’s one of the most ambitious and attractive Mexican restaurants in the Twin Cities. Which might actually be part of the problem. Prices are very […]
Best Tamarindo Deal in Town
August 26, 2008 by
I was biking back from the office on the Midtown Greenway, when I ran across this young woman selling not just lemonade (or its instant equivalent) but four different aguas frescas, including lemonade, horchata (a sweet milky drink made with rice), and agua de tamarindo. (I can’t remember what the fourth was, but my guess […]
Italiani's Family Restaurant Grill & Bar
August 24, 2008 by
I got a hot tip recently – a sighting of a pasta making machine at Italiani’s Family Restaurant Grill & Bar, 3508 E. Lake Street. That’s pretty rare these days – making pasta by hand is very labor intensive. Back when I lived in the neighborhood, the place was known as the Lake Street Garage, […]
Hoang Thien Y Deli: Tastes of Vietnam
August 21, 2008 by
Drive down Eat Street – Nicollet Avenue – and you can see the whole drama of restaurant existence in a block or two – life, death, and sometimes renewal. Last night, we headed out for dinner at one of my favorite Chinese restaurants, Relax (a really unfortunate choice of name), and discovered that Relax wasn’t […]
Vicky's Place
August 16, 2008 by
If I hadn’t been surfing the web, I would never have run across the website of The Bush Chicken, the online magazine of Minnesota’s Liberian community, and then I also would never have heard of Vicky’s Place. The ad in the Bush Chicken looked promising, though – it promised fufu and soup, torborgee, attieke, fried […]
Dining Adventures: From Bangkok to Buenos Aires
August 15, 2008 by
I finally made it to Krua Thailand to try their famous Boat Soup – famous enough at least to have a banner outside the restaurant advertising it. Turns out boat soup is basically the Thai answer to pho, the Vietnamese beef noodle soup – but with one important difference – boat soup is made with […]
Big E is Back!
August 13, 2008 by
Eric Austin, the talented chef behind the late, lamented Big E’s Soulfood on Eat Street, has resurfaced in South Saint Paul with a new upscale restaurant, the Bourbon Street Steakhouse, in the dining space formerly occupied by TreVina Italian Steak House. It’s a more suitable venue for fine dining than the little storefront on Eat […]
Sawatdee and Hare Krishna
August 12, 2008 by
Sharon Mollerus/Creative Commons Sawtdee To commemorate the lives lost in last year’s bridge collapse, Supenn Harrison, owner of the Sawatdee restaurants, has invited all of Minnesota’s Buddhist monks to participate in a commemorative service and alms offering in the parking lot of Sawatdee Bar & Café, 118 N. 4th St., Minneapolis next Saturday, August 16. […]